Cultural Differences
I make a lot of promises about how I will post more, but always end up making a liar of myself. I am really going to try from here on. I am in a bit of a writing rut at the moment, so I am hoping that if I blog a little more maybe that will help me kick my arse into gear.
One thing that has been amusing me of late is what seems to be a spate of comments I've noticed on reviews of Tigers and Devils and Tigerland about the amount of drinking the characters do within the novels.
I come from an Irish family, and was born in Australia. Drinking is a part of both cultures, but is seen as a fixture of socialising and chilling out. I am not going to pretend that there aren't problems with binge-drinking and the like, and the violence that can come with that, but for the most part Australians are social drinkers and the majority don't take it to excess.
Which is why I'm astounded when I see people remark on Simon's drinking and label him an alcoholic, or a borderline alcoholic. It just shows the marked cultural differences between countries, and what is seen as excessive by others is just part of the social norm for some. Simon doesn't often get blind drunk - I really think the only time he does in both books is when he and Declan split up - which, really, is what a lot of people do in break-ups. Having a drink with friends is just what one does, and I don't think that is really any different from most cultures - and that being said, I don't think Simon and Dec drink every day of their lives.
Compared to most people, I don't really drink that much. So I find it interesting that this set of characters do, and were I more inclined to psychoanalyse myself I would wonder why that seeped into my writing.
But now I feel like a sloe gin and lemonade.
One thing that has been amusing me of late is what seems to be a spate of comments I've noticed on reviews of Tigers and Devils and Tigerland about the amount of drinking the characters do within the novels.
I come from an Irish family, and was born in Australia. Drinking is a part of both cultures, but is seen as a fixture of socialising and chilling out. I am not going to pretend that there aren't problems with binge-drinking and the like, and the violence that can come with that, but for the most part Australians are social drinkers and the majority don't take it to excess.
Which is why I'm astounded when I see people remark on Simon's drinking and label him an alcoholic, or a borderline alcoholic. It just shows the marked cultural differences between countries, and what is seen as excessive by others is just part of the social norm for some. Simon doesn't often get blind drunk - I really think the only time he does in both books is when he and Declan split up - which, really, is what a lot of people do in break-ups. Having a drink with friends is just what one does, and I don't think that is really any different from most cultures - and that being said, I don't think Simon and Dec drink every day of their lives.
Compared to most people, I don't really drink that much. So I find it interesting that this set of characters do, and were I more inclined to psychoanalyse myself I would wonder why that seeped into my writing.
But now I feel like a sloe gin and lemonade.