Ernest Hemingway’s famous advice was to “write drunk, edit sober”. Although there is a lot of debate as to whether he actually said this, the question remains: does alcohol help with the writing process?
Many brilliant writers were also heavy drinkers, including David Foster Wallace, Edgar Allan Poe, Truman Capote, and Hemingway himself. However, whether their drinking helped – or even hindered – their writing is something we’ll never know.
What we can rely on however, is science. There is a growing body of evidence that alcohol in small doses boosts performance on creative tasks, like writing. The key is not to over drink – two standard drinks is considered the sweet spot for creativity.
The Expert Editor has delved into the science behind writing drunk and editing sober and created this neat infographic.
