The Dramatic Lives of Writers

More than a few authors had to fight disease, psychological conditions, the death of loved ones, and, in spite it all, they kept writing and working on their books.

Here’s a list of some of the most “tragic” of writers.

John Clare

He wrote even though he had to battle poverty and psychiatric conditions. Also, he outlived five of his children.

N.V. Gogol

He destroyed the manuscript for the second part of Dead Souls, decided to fast in order to cleanse his soul of sins, and starved himself to death.

D.H. Lawrence

A lot of drama surrounded his person and his writings during his lifetimes. He shocked when he married the sister of the notorious Red Baron. Because of his opinions, he was censored, persecuted, and hated for more than half of his life. At the time of his death, he was considered as one who had made a mockery out of his talent.

Mark Twain

His daughter died when she was only 24 years old.

Virginia Woolf

Considered today to have been a manic-depressive, a condition little understood during her life, Virginia Woolf drowned herself by filling her overcoat pockets with stones and walking into a river near her home.