Should We Only “Write What We Know”? — Guest: S.P. Sipal

One truism in writing that’s often repeated is “write what you know.” The idea behind the advice is that our writing will be easier, more authentic, more knowledgeable, etc. if we’re intimately familiar with what we’re talking about.

And that’s a good point. But from another point of view, the advice can be downright harmful—at least for fiction writing.

That advice can make students or young writers freeze when writing fiction. They might look at their life, with their limited experiences,...