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[Fooker]

A good drink, such as would be used by Men.

I have a good novel in my head. I do not want to be one of those lamenting cowards who never write it for years and then do it and wish they had done it earlier. Sometimes I'm in the mood and sometimes I'm not.

Perhaps I should try some form of alcohol while writing. Even if it doesn't help, if I think it will help, or at least alter things to be some sort of mood, that would be a positive change.

Suggest away. Something that I can pay a hobo to buy is a plus.

[littlefallsmets]

When writing intensively, I only allow myself black coffee and ice water.

Stimulation and hydration only. The focusing one-note of cold or the focusing one-note of bitter.

No complex distractions.

However, if you are talking about alcohol and drinking, I would think you want something you can drink and full-on ease into how fucked up you want to get for the purposes of writing.

You don't want a Big Change to sneak up on you all of the sudden. Tequila will catch up on you all the sudden like and BAM, you are not so much thinking about how you want to write and you are more thinking about how much you want to punch a cop. Vodka and BAM, you wanna go out there and nationalize an industry. Rum and BAM, you want to find a woman who is attractive enough to have sex with but only minimally so, that you won't mind never seeing her again.

These are all scenarios not conducive to writing.

I would suggest a filling relatively-low-alcohol beer such as a Stout where... you can find out how toasty you actually want to be, ramp up to that level and then just maintain that with the occasional whistle-wetting.

You're gonna be looking for a No Alarms and No Surprises buzz and Stout will let you stay there.

[KeithHernandez]

You have a wicked amount of cans, and I don't know if you did it on purpose, but you kind of made a pun on No Surprises by Radiohead, and that is an awesome song.  Anyhow, enjoy your cola.  (for some reason everytime I write enjoy I first spell it with an"i".  This has been happening for years, and I know how to spell the word.  This needs to stop.)



Anyhow, I would recommend any type of whisk(e)y for writing/ nightcaps, beer for chilling/partying, and vodka for traveling/ seeing old friends/ talking politics.

Oh shit, I completely forgot, but what you need is wine.  Definitely wine.  And also weed.  But mainly wine.

[robot_god]

My favorite drinks/substances to write on are single malt scotches (no chaser), high doses of antihistamines (Benadryl/diphenhydramine, dymenhidrinate, doxylamine, but have no plans for the next morning/afternoon), gin or vodka martinis (vodka is Ray style), cough syrup high doses (dextromethorphan, have no serious plans for 36 hours), and marijuana (I quit for three weeks, quit for three months last year).

Basically all of the above substances will make you sound more like an asshole than you plan to sound like.  Alcohol will give you more of a sloppy, conversational feel.  Antihistamines will make your sentences shorter and more direct, and more grammatically correct.  Cough syrup will make your words sound completely insane (or not insane if you know what the syrup is talking about, ya know?).

The best writing can only be achieved from a deep understanding of all of the above.

[wombat]

I use only massive quantities of black tea, but perhaps that only works for a lady.

[KeithHernandez]

My favorite drinks/substances to write on are single malt scotches (no chaser), high doses of antihistamines (Benadryl/diphenhydramine, dymenhidrinate, doxylamine, but have no plans for the next morning/afternoon), gin or vodka martinis (vodka is Ray style), cough syrup high doses (dextromethorphan, have no serious plans for 36 hours), and marijuana (I quit for three weeks, quit for three months last year).

Basically all of the above substances will make you sound more like an asshole than you plan to sound like.  Alcohol will give you more of a sloppy, conversational feel.  Antihistamines will make your sentences shorter and more direct, and more grammatically correct.  Cough syrup will make your words sound completely insane (or not insane if you know what the syrup is talking about, ya know?).

The best writing can only be achieved from a deep understanding of all of the above.

ahh, I think about 50mg of adderall (snorted) and some mushrooms would make for better writing personally.  Also, if you are going to be telling people to buy cough syrup you should make sure you tell them to get it with only dxm and nothing else, or else you could give them a very bad experience.

[robot_god]

ahh, I think about 50mg of adderall (snorted) and some mushrooms would make for better writing personally.  Also, if you are going to be telling people to buy cough syrup you should make sure you tell them to get it with only dxm and nothing else, or else you could give them a very bad experience.

Good point.  Phenylephrine and pseudoephedrine will increase your heart rate and strength of heart contractions which can be very dangerous especially if you have an underlying heart problem.  Chlorpheniramine can cause enzyme inhibition which can lead to dramatically increased increased levels of dextromethorphan especially if you are of a small percentage of people (less than 5% of caucasians) with a specific genetic enzyme deficiency:  I don't go to pharmacy school for nothin'.

But you know, it really depends on what you're trying to write.

[Nabubrush]

Fooker, you may wish to start a bit smaller than some of these suggestions.

[wombat]

I think it's important to remember in this context that drunk people are rarely as brilliant or entertaining as they believe themselves to be.

[Nabubrush]

I think it's important to remember in this context that drunk people are rarely as brilliant or entertaining as they believe themselves to be.

But . . . but . . . oh man, this is going to completely change my relationship with the internet.

[Ruta Bagas]

I find the appropriate drink is dependent not so much on what you're writing, but on how you're writing. For those wonderfully lucid times when everything's just flowing, a nice red wine is tasty, inspiring and not too harsh. For the really gnarly bits where you really need to keep stopping, thinking well ahead, and playing around with phrases at length before you set them down, a decent whisky is a wonderful thing, not least because you can play around with it in the glass and enjoy the fact that Whisky Is Pretty (this is particularly satisfying and beneficial if you have a Glencairn glass, which if you're drinking whisky, you really should - and let's face it, you really should be drinking whisky.) Somewhere between the two, where it's taking some work but you're not pulling your hair over every word, I like green tea, not least because the preparation gives you time to step back. (There's no reason not to drink black tea instead, of course, but I just get bits of soggy biscuit in my keyboard if I try that.)

Redrafting is a nasty bastard and in my experience responds only to large volumes of strong, black coffee and plenty of water.

I'd also second wombat's point on the booze - whatever you're drinking, don't over-addle yourself. For every brilliant flash of drunken inspiration there'll be a thousand literary equivalents of pissing in your waste-paper basket.

Finally, and most importantly: if you find yourself struggling it's probably not because you've got the wrong drink, so try mixing it up elsewhere, and don't feel you should be writing in a freezing garret with a pair of fingerless gloves and a bottle of booze if you'd rather do it on a park swing with a mango smoothie.

[littlefallsmets]

Radiohead reference: intentional.

Diphenhydramine: lovely for brief inspirado but I quickly fall asleep.

I personally find that... other than being hyped-up on caffination or very slightly tipsy, chemical stimuation is great for brainstorming new ideas and horrific for actually Getting Things Done with those ideas. You gotta be clear-headed to actually get those ideas together in a way that makes sense.

All the great out-there ideas in the world don't mean shit if you can't pull them together into something.

Stoned, I would come up with some great parts-of-ideas, offensive terrible wonderful things. My brother and I could come up with a year's worth of Conan O'Brien skits with a dime bag and an Air album but... the next morning, if we forgot to have crayons around, all those moments would be... lost... in time... like tears in the rain.

[wombat]

I personally find that... other than being hyped-up on caffination or very slightly tipsy, chemical stimuation is great for brainstorming new ideas and horrific for actually Getting Things Done with those ideas. You gotta be clear-headed to actually get those ideas together in a way that makes sense.

This is a good point.

Also, as soon as the weather allows I'm going to try the park swing with a mango smoothie. 

[jaydub]

Stoned, I would come up with some great parts-of-ideas, offensive terrible wonderful things. My brother and I could come up with a year's worth of Conan O'Brien skits with a dime bag and an Air album but... the next morning, if we forgot to have crayons around, all those moments would be... lost... in time... like tears in the rain.

I want more life...Fəth/ckər.

If you never write what's within though...what have you achieved now you're old?

[slink]

I highly recommend a (not quite traditional) Moscow Mule; half and half fresh squeezed lime juice and a really spicey ginger beer, lots of crushed ice and a shot or two of vodka. Really summery and refreshing.

That said, I do agree that being sober is better for writing, though I find a little weed isn't a problem, but I've spoken before of my brain chemistry and smoking... Definitely helps with the ideas at any rate.