Drugs

[WeilderOfTheMonkeyBlade]

In my writing, drugs are very commonly used, some characters use them a lot, other don't like them, but I was wondering, do other people use drugs in their work a lot, and would people be upset/offended by this.

 

[teacup]

If you're aiming it at children, maybe you shouldn't have drugs. Then again, if you've seen Alice in Wonderland...
But if it's aimed at teens and above, or whatever, then I think it should be fine.
I don't think people would be offended, and if they are, they shouldn't be.
Drugs could be very important to your plot or characters, and be very useful in your story, not writing them because some people might not want to read about drugs would be limiting yourself, I think.

 

[Alexandra]

Drugs are ubiquitous in my fantasy world and they're used as healing agents (medicinal herbs) or poisons, enhancers to magickal acts (inexperienced seers will use certain herbs to enhance or sharpen their visions), and for entertainment (depending upon where you live, tis cheaper to get high on the local drugs than on alcohol). I don't write for children of any age and I don't care if the drug use in my fantasy offends anyone.

 

[Svrtnsse]

Recreational drug use is an integral part in anfylk society and religion. It's part of the world-building, but it's not a key component in the story I'm writing. It figures at one point, and I'm trying not to make a big deal of it but rather portray it as just one more part of life.


On my wiki I have the following article on the subject:

Smoking the pipe
The most holy of all forms of worship, among all different breeds of anylk, is the smoking of the pipe. Comfortably relaxed while puffing your pipe is considered the ultimate form of praise and devotion among anfylk.
While all anfylk agree on the act of pipe smoking the opinions about what to smoke differ wildly. Summer anfylk and spring fylk prefer smoking weeds and herbs. Autumn ane smoke dried fruits or mushrooms and the winter fylkin smoke bark and pine cones. Whether their pipe is filled with intoxicating or psychedelic substances or not is matter of taste that differs from fylkin to fylkin. Generally the ingredients mentioned above are mixed with some sort of tobacco, but occassionally they are smoked as is.

Drugs
Due to the sometimes intoxacting substances the anfylk smoke this form of worship is viewed with mixed feelings by the other races. Especially the humans are putting restrictions on anfylk smoking within their lands.
Anfylk are mostly allowed to smoke what they want as long as doing so does not disturb or endanger anyone around them. They are however not allowed to trade their smokestuffs to non-fylkin and doing so may be punished severely. Needless to say, black-market trade in anfylk smokestuff is common, profitable and dangerous. It is also something of political nightmare in countries with mixed anfylk and human population.

 

[GeekDavid]

The question I would ask is, are these medicinal drugs or recreational?

There's not many people that would object to medicinal drugs, but if you put in a lot of recreational drugs, you may turn off a portion of your potential readership. Whether that's an "acceptable loss" in order to tell your story the way you want to tell it is up to you.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

We write urban fantasy geared for an adult audience, so you can imagine that both recreational drugs and alcohol (and why we don't mention alcohol is a drug is beyond me) feature prominently. We present them as we do everything else - all on the table, positives and negatives, and leave the reader to draw their own conclusions alongside our unreliable narrators. Our WIP's FMC is a wizard and a physician who has been self-medicating herself into addiction, a problem that happens more often than we may think. Which is the main reason we tackle more difficult subject matter - because they need to be talked about.

 

[T.Allen.Smith]

I'm with A.E. Lowan. Why limit yourself unless you're geared toward writing for kids (and I don't mean teens)?

I have drug use in some writings, in others I don't. Regardless, its potential is always present...if it fits the story.

Drug addicted characters can make for some great redemptive arcs. It's also an ever present struggle if we're talking about serious addiction.

 

[GeekDavid]

I'm with A.E. Lowan. Why limit yourself unless you're geared toward writing for kids (and I don't mean teens)?

I have drug use in some writings, in others I don't. Regardless, its potential is always present...if it fits the story.

Drug addicted characters can make for some great redemptive arcs. It's also an ever present struggle if we're talking about serious addiction.

I didn't say it would turn me off... but there are always people who don't like books that tackle anything controversial.

All I'm saying is, be aware of that and be prepared to lose those readers. As I said before, whether that's acceptable is up to the individual author.

Me, my NaNo project will likely touch on some controversial stuff, so I think it's clear where I stand on that.

 

[Amanita]

I've actually been wondering about this myself.
Many real life magical traditions rely heavily on drugs of some kind but they're barely ever found in fantasy stories. It would definitely be interesting to explore this but on the other hand, some people might be offended, especially if real-life substances are being used.
(Speaking as someone who's very fascinated by the idea of psychedelic substances but doesn't even consume alcohol more than a handful of times a year let alone anything else.)

 

[T.Allen.Smith]

If it offends, so be it!

Historically speaking, your idea is solid & grounded in the past. Anything you write, if you're doing it well, has a chance...no a likelihood, to offend. That's the way it should be.

 

[GeekDavid]

If it offends, so be it!

Historically speaking, your idea is solid & grounded in the past. Anything you write, if you're doing it well, has a chance...no a likelihood, to offend. That's the way it should be.

Very true.

I just don't think that any author should enter into that tangle of thorny bushes with their eyes closed.

 

[T.Allen.Smith]

Very true. I just don't think that any author should enter into that tangle of thorny bushes with their eyes closed.

No writer should make choices, on any bit of their craft, without careful consideration.

 

[TrustMeImRudy]

That said, if the story demands it, use it. But be aware that David is right, some people will flee at first mention.

 

[T.Allen.Smith]

That said, if the story demands it, use it. But be aware that David is right, some people will flee at first mention.

Personally, I'm fine with that. If I'd try to write a story everyone will love, I won't produce much of a story.

 

[GeekDavid]

Personally, I'm fine with that. If I'd try to write a story everyone will love, I won't produce much of a story.

You can't please all of the people all of the time.

 

[TrustMeImRudy]

Which is fine, the story you want to tell is the one you should right [while listening to your editors] but publishers have a different mindset. If you wanna get published, you gotta realized the pros and cons are gonna be seen and reviewed. But these days people like edgy topics, no?

 

[WeilderOfTheMonkeyBlade]

Cheers for everyone (sounds wrong but hey). This wasn't meant to be a big philosophical discussion, and thankfully it hasn't turned out that way. I was just wondering about this seeing as I was writing a big scene in which some pirates get pretty stoned. To answer a question quite commonly asked by some of you, most of the drugs are recreational, some of the characters are anti them, others, like my dear pirate friends, are all for them.
some cultures use drugs to enhance visions, for religious guidance- one scene has about a thousand people getting high in a big field for "religious purposes"
I'm not writing children stories, or urban fantasy but a mix of gritty/ heavily military based fantasy (or, if not really writing, at least giving it my all). (and I know, people are probably more concerned with the gore than the drug use but still..."