what is creative writing

what is creative writing

The Importance of Creative Writing

1. Introduction

The aim of this essay is to make clear the importance of creative writing in the classroom. I will write about the benefits of using creative writing as a teaching tool. Many educators, who say creative writing has no place in today’s technologically oriented world, need to put a whole different spin on it. During my early years as a teacher, I struggled to teach writing effectively. Until I accepted a teaching job at an inner city school in Los Angeles, my experiences with teaching writing to children were limited. The majority of my students did not speak English as a first language. Many of these students had strikingly low literacy skills. The only way I could reach them was through creative writing. And the most surprising thing about this group of sixth, seventh, and eighth graders was that they loved to write. Many times during journaling sessions, I had to remind them to stop writing. During my four years at this school, I was tested numerous times by students who had little to no interest in writing. I learned to get them excited about writing through personal narratives, fiction stories, and poetry. If my students’ enthusiasm for writing was not off the charts, I could have used writing drills and isolated skill practice until I was blue in the face, but I would have been wasting my time. The excitement that was built by using creative writing was worth much more than good test scores. And ironically, the students began to produce quality writing, which would eventually lead to better test scores in the future. This is because creativity can affect the quality of a child’s writing in more ways than one. Many students, especially English language learners, have difficulties organizing and developing their ideas. But when using a creative format, these students are forced to think on a higher level. Producing a story of any kind involves a sequence of events, and every sequence has to have a beginning, middle, and an end. This was a concept that was difficult for my ELL students to grasp, but through much practice with fiction stories, they finally understood. The same goes for the concept of vivid detail and elaboration, one of the five best writing practices according to Graham and Perin’s Writing Next. This concept is important in written expression because students who are able to provide specific details about their own experiences and details of a subject have a better grasp at expressing themselves and can make their writing more interesting. As an English teacher, I can say that interesting and expressive writing is something that can rarely be found in an ELL student’s writing. But when I assigned poetry assignments in which I would read poems to the class, my students got very close to the same level of expression and understanding that a native speaker would get. This is another example of how creative writing can go a long way for students and have more than one benefit.

2. Benefits of Creative Writing

In relation to this, writing has also been shown to be a great tool for people who are afflicted with mental or physical health issues. Though it is a lesser-known fact, J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series, used writing to help her overcome depression in her life, and the physical act of writing has actually been seen as a form of therapy that can help improve the mood of individuals who are battling with mental or emotional struggles. Writing also allows people to organize and express their thoughts and feelings about their ailment in a constructive way, rather than keeping it all locked inside. This was the case for author Susan Sontag, who found that writing was a useful tool to explain her feelings about having cancer.

On a mental health level, writing has given us an opportunity to explore some of our deepest thoughts and feelings, and by doing so improve our quality of life. Writing has been scientifically proven to be beneficial to the writer. Dr. James W. Pennebaker, author of “Writing to Heal,” has shown that writing about one’s thoughts and feelings in an emotional way for just 15-20 minutes over the course of three or four days has proven to improve mental and physical health. By translating our thoughts into a concrete sequence of words, we are, in a sense, coding our thinking process which makes our thoughts more clear, and also helps us to explore our inner conflicts in a constructive manner. This leads to a major enhancement in problem solving and decision making.

3. Techniques for Enhancing Creativity

Be persistent. Remember that creative thinking is hard work. It requires a great deal of energy, and it is not always fun. At times it can be downright exhausting. If you are genuinely interested in the issue, persist through the confusion, and you will eventually arrive at an answer. On the other hand, if you find that you are going around in circles, it is probably because you are trying too hard. In this case, the best thing to do is to take a break and come back to it later. You may find that the answer will come to you when you least expect it.

Be open-minded. Curiosity is the tool that sparks the desire to have questions answered. An open mind is the tool that allows those answers to come to you. If you are not open to new ideas, your mind will snap shut, and you will have great difficulty in finding answers to your questions. Being open to new ideas does not mean that you have to accept them. It simply means that you are willing to entertain an idea that is not your own. You always have the choice to reject it, but at least give it a chance. Listening to other people is an excellent way to expose yourself to new ideas. Often they will spark some reaction in you and you will find yourself coming up with all sorts of ideas on this issue after the conversation has ended.

Be curious. Once you have noticed something, take the time to be curious about it. Why is it this way and not another? How did it come to be? Asking questions gives your mind something concrete to work on. If you are lucky, you may even find some of the answers.

Be attentive. It is amazing what one can notice by simply paying attention. This step is particularly important if you are trying to break free from conventional ways of thinking. Get into the habit of asking yourself what you have noticed about a particular issue. What is odd about it? What is interesting? At first, you may have to consciously direct your attention towards the issue at hand, but once you get into the habit of being attentive, you will find that ideas will start to flow more freely.

We cannot teach you how to be creative. We can, however, offer some techniques that may make your creative process run more smoothly. Who knows? You may even find a new favorite.

4. Overcoming Writer’s Block

Overcoming writer’s block is a lot easier than many people think. Sometimes it’s simply a matter of turning the music down, closing the email application, or dimming the lights in the room. If lack of personal motivation is the primary cause of your writer’s block, using your work as a reward for performing less desirable tasks can provide an extra incentive to get things done. If outside distractions are the primary issue, then finding a quiet place to write is essential. For some, it’s the comfort of writing in bed. On the other hand, writing in a café or a library can help some people get in the groove. Changing the font of your writing can also stimulate creativity. The ideal place for doing this is a distraction-free zone (no internet!) in a text editor. Try the Courier font, its spatial arrangement is consistent and regular and can be friendly to the creative eye. Finally, tolerance is the key. Writing might not come as easily as it once did, but in the end, it is still doable with time and effort.

5. Conclusion

In short, creative writing is a way to express yourself through storytelling and the expression of thoughts and emotions. There is real potential for anyone who wishes to share their thoughts and ideas with others for the purpose of personal or professional development. Language is mutable and ever-changing; it’s an art form that expresses ideas and thoughts, and we need to keep that in mind whenever we put a message into words. Now more than ever, we are in a position where we can put our thoughts to virtual paper using blogs, podcasts, and video games. There are worlds that need populating, and who better to do it than the people with an idea but in need of a voice. All of us will have experienced some form of 21st-century new media, and all of it needs a writer. Writing offers a solid career where there are countless opportunities and the choice to specialize in a genre or medium, and at the very least it’s a skill that will bring depth and clarity to the ideas that people wish to express. The core reason for writing anything is to communicate. From the onset, writing at its various levels serves as a tool of communication and a foundation for education. It is a universal method through which education, knowledge, and wisdom can be passed on. It is through writing that history is recorded, a society’s culture is passed on to the next generation, and knowledge is spread. Whether it is a research paper, a fiction story, a newspaper article, or an advertisement, writing is a skill that will always be of use. With the direction that the world is moving in, a world reliant on technology, it’s safe to say that writing is becoming an even more integral part of human life. Now is the best time to be a writer.