The New York Times had a great essay recently by Geoff Nicholson, entitled Drink What You Know. It’s part book review — for a re-issued “The Hour: A Cocktail Manifesto” — and part survey of literary drinking and writer’s advice on both writing and drinking. It includes this gem about the perils of my profession. “People telling you how to drink is every bit as tedious and annoying as people telling you not to drink at all.”
Nicholson continues:
When you think about it, rules for drinking are not so different from rules for writing. Many of these are so familiar they’ve become truisms: Write what you know. Write every day. Never use a strange, fancy word when a simple one will do. Always finish the day’s writing when you could still do more. With a little adaptation these rules apply just as well for drinking. Drink what you know, drink regularly rather than in binges, avoid needlessly exotic booze, and leave the table while you can still stand.
That seems true enough, but my favorite piece of advice comes near the end:
The best you can hope for is to arrive, by whatever means, at the same conclusions as those who are older and wiser. Another piece of advice from Richard Ford runs, “Don’t drink and write at the same time,” a rule I follow scrupulously. But a more nuanced version of the same rule comes from Keith Waterhouse, the author of “Billy Liar.” He said you should never drink while you’re writing, but it’s O.K. to write while you’re drinking, a nice distinction.
Let that sink in. You should never drink while you’re writing, but it is acceptable to write while you’re drinking. Whew, dodged a bullet there.
I tried to write the other day after returning from a tasting and it did not go well, so these rules are accurate for me. Thanks for the link. Brian
When I’m composing a Celebrator column, there is no drink at my side. When I am sampling beers, I can see scribbling notes down, but writing? Nah. That’s not the kind of multi-tasking that works for me. It’s too easy to lose notes or spill a beer on the netbook’s keyboard.
That is good solid advice. When asked for my opinion, I preface my choice(s) with; “I’m not telling you what to drink just what you should think about drinking.”
Splitting hairs as it may be, it has held me in good stead.
Excellent post!
Nice piece, Jay, thanks for passing it along.
At the end, I would include this addendum:
If you do write while you’re drinking, make sure not to publish anything until at least the next day, after you’ve read it over.
Some good thoughts in that article, and in the comments it has generated here as well. Thanks for sharing this one.
re those comments, I particularly like and identify with what Sean offered up: “I’m not telling you what to drink just what you should think about drinking.”. I wish more beer evangelists thought this way rather than what’s reflected in some of the ham handed critiques and ‘suggestions’ one hears more and more in beer bars these days .