Do You Need To Have Lived The Personal Experience To Write About A Topic

Do you need to have lived personal experience to write about some things?

Not necessarily, however, it wouldn’t hurt your story if you are able to write from experience, but without the experience, it’s wise to do in-depth research if you have no experience. Many authors write about Paris having never been there.

What I meant by not necessarily, I don’t mean you have to have been a to a place to write about it.

Writing about people is a lot different than writing about a place or object.

I mean don’t fall into the writing stereotypes traps about the subject matter. Do research and learn the truth about the topic of your story. I’ve notice when writing of ethnic groups almost all modern writers take their theme from movies and videos. Movies are not the best source of information. Reading books on the subject is the best source of information. I’ve also noticed when writing about people, especially African Americans, it’s always based upon urban life, gun or domestic violence or Black men and women behaving immorally. Again, that’s stereotypical. Only a small percentage of Black Americans live in these crime ridden areas portrayed in movies and television shows. The vast majority of African Americans do not live that way even if they live in poverty or the ghetto.

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It’s okay to write about legends, but make sure you make it clear where it come from. To let readers know you are not a bigot, you are simply writing about one.

In literature sometimes stereotypes can’t be avoided. If you’re writing about the past, which is ridden scurrilously with stereotypes; you may have to add some stereotypes to show certain characters’ way of thinking. But don’t overkill it. No, this is not advocating for writing a character nicer than they were in that era. It’s making a story more believable.

But in the famous words of Bessie Smith: “You can’t sing the blues if you haven’t lived them.”

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