Right basically do you think it's better to confine yourself to writing what you know as that will probably be the strongest of your work? Or do you find that you can write about things you have no experience with. Granted confining yourself to what is known forbids genres such as Fantasy, Sci-Fi, period (as in time) pieces et cetera. Where do you think the line is? Can a person write competently from the perspective they have no experience with?
Reason I ask, is I'm hesitant about tackling an idea that I have zero experience with. I've found that I'm best when I'm writing characters similar to either me, or people I know well. Do you find it difficult to write about a foreign experience.
Granted I'm asking about a dozen questions that only bear passing resemblance to one another. What the questions I guess I'm trying to ask boil down to: Do you find it difficult to write about experiences completely unfamiliar to you, and do you think it is possible to have the same level of quality when compared to something more familiar.
And I've only begun fucking with you people.
At the end of the day, it's all math.
It's entirely possible I posted this in the wrong section.
And I've only begun fucking with you people.
At the end of the day, it's all math.
I would say, write where ever your creativity takes you. If you don't have experience, research and or read others work on a similar topic. Write who you want the charcter to be, even if it's yourself.
I find that I have the most fun writing about things unknown in my experience, because I have to research them extensively, and thus learn new and interesting things which can be incorporated into the story. I've written historical period pieces, science fiction, mythological fantasies, among many other topics I've only learned about by reading extensively. I insert much of my own personality into nearly everything I write, but creating characters different from myself opens up new world-views, and writing about them cements new experiences into my mind as if I have lived them myself. It's one of the reasons I enjoy writing so much. I let the reader judge how well I've translated the foreign into the familiar.
I think we do best when we can be ourselves...if you are naturally creative and inquisitive, fictional stories may be for you. As BF said above, the research and journey it takes you on may help you produce your best work. If you are a secret exhibitionist like me (not congruent, I know), you may enjoy sharing more personal and realistic sexperiences with the readers. I think the longer you write, the more likely you are to cross into all realms of writing. I have my preference, but I'm not going to limit myself to anything. Rest assured that someone, somewhere will enjoy what you've produced. Good luck!
My default is to write what I know (people, places, experiences, psychological motivations), but I have tackled things outside my comfort zone on occasion. I've written from the male POV a few times, and I feel like that requires getting into a different kind of zone. When I'm writing about people, places or things that I don't have experience with, I do some research beforehand. Yay for Google.
Regionally and culturally, I usually write about what I know, but it is good to try and stretch your writing. There are things you can experiment with. Its also good to write about something you have to research. You can do this this with time periods, writing stories set in past decades or even further back or in the future.
Sci-fi and Fantasy are probably easier to write about because who's going to correct you? Most good writing in these genres deal with readily identifiable conditions and situations - fighting tyranny, political intrigue, love, revenge etc - the setting is usually just a backdrop to make things more exciting for the reader.
Writing outside of a sphere of knowledge is great if you're the sort of writer that loves research but if you're not, why make life harder for yourself? The key things we always back to though is characters - you can create a very believable environment but if the characters suck your story will too.
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Why not read some stories instead
NEW! Want a quick read for your coffee break? Why not try this... Flash Erotica: Scrubber 
