will travelling widely [absorbing other cultures] make anyone a better writer?

Question

or does it not matter if you intend confining yourself to one restricted genre?

Answer 1

Anything which widens your experience base will help you bring authenticity to your writing, even if you are restricting yourself to one genre or one setting, and a knowledge of other cultures obviously increases the range of topics you can touch on in your writing.

Answer 2

I've always been a big believer in the idea that the more you know, about anything really, then the more you can ostensibly write about.

It doesn't matter which genre you want to restrict yourself to, you may still have a character from another culture that you'll have to write dialogue and mannerisms for, or a locale that you know nothing about as a setting.

In my opinion, the more knowledge you have of just about any subject, the better off you will be as a writer.

Hope this helps!

Answer 3

Write what you know!
Is the advice that seems to be given to all budding authors, so if you know nothing, you can write nothing. Research is all very well, but how you feel walking through a bustling city, or along a mountain ridge, how the light is captured in your eyes, how the smells enter your nostrils, how the breezes feel against your skin, can only be described by you. Secondhand descriptions are less honest and lack the emotional depth you get from having actually been in a place.
Not only does travel make you a better writer it can make you a better person - unless you carry round a packback full of prejudices and preconceptions which stop you from seeing the humanity in everyone.

Answer 4

There are two things which will make you a better writer.
1. Read widely in the genre and out of the genre you have chosen.
2, Write a lot in the genre and out of the genre you have chosen.
The rest of the the "art" comes from research and imagination. Shakespeare never set foot out off England and his poetry and plays is still widely read all over the world.

Answer 5

Depends. I've lived in 4 different countries, travel widelly, faced different cultures and it does not had impact on my style, but for sure, at some point had influence in my writting. I can use a lot of international references, cross cultures and personalities in many diferent characters.

What does not mades me a better writer, just more resourcefull. Karl May was an excelent writer and never "left his appartment".

You wrote well, because I've meet a lot of people that travel without try to understand another cultures neither absorb it. Shame.

It gaves to you more weapons but will not assure victory.

Answer 6

I believe if you want to write about another culture, studying that culture would make your writing more authentic. But you don't need to do that to be a good writer. I think writing about your own area and culture is a better idea. For instance, my culture is Cajun and I've written and published a book based on that culture. And it is selling very well. You must know about what you are writing. Hope this helps.

Answer 7

Neither life experience or traveling abroad will make you a better writer. It times experience in WRITING to make you a better writer.

If you want to improve yourself take a course in college, write columns for a local paper (if nothing else, you should be able to get feedback from somewhere/someone on your writing). The most useful thing would be to find a writer you respect (hopefully in the genre you want to work/write in) and ask their opinion on your writing. They should be able to give you feedback.

IN SHORT: Simply traveling makes you nothing more than a better traveler. If you want to become a better writer, study a good writer and mimic what they do, get feedback from a trusted source to improve your writing, and/or take a college course to improve your writing.

Answer 8

The broader your experience the better you are able to draw on that experience to develop characters, plots, and background.
Travel widely and often but stay in each location to absorb the culture, and people.

Answer 9

Traveling and interacting with different cultures will give you "experiences" that you may write about.

Lets face it, unless you have been exposed to a lot of various "things", you wont have the experience to write about them.

Writers have to rely on thier imaginations and experiences in order to have something to write about, that will be recognised by everyone... (If you try to write about "snow" and have never experienced it, its awful hard to imagine it, if you dont even know what it is!).

I wish you well...

Jesse

Answer 10

Of course if you don,t travel you can only draw from a very limited prospective,travel the world and you,ll have a wealth of experience to write from.