Why getting older might make you a better writer

Hey,

there’s this study I read a few years ago that talks about the way your brain works. Reread it again for today’s email and hey, there is good news.

Look, it seems fluid intelligence, which includes the capacity to make abstractions and think fast, peaks in your twenties. Which, if you’re a creative person and you’re already past that age, may seem like bad news. Because you need to be smart and clever to create.

But wait.

There’s two things.

The first is that crystallized intelligence plays a role in your art, too. Specifically for writers.

Crystallized intelligence includes your experience, your vocabulary, and your knowledge. And the study says crystallized intelligence peaks in your 60s and 70s.

That’s because most people keep gathering experiences and knowledge as they age, even if the brain starts working a little slower.

That’s why you may notice that there are more great novels written by older writers than there are written by teenagers or young adults.

And the way to strengthen your crystallized intelligence is to just keep reading, keep learning, and keep having experiences with new people.

I know most writers enjoy solitude more than normal people do, but hey, meeting new people and having new experiences is good for your brain.

It is what it is.

And the second thing: there is a way to preserve most of your fluid intelligence. You know, the one that peaked in your twenties.

But to preserve it, you must do some things that your everyday life conspires against: eat real food, sleep well, walk a few miles every day, and build muscle.

Which, you know, ouch.

But again, it is what it is.

I’m not telling you this so you go imitate the Rocky Balboa routine starting Monday, but…

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PS: The Flight of The Condor: The Sunday Strips, Volume 1. A good read for your crystallized intelligence for less than the price of a pizza, which isn’t that good for your brain anyway.