I hope this is ok to share. Recently I've been trying to read everything I can about heroin addiction and came across an article by William Burroughs on his addiction, and heroin in general. Burroughs of course was an incredibly influential 20th century author. He struggled with heroin addiction for most of his life and wrote very candidly about the topic. "To say it country simple, most folks enjoy junk." I hesitate to say his story is an inspiring one, but when he writes about it he does not mince words, nor do I think he was dishonest with himself. As I struggle to help a family member with their addiction I found this article of his offered a perspective I hadn't really heard before.
I'm a huge fan of Burroughs' work and I agree that he's always seemed perfectly happy to talk or write about his consumption. He always got straight to the point. I always wondered how his life would have panned out if he hadn't accidently shot his wife though. Surely, he must have been wracked with guilt over that.
His position on that is a little complicated. Burroughs once said: "I am forced to the appalling conclusion that I would have never become a writer but for Joan's death ... o the death of Joan brought me into contact with the invader, the Ugly Spirit, and maneuvered me into a lifelong struggle, in which I had no choice except to write my way out" So I guess if things were different, they wouldn't be same, but then we can always say that. Edit: Formatting