Creative Writing
The Power of Storytelling
Benefit your life with a little creative writing! Whether we put our thoughts down in a journal, write a letter to a friend or create a story, adding our personal viewpoint to the subject can do nothing but enhance our lives. By taking on the task of creative writing, we give ourselves the freedom to explore and use our imaginations in a way that can stay with us for the whole of our lives. By learning how to write creatively, the ability of communication will become more natural, and the possibility of misunderstandings will be less frequent. When we write from our hearts and souls, the connection to the reader remains. We should bear in mind the reader and how best we can convey our meanings to them by using language that is interesting and appealing to the person we want to read our work. And what a wonderful habit! We can take our writing with us wherever we go. Imagination is a key to creativity. Everyone has an imagination. If we have an interest in something, our imagination can help us to explore new things. If we have memories to cherish, the exercise of creative writing is there to help us to keep those memories vivid. If we have a story to tell, the skill of creative writing is something we can pass on to the others in the world. Last but not least, don’t forget it’s fun! Letting our self go and living our fantasies is a great way to escape the pressures and problems of everyday life. We can be the main character of a story, the director of a movie, a singer in a rock band or whatever we want to be. In the creative writing of a journal, we’re free to express our own feelings and experiences that can last for generations to come. And in creative writing of a story, the surprise can bring joy to the readers. Why not enjoy the fun of taking something and making it into something else, making magic with a pen or a typewriter or a computer, as simple as that! I hope that you do find time to enjoy the process and to benefit you as well. Merry meet, merry part and merry meet again! Thank you.
r by using strong and descriptive language, creating a sense of urgency and excitement. This can be achieved through the use of vivid verbs, sensory details, and figurative language. Additionally, the writer should pay attention to the pacing of the story, ensuring that it flows smoothly and keeps the reader engaged. Transitions between scenes or events should be seamless, and the story should progress in a logical and coherent manner. Finally, the writer should always revise and edit their work, checking for any errors in grammar, punctuation, or spelling. This will ensure that the story is polished and professional, and will enhance the reader’s experience.
We emphasize on quality rather than quantity. It is easiest to describe what genre means by looking at well-known examples. We will delve into the different elements, techniques and examples of each – e.g. the opening of a thriller being suspenseful and gripping and grabbing the reader’s attention. But remember the full range of genres… from crime to new media, historical to contemporary. While it is important to know the different genres – in terms of being able to identify and label works in exams – it is also extremely important to have at least some understanding of the different writers and styles within each genre and how texts can break out of their genre and be something new and innovative. As we progress through this blog you’ll be asked to reflect on your own writing style. Why are you drawn to certain writers or texts and what is it about their writing style that you like? If you’re not sure, (usually) ask an English teacher to help point you in the right direction. Most importantly – and we cannot say this enough – enjoy the variety of language, style and skill involved in better understanding what genre means to you! Find what you love to read and explore more of it; find what you want to write and read examples in that! Then, when you come to study English Literature (or Language), you’ll be going into the experience with more than you think. Genres are flexible, fluid and always changing… and the constant modernization and innovation of what genre is is what makes English such an exciting and expanding subject! For us, English teaching should always aim to enable students to explore and enjoy what – truly – is a bottomless subject.
Furthermore, “The Power of Storytelling” provides invaluable advice for overcoming writer’s block and sourcing inspiration. One of the key strategies to combat writer’s block, as mentioned in section 4, is to engage with structured writing and regular practice. “Writing whatever comes into your head, that’s the secret. Don’t be put off by not knowing what to write or which idea to work on – just start writing and see where it leads you.” This form of free writing is a useful way to start writing something and then gradually build up your confidence to tackle bigger, more complex pieces. The book also advises that we should not be too hard on ourselves: frustration and setbacks are natural, but it is important to keep the love and enjoyment of writing alive. Sometimes, taking a step back from the screen, digging out a pen and paper and just writing something by hand can be a great way to reconnect to the joy of writing in its simplest form. Besides, “The Power of Storytelling” suggests that a variety of things can be effective in inspiring natural creativity, like looking at paintings or photographs, playing games, or going for a walk; only, the key is to recognize these activities as moments of creativity and connection, rather than a break from the process of writing. Configured but brainstorming and organizing thoughts, the section ends on a particularly positive advice: stop worrying about where the inspiration will come from and instead, be confident that the more you practice and regularly engage with writing, the easier you will find it. As mentioned in the introduction to the book, ‘you’ll find inspiration in time and through good creative habits’. The impactful end of this chapter not only encourages active writing and perseverance, but also emphasizes the strength of personal development through creativity. Such continuity and reinforcement of key messages are strong examples of how “The Power of Storytelling” is an effective and motivational tool.
Remember that publishing a novel or an anthology of short stories takes a long time – often around two years from submission to seeing your work in print. Did you know that in the time it takes for your novel to get published you could build up an entire library of your own work on a blog? With readers and connections all over the world! You don’t need to wait for a publisher to tell you that your work is good enough to be in print. By taking advantage of technology, you can publish your own work. By sharing your writing in this way – and by replying to the work of others on your blog – you build a reader base, the people who are interested in your latest work and who will often buy your published work when it comes out. Over time and with careful management, a blog can become like an online magazine of your work, and you, its editor. As you add new pieces to your published collection, readers can comment on your work, give their views on what they think of certain pieces and just generally let you know how your writing is being received. It’s a bit like opening a dialogue and, through this two-way creative process, you can promote your work to appeal to a wider audience. If you find that there are particular pieces of your writing that readers enjoy the most, you might consider building a collection of similar pieces and publishing them as an anthology. You have the potential to reach millions of people online and you don’t have to worry about the costs of print, distribution or the restrictions of a small publishing house either. By using the digital publishing platforms that publishers and self-publishing authors are using today, you can get your work onto the most popular eBook sites in a matter of days. This method of publishing is known as ‘going digital’ and it’s the means by which many contemporary authors are finding a place in the market. Creative writers use sites like Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Apple’s iBooks, Barnes and Noble Press and Kobo Writing Life to upload their work. By adding your writing to their digital libraries it can be purchased and downloaded by users of eReaders instantly. So, if you’re ready to see your work in print, a digital publisher or self-publishing on a platform like KDP might be the ideal route for you to take.
