10 Famous Authors Who Show Up As Characters In Their Own Work

Every author draws from reality in some way, whether it's constructing a narrative through personal experience, borrowing characteristics from real people or channelling a specific emotion. Nevertheless, it's odd when a writer tears down the wall of illusion that stands between author and reader, outright inserting themselves into their own work. This transparency is often no more than a bluff, intended to serve some sort of meta literary function €“ or so readers like to tell themselves. What's also true is that writing is an act of narcissism, at least when the end goal is the desire to have that writing read. Is it possible that sometimes nothing more than pride is at play? While there have been many examples over the years of artists showing up in their art, there's nothing quite like a writer turning up in their own story. Film and television cameos are a lot more fleeting - they require little effort and often go unnoticed. Take Martin Scorsese as a passenger in Taxi Driver for example, or Quentin Tarantino's many questionable roles in his films - crucially neither played themselves. But writing yourself into a story is a laboured process, one that requires thought and dedication, and it feels more like a weighted statement. To what end, then, is it done? Vanity? Self-promotion? A comment on the mortality of the artist? Probably a bit of all three...