Re:Scott Fitzgerald's Last Act
by hluska on Monday October 28, 2024 @01:52PM
(#41974009)
I suspect that when you say “non-commercial”, you’re talking about literary fiction. If so, yes there are a lot of tragedies within the field. David Foster Wallace is certainly one, as were Fitzgerald and Kerouac. J.D. Salinger had some interesting personal habits I don’t agree with, but he largely became a recluse to hide from fame.
But outside of those examples, you will find a large number of literary fiction writers who actually lived relatively normal lives. William Carlos William was a doctor as well as a writer - he served as Head of Pediatrics at a hospital in New Jersey for almost forty years until he died. Margaret Atwood turns 85 in a couple of weeks - her long term partner recently died but she’s still somewhat active on Twitter sharing information about the situation in Ukraine.
And I could keep going.
Writers are human and so express the full range of humanity, from dying young via suicide or alcoholism, to having successful medical practices and family lives.
But outside of those examples, you will find a large number of literary fiction writers who actually lived relatively normal lives. William Carlos William was a doctor as well as a writer - he served as Head of Pediatrics at a hospital in New Jersey for almost forty years until he died. Margaret Atwood turns 85 in a couple of weeks - her long term partner recently died but she’s still somewhat active on Twitter sharing information about the situation in Ukraine.
And I could keep going.
Writers are human and so express the full range of humanity, from dying young via suicide or alcoholism, to having successful medical practices and family lives.