Writer Stereotypes (Part 1)

Hello, friends! So, stereotypes. Everyone's affected by them. Everyone tries to pretend that the stereotypes for whatever they happen to identify themselves as — writer, bookworm, athlete, science person, crafter, girl, guy, anything — doesn't actually apply to them. But, y'know, while not every stereotype applies to everyone in a particular category, some of them will always apply to some of the people. That's as true for writers, and for me as a writer, as it is for everyone else. This week, I'm revealing some of the writer stereotypes that apply to me. Then, next week, I'll reverse the topic and talk about the stereotypes that I don't embody (and, in most cases, probably never will).

 Writer Stereotypes (Part 1)

1. Writers are reclusive introverts. Well, "reclusive" is a stretch, as my roommate (or anyone in my hall) will tell you. But despite the fact that I somehow acquired a social life after coming to college, I'm still very much an introvert who needs a certain amount of peace and quiet in order to function. And even when it comes to writing, I may love the Inklings writing org events, but I don't really get much done at them.
2. Writers love working at coffee shops. Not all the time, and not if they're crowded and busy, but going to a coffee shop to write often provides a nice change of scenery and a bit of extra motivation to write. Of course, the fact that I get something sweet and yummy to drink whenever I go to one certainly helps too.
3. Writers are spend more time in daydreams than they do in the actual world. This isn't as true as it used to be. Middle- and early high-school me definitely lived her life with her head in another world — typically one involving magic, dragons, adventures, portals, and guys who talked about something other than sports, video games, and school. (Trust me: for middle-school me, that last one seemed as far-fetched as a dragon in my backyard.) But even now, it doesn't take much for my brain to wander off into the world of one of my books, either playing out a scene I'm going to write or figuring out how whatever song I'm listening to might describe one or more of my characters. That said, I like to think I'm a little more aware of my surroundings than I used to be.
4. Writers can write anything. Pros of being a PWID major and a creative writer: I probably can write whatever you think I can write, whether it's fiction or nonfiction, business or pleasure. (Or, if I can't write it now, I'll be able to write it within a few years.) That said, I can't write everything equally well. I'm much better at fantasy than contemporary or historical fiction. I'm better at marketing materials than official reports — at least, I'm pretty sure I am. I'm better at fantasy than marketing materials. You get the idea.
5. Writers love tea. I do not know where I would be without tea. Probably in a very sad, miserable world. I'm not an addict, but I will say that my morning tea sets up my best days and makes my bad days a bit more bearable. (And it got me through Professional Editing and Instructional Design 1, and it's going to get me through Instructional Design 2, all early morning classes that cause me more frustration than they should.) And when I need to settle down for the long haul with my writing, or when I need motivation to work on a troublesome scene, a cup of tea is just the thing to get me going.

What writer stereotypes do you fulfill? Please tell me in the comments! And don't forget to check back next week to find out what writer stereotypes I definitely don't fit.
Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)