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Writer Stereotypes

Yesterday, I was writing with a writer friend in my home office. My cat scratched at the closed door (which is his way of knocking), so I let him in and said to my friend:

“Now we’re real writers. We’ve got a cat in here.”

He looked at me with an amused expression, and said:

“I think your image of a writer is coffee, cats and bathrobes.”

I promptly nodded and said:

“Yeah.”

Then he said:

“My image of a writer is an old typewriter, a dingy apartment, and empty wine bottles strewn around the place.”

I gave him an amused expression and said:

“Huh. Interesting.”

Now it’s your turn. What image comes to mind when you think of a writer? Is it more cats and coffee? Or typewriters and empty wine bottles? And if it’s something completely different, I’d love to hear about it. Let us know in the comments below. 

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3 Comments

  1. wishingblogger wishingblogger

    I would think of being in the woods, or sitting beside a water front or sit-alone time on a chair (meadow). After all its the thought process and how it flows for an individual! But certain points might just hit anywhere even when you are just walking, so to have a notepad with you or digital scribbling.

  2. Though I myself don;t follow the stereotype, just about any photo of Ernest Hemingway working is my basic writer’s image. Khaki’s simple wooden desk, small typewriter, papers and notes stacked nearby. Bookshelves, and so on.

  3. Amanda Linehan Amanda Linehan

    Hi WishingBlogger – I like your nature image! That’s a good one.

    Hi Ty – I would think that would be a popular image.

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