For the past two weeks, I've been in nearly constant pain from sciatica. So weird, but another sign that my body hates me. What does this have to do with writing? Let me tell you how pain helps understand the characters I create.
There is an excellent essay on chronic pain and the Spoon Theory by Christine Miserandino which tries to explain what it is like living with chronic pain.
I've written a character who is a veteran in chronic pain from a traumatic amputation and PTSD. He's also homeless and in danger. While I can't write from the perspective of a war veteran with PTSD and an amputation, I can understand what it is like to be in pain, to be exhausted, and to understand how those two conditions affect your mental state.
Pain is exhausting. It forces you do make choices between
living your life as normally as possible, or making decisions that you know you'll be paying for over the next span of hours or even days.
Yes, I went on vacation. Yes, I walked from Point A to Point B. I had to decide to limit my dosage of pain relievers due to my other medical issues, but I knew it would come back to haunt me once I was home.
Now, waiting for the doctor, I can identify with my character who has to make choices between his limitations, his pain, his psychological deficits, and know that each choice is going to weigh on the others and tip his hard won equilibrium.
You can translate your own limitations, whether an injury or illness or emotion to your characters to make your experiences part of theirs.
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