online creative writing class

online creative writing class

The Art of Creative Writing: Mastering the Craft Online

1. Introduction to Creative Writing

Lesson 3 How Messages are Conveyed There are two levels of messages in creative writing: the explicit message and the implicit message. The explicit message, also known as the objective message, is the message that the communicator intends to convey. The implicit message, also known as the subjective message, is measured by what the receiver infers from the communication. Note that the words ‘implicit’ and ‘explicit’ are adjectives commonly used to describe the word ‘message’, but we can imply and explicitly connotative and denotative words too.

Lesson 2 The Written Word Before we learn to write creatively, we need to understand the literal and connotative meanings of words. The literal meaning is the dictionary definition of a word. The denotative meaning of a word is its literal definition; the definition of the word found in a dictionary. The connotative meaning is the suggested or implied meaning or emotion associated with a word – beyond its literal definition. Often, a word has a different connotation than its literal meaning, which means the choice of word can affect the meaning or idea of a creative writing.

Lesson 1 What is creative writing? Creative writing is more than just writing for the sake of writing. Often, it is a way of solving problems, whether it is a problem in reality or in the imagination. Creative writing is used to change a person from one mindset to another. There are two types of creative writing to avoid: bad and mediocre. The only way to avoid writing bad creative writing is to write creatively, and the only way to write creatively is to change the viewpoint. As for the best way to avoid writing mediocre creative writing is to learn and apply the craft.

2. Exploring Different Writing Styles

From a financial perspective, writing short stories and articles can be more profitable than working on a novel. Writing a novel is a long term commitment, and though it can be fairly well guaranteed that a published writer with a good following can make a living from writing novels, it does not help the many amateurs and part-time writers seeking extra cash to fund their hobby.

Different styles of writing can convey different ‘tones’. For instance, writing about painting a landscape, the language used would be quite detailed, possibly focusing on long paragraphs illuminating the colours and light effects. If the aim was to turn this passage into a successful marketing tool to sell landscape painting classes to busy business people, the same information would need to be trimmed into key points suited to the business market.

Changing the pattern of sentence structure and length can alleviate writer’s block. Understanding that the constraint of a certain pattern can be the trigger of block, and that this is often caused by the build-up of sentences leading to a dead end, helps to identify the problem.

Having learned to write in a certain style, we become accustomed to it. It may be unsettling to venture into an entirely different way of writing. It is important to do so, however, for several reasons:

3. Crafting Compelling Characters and Plots

Guideline 2. A story is about change, and one of the best ways to achieve this is to take a character from one situation and place them in another. The difference between the two situations will create conflict, and it is conflict that makes plot. The greater the difference between the initial situation and the final situation, the more exciting and dramatic the story will be. An easy way of assessing the amount of conflict in your story is to grade the difference between the initial and final situations on a scale of one to ten, then make sure that the average grade per event is three. This will ensure forward momentum and a series of linked events.

Guideline 1. Remember your characters are people too, or animals. They need to be motivated and have direction. Who are they? What are they seeking to accomplish? What drives them? How do they go about attaining their goals? What are they afraid of? What are they trying to avoid? What do they need? Where do they meet their breaking point? Characters are central to plotting, because it is the changes that happen to your characters, the events that affect them, that make up your plot. By having a clear idea of who your characters are, you can let them loose in your imagination and see what unfolds.

4. Enhancing Writing Techniques and Skills

It is much easier to help budding writers out when we think of the elements of style and how to write successfully in connection with some specific technique than when we confront this very general and very vague question of the existence or non-existence of dull rules. It is, of course, best to think of these things in terms of specific problems and specific pieces of work, whether you trying to teach them to others or whether you are trying to use them to improve your own writing. We can say, for example, that the “varied sentence structure” is a desirable thing provided it is not carried to the point of eccentricity where the intent underlying the sentence has been buried by the complex demands made upon the reader’s attention. But that will mean little to someone who is just trying to improve his writing. It is easier to show what we mean by taking a single incident or emotional complex, and by rewriting this in different ways to express in each case a different shade of thought or feeling. And it is not a bad exercise in itself, besides having the advantage of demonstrating the value of this particular item in technique.

5. Publishing and Sharing Your Creative Work

5.3 Self-publishing Self-publishing can take many forms. It might mean paying for a small print run of your work, but it can also be incorporating your work into a non-profit making venture or community project. The advent of the internet has made it easier to self-publish. Consider very carefully where and how you want your work to be accessed and by whom. E-publishing can sometimes mean your work getting lost among the masses, so it’s worth considering also producing a print on demand copy.

5.2 Small Presses Small independent presses exist for the love of the written word and sometimes have a specialist interest. Work published may not be as widely distributed but it is often well promoted and may meet the needs of smaller defined readerships. Information on small presses can be found in The Writers and Artists Yearbook.

5.1 Commercial Publishers Most writers would like to see their work in print form. However, getting a book published can be very difficult without previous publication or a proven track record. A good literary agent can be a great help but it may be difficult to find an agent without prior publication. Bearing in mind the huge number of unsolicited manuscripts received by publishers, it’s worth considering whether your manuscript is really commercially viable or whether there is a niche market.

There are many ways to begin to get your work out into the big wide world, but it can be confusing and sometimes disheartening. This section takes a look at some of the possible routes to publication and/or broadcasting and the advantages and disadvantages of each.