One of the strangest pieces of writing advice I’ve ever heard was about Ernest Hemingway. Apparently, he used to finish writing sessions by putting his pen down in the middle of a sentence (though probably not literally, as in, by placing the pen on the exact spot on the paper, although I guess I can't be 100% sure of that). This allowed him to come back the next day and pick up right where he left off (which would be easier if he'd left his pen on the page, but I digress).
This advice struck me as a little odd. Stop in the middle of a sentence? What if you don’t know where the sentence is going? The advice smells a little fishy, almost like a cousin of the ‘moderation’ theory (do this in moderation, do that in moderation, do anything in moderation, and so on). When a writer needs advice, it's because he or she doesn’t know what to write next just as the person struggling with excess indulgence needs help because it is literally impossible to stop indulging. Telling a struggling writer to stop writing in the middle of a sentence is like telling an addict to just say no when offered a hit.
While I'm on the topic of Hemingway, I'll rule out one explanation for why this advice is no good – Hemingway being too drunk to finish the sentence. He may have been a notable drinker, but as he himself is quoted as saying - have you ever heard of anyone drinking while he worked? As someone who has enjoyed a pop or two every now and then (and maybe occasionally at some odds hours) I consider it important to clarify this lest day drinking become the next bit of poor writing advice attributed to Hemingway.
