Myths About Drugs and Booze In the Creative Process Have Been Perpetuated By People Who Should Know Better →
The idea that drugs fuel creativity is nothing new. The same can be said of almost any new experience or recognition of a new reality. But like anything perception-altering--love, adrenaline, or being a U.S. Senator--the effect dulls with time. The feeling you never thought you'd get tired of, eventually you get tired of. And unlike love, there are only so many ways you can reinvent the experience of taking drugs--eventually it boils down to the fact that you're just taking more drugs and stronger drugs, chasing the dragon. Drugs do fuel creativity, but being addicted to drugs, and especially dying from drugs, doesn't.
This piece—posted in 2010—feels appropriate to read (or re-read) after the news of Philip Seymour Hoffman’s death.