# Author Using Their Own Catastrophes

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/author-using-their-own-catastrophes/510785>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [September 20, 2009, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/author-using-their-own-catastrophes/510785 "2009-09-20T02:28:04Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![LVBoPeep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/858c86/32.png) [@LVBoPeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LVBoPeep)\
**Post date:** [September 20, 2009, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/author-using-their-own-catastrophes/510785/1 "2009-09-20T02:28:04Z")

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Hi all,

Been thinking a bit of Stephen King and his accident influencing his work (most notably _Duma Key_ )and have been thinking of making a reading list of similar works. Another example would be Charles Dicken’s experience of being apprenticed out in some kind of horrible factory, which influenced _David Copperfield_ and other works of his. I have lots of time on my hands (laid off and for various reasons, not really jumping to get back into the work force) and a library card in good standing, so interested to hear about other author’s lives affecting their work.

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**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\
**Post date:** [September 20, 2009, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/author-using-their-own-catastrophes/510785/2 "2009-09-20T03:22:33Z")

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Every author’s life affects his or her work. Just about all of them at some time write about actual experiences they had, so any author who had a bad experience probably found a way to put it into fiction.

Joe Haldeman’s “More than the Sum of His Parts” was based upon his being wounded in Vietnam (well, broadly; the specific events didn’t happen to him).

Anne McCaffrey’s story, “The Ship Who Sang” was based upon her reaction to the death of her father.

Kurt Vonnegut’s **Slaughterhouse Five** was about his witnessing the Dresden firebombing.

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**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\
**Post date:** [September 20, 2009, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/author-using-their-own-catastrophes/510785/3 "2009-09-20T03:41:27Z")

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Gustav Hasford’s _Short Timers_, filmed by Kubrick as _Full Metal Jacket_, was based on his experiences in boot camp. Of course, there are about a million war books based on the writer’s own experiences.