how many words should a creative writing be

What Is Creative Writing? (Ultimate Guide + 20 Examples)

Creative writing begins with a blank page and the courage to fill it with the stories only you can tell.

I face this intimidating blank page daily–and I have for the better part of 20+ years.

In this guide, you’ll learn all the ins and outs of creative writing with tons of examples.

What Is Creative Writing (Long Description)?

Creative Writing is the art of using words to express ideas and emotions in imaginative ways. It encompasses various forms including novels, poetry, and plays, focusing on narrative craft, character development, and the use of literary tropes.

Bright, colorful creative writer's desk with notebook and typewriter -- What Is Creative Writing

Table of Contents

Let’s expand on that definition a bit.

Creative writing is an art form that transcends traditional literature boundaries.

It includes professional, journalistic, academic, and technical writing. This type of writing emphasizes narrative craft, character development, and literary tropes. It also explores poetry and poetics traditions.

In essence, creative writing lets you express ideas and emotions uniquely and imaginatively.

It’s about the freedom to invent worlds, characters, and stories. These creations evoke a spectrum of emotions in readers.

Creative writing covers fiction, poetry, and everything in between.

It allows writers to express inner thoughts and feelings. Often, it reflects human experiences through a fabricated lens.

Types of Creative Writing

There are many types of creative writing that we need to explain.

Some of the most common types:

Short stories
Screenplays
Flash fiction
Creative Nonfiction

Short Stories (The Brief Escape)

Short stories are like narrative treasures.

They are compact but impactful, telling a full story within a limited word count. These tales often focus on a single character or a crucial moment.

Short stories are known for their brevity.

They deliver emotion and insight in a concise yet powerful package. This format is ideal for exploring diverse genres, themes, and characters. It leaves a lasting impression on readers.

Example: Emma discovers an old photo of her smiling grandmother. It’s a rarity. Through flashbacks, Emma learns about her grandmother’s wartime love story. She comes to understand her grandmother’s resilience and the value of joy.

Novels (The Long Journey)

Novels are extensive explorations of character, plot, and setting.

They span thousands of words, giving writers the space to create entire worlds. Novels can weave complex stories across various themes and timelines.

The length of a novel allows for deep narrative and character development.

Readers get an immersive experience.

Example: Across the Divide tells of two siblings separated in childhood. They grow up in different cultures. Their reunion highlights the strength of family bonds, despite distance and differences.

Poetry (The Soul’s Language)

Poetry expresses ideas and emotions through rhythm, sound, and word beauty.

It distills emotions and thoughts into verses. Poetry often uses metaphors, similes, and figurative language to reach the reader’s heart and mind.

Poetry ranges from structured forms, like sonnets, to free verse.

The latter breaks away from traditional formats for more expressive thought.

Example: Whispers of Dawn is a poem collection capturing morning’s quiet moments. “First Light” personifies dawn as a painter. It brings colors of hope and renewal to the world.

Plays (The Dramatic Dialogue)

Plays are meant for performance. They bring characters and conflicts to life through dialogue and action.

This format uniquely explores human relationships and societal issues.

Playwrights face the challenge of conveying setting, emotion, and plot through dialogue and directions.

Example: Echoes of Tomorrow is set in a dystopian future. Memories can be bought and sold. It follows siblings on a quest to retrieve their stolen memories. They learn the cost of living in a world where the past has a price.

Screenplays (Cinema’s Blueprint)

Screenplays outline narratives for films and TV shows.

They require an understanding of visual storytelling, pacing, and dialogue. Screenplays must fit film production constraints.

Example: The Last Light is a screenplay for a sci-fi film. Humanity’s survivors on a dying Earth seek a new planet. The story focuses on spacecraft Argo’s crew as they face mission challenges and internal dynamics.

Memoirs (The Personal Journey)

Memoirs provide insight into an author’s life, focusing on personal experiences and emotional journeys.

They differ from autobiographies by concentrating on specific themes or events.

Memoirs invite readers into the author’s world.

They share lessons learned and hardships overcome.

Example: Under the Mango Tree is a memoir by Maria Gomez. It shares her childhood memories in rural Colombia. The mango tree in their yard symbolizes home, growth, and nostalgia. Maria reflects on her journey to a new life in America.

Flash Fiction (The Quick Twist)

Flash fiction tells stories in under 1,000 words.

It’s about crafting compelling narratives concisely. Each word in flash fiction must count, often leading to a twist.

This format captures life’s vivid moments, delivering quick, impactful insights.

Example: The Last Message features an astronaut’s final Earth message as her spacecraft drifts away. In 500 words, it explores isolation, hope, and the desire to connect against all odds.

Creative Nonfiction (The Factual Tale)

Creative nonfiction combines factual accuracy with creative storytelling.

This genre covers real events, people, and places with a twist. It uses descriptive language and narrative arcs to make true stories engaging.

Creative nonfiction includes biographies, essays, and travelogues.

Example: Echoes of Everest follows the author’s Mount Everest climb. It mixes factual details with personal reflections and the history of past climbers. The narrative captures the climb’s beauty and challenges, offering an immersive experience.

Fantasy (The World Beyond)

Fantasy transports readers to magical and mythical worlds.

It explores themes like good vs. evil and heroism in unreal settings. Fantasy requires careful world-building to create believable yet fantastic realms.

Example: The Crystal of Azmar tells of a young girl destined to save her world from darkness. She learns she’s the last sorceress in a forgotten lineage. Her journey involves mastering powers, forming alliances, and uncovering ancient kingdom myths.

Science Fiction (The Future Imagined)

Science fiction delves into futuristic and scientific themes.

It questions the impact of advancements on society and individuals.

Science fiction ranges from speculative to hard sci-fi, focusing on plausible futures.

Example: When the Stars Whisper is set in a future where humanity communicates with distant galaxies. It centers on a scientist who finds an alien message. This discovery prompts a deep look at humanity’s universe role and interstellar communication.

Watch this great video that explores the question, “What is creative writing?” and “How to get started?”:

What Are the 5 Cs of Creative Writing?

The 5 Cs of creative writing are fundamental pillars.

They guide writers to produce compelling and impactful work. These principles—Clarity, Coherence, Conciseness, Creativity, and Consistency—help craft stories that engage and entertain.

They also resonate deeply with readers. Let’s explore each of these critical components.

Clarity makes your writing understandable and accessible.

It involves choosing the right words and constructing clear sentences. Your narrative should be easy to follow.

In creative writing, clarity means conveying complex ideas in a digestible and enjoyable way.

Coherence ensures your writing flows logically.

It’s crucial for maintaining the reader’s interest. Characters should develop believably, and plots should progress logically. This makes the narrative feel cohesive.

Conciseness

Conciseness is about expressing ideas succinctly.

It’s being economical with words and avoiding redundancy. This principle helps maintain pace and tension, engaging readers throughout the story.

Creativity is the heart of creative writing.

It allows writers to invent new worlds and create memorable characters. Creativity involves originality and imagination. It’s seeing the world in unique ways and sharing that vision.

Consistency

Consistency maintains a uniform tone, style, and voice.

It means being faithful to the world you’ve created. Characters should act true to their development. This builds trust with readers, making your story immersive and believable.

Is Creative Writing Easy?

Creative writing is both rewarding and challenging.

Crafting stories from your imagination involves more than just words on a page. It requires discipline and a deep understanding of language and narrative structure.

Exploring complex characters and themes is also key.

Refining and revising your work is crucial for developing your voice.

The ease of creative writing varies. Some find the freedom of expression liberating.

Others struggle with writer’s block or plot development challenges. However, practice and feedback make creative writing more fulfilling.

What Does a Creative Writer Do?

A creative writer weaves narratives that entertain, enlighten, and inspire.

Writers explore both the world they create and the emotions they wish to evoke. Their tasks are diverse, involving more than just writing.

Creative writers develop ideas, research, and plan their stories.

They create characters and outline plots with attention to detail. Drafting and revising their work is a significant part of their process. They strive for the 5 Cs of compelling writing.

Writers engage with the literary community, seeking feedback and participating in workshops.

They may navigate the publishing world with agents and editors.

Creative writers are storytellers, craftsmen, and artists. They bring narratives to life, enriching our lives and expanding our imaginations.

How to Get Started With Creative Writing?

Embarking on a creative writing journey can feel like standing at the edge of a vast and mysterious forest.

The path is not always clear, but the adventure is calling.

Here’s how to take your first steps into the world of creative writing:

Find a time of day when your mind is most alert and creative.
Create a comfortable writing space free from distractions.
Use prompts to spark your imagination. They can be as simple as a word, a phrase, or an image.
Try writing for 15-20 minutes on a prompt without editing yourself. Let the ideas flow freely.
Reading is fuel for your writing. Explore various genres and styles.
Pay attention to how your favorite authors construct their sentences, develop characters, and build their worlds.
Don’t pressure yourself to write a novel right away. Begin with short stories or poems.
Small projects can help you hone your skills and boost your confidence.
Look for writing groups in your area or online. These communities offer support, feedback, and motivation.
Participating in workshops or classes can also provide valuable insights into your writing.
Understand that your first draft is just the beginning. Revising your work is where the real magic happens.
Be open to feedback and willing to rework your pieces.
Carry a notebook or digital recorder to jot down ideas, observations, and snippets of conversations.
These notes can be gold mines for future writing projects.

Final Thoughts: What Is Creative Writing?

Creative writing is an invitation to explore the unknown, to give voice to the silenced, and to celebrate the human spirit in all its forms.

Check out these creative writing tools (that I highly recommend):

The Core Elements of a Short Story

How to write a short story outline, how to write a short story step by step, how to write a short story: length and setting, how to write a short story: point of view, how to write a short story: protagonist, antagonist, motivation, how to write a short story: characters, how to write a short story: prose, how to write a short story: story structure, how to write a short story: capturing reader interest, where to read and submit short stories.

There’s no secret formula to writing a short story. However, a good short story will have most or all of the following elements:

A protagonist with a certain desire or need. It is essential for the protagonist to want something they don’t have, otherwise they will not drive the story forward.
A clear dilemma. We don’t need much backstory to see how the dilemma started; we’re primarily concerned with how the protagonist resolves it.
A decision. What does the protagonist do to resolve their dilemma?
A climax. In Freytag’s Pyramid , the climax of a story is when the tension reaches its peak, and the reader discovers the outcome of the protagonist’s decision(s).
An outcome. How does the climax change the protagonist? Are they a different person? Do they have a different philosophy or outlook on life?

Of course, short stories also utilize the elements of fiction , such as a setting , plot , and point of view . It helps to study these elements and to understand their intricacies. But, when it comes to laying down the skeleton of a short story, the above elements are what you need to get started.

Note: a short story rarely, if ever, has subplots. The focus should be entirely on a single, central storyline. Subplots will either pull focus away from the main story, or else push the story into the territory of novellas and novels.

The shorter the story is, the fewer of these elements are essentials. If you’re interested in writing short-short stories, check out our guide on how to write flash fiction .

Some writers are “pantsers”—they “write by the seat of their pants,” making things up on the go with little more than an idea for a story. Other writers are “plotters,” meaning they decide the story’s structure in advance of writing it.

You don’t need a short story outline to write a good short story. But, if you’d like to give yourself some scaffolding before putting words on the page, this article answers the question of how to write a short story outline:

https://writers.com/how-to-write-a-story-outline

There are many ways to approach the short story craft, but this method is tried-and-tested for writers of all levels. Here’s how to write a short story step-by-step.

1. Start With an Idea

Often, generating an idea is the hardest part. You want to write, but what will you write about?

What’s more, it’s easy to start coming up with ideas and then dismissing them. You want to tell an authentic, original story, but everything you come up with has already been written, it seems.

Here are a few tips:

Originality presents itself in your storytelling, not in your ideas. For example, the premise of both Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Ostrovsky’s The Snow Maiden are very similar: two men and two women, in intertwining love triangles, sort out their feelings for each other amidst mischievous forest spirits, love potions, and friendship drama. The way each story is written makes them very distinct from one another, to the point where, unless it’s pointed out to you, you might not even notice the similarities.
An idea is not a final draft. You will find that exploring the possibilities of your story will generate something far different than the idea you started out with. This is a good thing—it means you made the story your own!
Experiment with genres and tropes. Even if you want to write literary fiction , pay attention to the narrative structures that drive genre stories, and practice your storytelling using those structures. Again, you will naturally make the story your own simply by playing with ideas.

If you’re struggling simply to find ideas, try out this prompt generator , or pull prompts from this Twitter .

2. Outline, OR Conceive Your Characters

If you plan to outline, do so once you’ve generated an idea. You can learn about how to write a short story outline earlier in this article.

If you don’t plan to outline, you should at least start with a character or characters. Certainly, you need a protagonist, but you should also think about any characters that aid or inhibit your protagonist’s journey.

When thinking about character development, ask the following questions:

What is my character’s background? Where do they come from, how did they get here, where do they want to be?
What does your character desire the most? This can be both material or conceptual, like “fitting in” or “being loved.”
What is your character’s fatal flaw? In other words, what limitation prevents the protagonist from achieving their desire? Often, this flaw is a blind spot that directly counters their desire. For example, self hatred stands in the way of a protagonist searching for love.
How does your character think and speak? Think of examples, both fictional and in the real world, who might resemble your character.

In short stories, there are rarely more characters than a protagonist, an antagonist (if relevant), and a small group of supporting characters. The more characters you include, the longer your story will be. Focus on making only one or two characters complex: it is absolutely okay to have the rest of the cast be flat characters that move the story along.

Learn more about character development here:

https://writers.com/character-development-definition

3. Write Scenes Around Conflict

Once you have an outline or some characters, start building scenes around conflict. Every part of your story, including the opening sentence, should in some way relate to the protagonist’s conflict.

Conflict is the lifeblood of storytelling: without it, the reader doesn’t have a clear reason to keep reading. Loveable characters are not enough, as the story has to give the reader something to root for.

Take, for example, Edgar Allan Poe’s classic short story The Cask of Amontillado . We start at the conflict: the narrator has been slighted by Fortunato, and plans to exact revenge. Every scene in the story builds tension and follows the protagonist as he exacts this revenge.

In your story, start writing scenes around conflict, and make sure each paragraph and piece of dialogue relates, in some way, to your protagonist’s unmet desires.

Read more about writing effective conflict here:

What is Conflict in a Story? Definition and Examples

4. Write Your First Draft

The scenes you build around conflict will eventually be stitched into a complete story. Make sure as the story progresses that each scene heightens the story’s tension, and that this tension remains unbroken until the climax resolves whether or not your protagonist meets their desires.

Don’t stress too hard on writing a perfect story. Rather, take Anne Lamott’s advice, and “write a shitty first draft.” The goal is not to pen a complete story at first draft; rather, it’s to set ideas down on paper. You are simply, as Shannon Hale suggests, “shoveling sand into a box so that later [you] can build castles.”

5. Step Away, Breathe, Revise

Whenever Stephen King finishes a novel, he puts it in a drawer and doesn’t think about it for 6 weeks. With short stories, you probably don’t need to take as long of a break. But, the idea itself is true: when you’ve finished your first draft, set it aside for a while. Let yourself come back to the story with fresh eyes, so that you can confidently revise, revise, revise .

In revision, you want to make sure each word has an essential place in the story, that each scene ramps up tension, and that each character is clearly defined. The culmination of these elements allows a story to explore complex themes and ideas, giving the reader something to think about after the story has ended.

6. Compare Against Our Short Story Checklist

Does your story have everything it needs to succeed? Compare it against this short story checklist, as written by our instructor Rosemary Tantra Bensko.

Below is a collection of practical short story writing tips by Writers.com instructor Rosemary Tantra Bensko . Each paragraph is its own checklist item: a core element of short story writing advice to follow unless you have clear reasons to the contrary. We hope it’s a helpful resource in your own writing.

Update 9/1/2020: We’ve now made a summary of Rosemary’s short story checklist available as a PDF download . Enjoy!

how many words should a creative writing be

Click to download

Your short story is 1000 to 7500 words in length.

The story takes place in one time period, not spread out or with gaps other than to drive someplace, sleep, etc. If there are those gaps, there is a space between the paragraphs, the new paragraph beginning flush left, to indicate a new scene.

Each scene takes place in one location, or in continual transit, such as driving a truck or flying in a plane.

Unless it’s a very lengthy Romance story, in which there may be two Point of View (POV) characters, there is one POV character. If we are told what any character secretly thinks, it will only be the POV character. The degree to which we are privy to the unexpressed thoughts, memories and hopes of the POV character remains consistent throughout the story.

You avoid head-hopping by only having one POV character per scene, even in a Romance. You avoid straying into even brief moments of telling us what other characters think other than the POV character. You use words like “apparently,” “obviously,” or “supposedly” to suggest how non-POV-characters think rather than stating it.

Your short story has one clear protagonist who is usually the character changing most.

Your story has a clear antagonist, who generally makes the protagonist change by thwarting his goals.

(Possible exception to the two short story writing tips above: In some types of Mystery and Action stories, particularly in a series, etc., the protagonist doesn’t necessarily grow personally, but instead his change relates to understanding the antagonist enough to arrest or kill him.)

The protagonist changes with an Arc arising out of how he is stuck in his Flaw at the beginning of the story, which makes the reader bond with him as a human, and feel the pain of his problems he causes himself. (Or if it’s the non-personal growth type plot: he’s presented at the beginning of the story with a high-stakes problem that requires him to prevent or punish a crime.)

The protagonist usually is shown to Want something, because that’s what people normally do, defining their personalities and behavior patterns, pushing them onward from day to day. This may be obvious from the beginning of the story, though it may not become heightened until the Inciting Incident , which happens near the beginning of Act 1. The Want is usually something the reader sort of wants the character to succeed in, while at the same time, knows the Want is not in his authentic best interests. This mixed feeling in the reader creates tension.

The protagonist is usually shown to Need something valid and beneficial, but at first, he doesn’t recognize it, admit it, honor it, integrate it with his Want, or let the Want go so he can achieve the Need instead. Ideally, the Want and Need can be combined in a satisfying way toward the end for the sake of continuity of forward momentum of victoriously achieving the goals set out from the beginning. It’s the encounters with the antagonist that forcibly teach the protagonist to prioritize his Needs correctly and overcome his Flaw so he can defeat the obstacles put in his path.

The protagonist in a personal growth plot needs to change his Flaw/Want but like most people, doesn’t automatically do that when faced with the problem. He tries the easy way, which doesn’t work. Only when the Crisis takes him to a low point does he boldly change enough to become victorious over himself and the external situation. What he learns becomes the Theme.

Each scene shows its main character’s goal at its beginning, which aligns in a significant way with the protagonist’s overall goal for the story. The scene has a “charge,” showing either progress toward the goal or regression away from the goal by the ending. Most scenes end with a negative charge, because a story is about not obtaining one’s goals easily, until the end, in which the scene/s end with a positive charge.

The protagonist’s goal of the story becomes triggered until the Inciting Incident near the beginning, when something happens to shake up his life. This is the only major thing in the story that is allowed to be a random event that occurs to him.

Your characters speak differently from one another, and their dialogue suggests subtext, what they are really thinking but not saying: subtle passive-aggressive jibes, their underlying emotions, etc.

Your characters are not illustrative of ideas and beliefs you are pushing for, but come across as real people.

Your language is succinct, fresh and exciting, specific, colorful, avoiding clichés and platitudes. Sentence structures vary. In Genre stories, the language is simple, the symbolism is direct, and words are well-known, and sentences are relatively short. In Literary stories , you are freer to use more sophisticated ideas, words, sentence structures, styles , and underlying metaphors and implied motifs.

Your plot elements occur in the proper places according to classical Three Act Structure (or Freytag’s Pyramid ) so the reader feels he has vicariously gone through a harrowing trial with the protagonist and won, raising his sense of hope and possibility. Literary short stories may be more subtle, with lower stakes, experimenting beyond classical structures like the Hero’s Journey. They can be more like vignettes sometimes, or even slice-of-life, though these types are hard to place in publications.

In Genre stories, all the questions are answered, threads are tied up, problems are solved, though the results of carnage may be spread over the landscape. In Literary short stories, you are free to explore uncertainty, ambiguity, and inchoate, realistic endings that suggest multiple interpretations, and unresolved issues.

Some Literary stories may be nonrealistic, such as with Surrealism, Absurdism, New Wave Fabulism, Weird and Magical Realism . If this is what you write, they still need their own internal logic and they should not be bewildering as to the what the reader is meant to experience, whether it’s a nuanced, unnameable mood or a trip into the subconscious.

Literary stories may also go beyond any label other than Experimental. For example, a story could be a list of To Do items on a paper held by a magnet to a refrigerator for the housemate to read. The person writing the list may grow more passive-aggressive and manipulative as the list grows, and we learn about the relationship between the housemates through the implied threats and cajoling.

Your short story is suspenseful, meaning readers hope the protagonist will achieve his best goal, his Need, by the Climax battle against the antagonist.

Your story entertains. This is especially necessary for Genre short stories.

The story captivates readers at the very beginning with a Hook, which can be a puzzling mystery to solve, an amazing character’s or narrator’s Voice, an astounding location, humor, a startling image, or a world the reader wants to become immersed in.

Expository prose (telling, like an essay) takes up very, very little space in your short story, and it does not appear near the beginning. The story is in Narrative format instead, in which one action follows the next. You’ve removed every unnecessary instance of Expository prose and replaced it with showing Narrative. Distancing words like “used to,” “he would often,” “over the years, he,” “each morning, he” indicate that you are reporting on a lengthy time period, summing it up, rather than sticking to Narrative format, in which immediacy makes the story engaging.

You’ve earned the right to include Expository Backstory by making the reader yearn for knowing what happened in the past to solve a mystery. This can’t possibly happen at the beginning, obviously. Expository Backstory does not take place in the first pages of your story.

Your reader cares what happens and there are high stakes (especially important in Genre stories). Your reader worries until the end, when the protagonist survives, succeeds in his quest to help the community, gets the girl, solves or prevents the crime, achieves new scientific developments, takes over rule of his realm, etc.

Every sentence is compelling enough to urge the reader to read the next one—because he really, really wants to—instead of doing something else he could be doing. Your story is not going to be assigned to people to analyze in school like the ones you studied, so you have found a way from the beginning to intrigue strangers to want to spend their time with your words.

Whether you’re looking for inspiration or want to publish your own stories, you’ll find great literary journals for writers of all backgrounds at this article:

https://writers.com/short-story-submissions

Learn How to Write a Short Story at Writers.com

The short story takes an hour to learn and a lifetime to master. Learn how to write a short story with Writers.com. Our upcoming fiction courses will give you the ropes to tell authentic, original short stories that captivate and entrance your readers.

Rosemary – Is there any chance you could add a little something to your checklist? I’d love to know the best places to submit our short stories for publication. Thanks so much.

Hi, Kim Hanson,

Some good places to find publications specific to your story are NewPages, Poets and Writers, Duotrope, and The Submission Grinder.

“ In Genre stories, all the questions are answered, threads are tied up, problems are solved, though the results of carnage may be spread over the landscape.”

Not just no but NO.

See for example the work of MacArthur Fellow Kelly Link.

[…] How to Write a Short Story: The Short Story Checklist […]

Thank you for these directions and tips. It’s very encouraging to someone like me, just NOW taking up writing.

[…] Writers.com. A great intro to writing. https://writers.com/how-to-write-a-short-story […]

Hello: I started to write seriously in the late 70’s. I loved to write in High School in the early 60’s but life got in the way. Around the 00’s many of the obstacles disappeared. Since then I have been writing more, and some of my work was vanilla transgender stories. Here in 2024 transgender stories have become tiresome because I really don’t have much in common with that mind set.

The glare of an editor that could potentially pay me is quite daunting, so I would like to start out unpaid to see where that goes. I am not sure if a writer’s agent would be a good fit for me. My work life was in the Trades, not as some sort of Academic. That alone causes timidity, but I did read about a fiction writer who had been a house painter.

This is my first effort to publish since the late 70’s. My pseudonym would perhaps include Ahabidah.

Gwen Boucher.

A Comprehensive Guide to Master Creative Writing

If you think just jotting down whatever pops into your head is creative writing, you’re mixing it up with freewriting. If you think the writing you do in school or college is creative writing, you’re talking about academic writing. So, what really is creative writing?

Well, you are about to find answers to all these questions by the expert paper writing service provider as you get to the end of reading this exciting blog post. So, without further ado, let’s get started.

Table of Contents

Everything You Need to Know About Creative Writing

What is creative writing.

Writing creatively is all about expressing yourself through stories, poems, and other forms of literature. It’s about bringing out your own originality and artistic flair to create something that grabs the reader’s attention. It’s a way of communicating your emotions, thoughts, and ideas in an interesting and captivating way.

Creative writing allows authors to express themselves uniquely, letting them explore and experiment with language, structure, and content. It is not just about narrating a story, but also about how it is told. This type of writing can range from genres such as fiction, non-fiction, poetry, drama, fantasy, science fiction, and more.

What Defines Creative Writing?

The characteristics of creative writing are as follows:, imagination.

Being able to make up worlds, people, and stories that are completely made up or inspired by real life but with an artistic twist.

Originality

Coming up with fresh concepts and different angles is what writing creatively is all about. It’s a way for writers to think outside the box and go against the grain.

Language and Style

Having fun with words, trying out different writing techniques, and including literary elements to make people feel something or to paint a picture in their minds is super important. Metaphors, similes, allegories, and symbols are common things people do when they are writing creatively.

Character Development

Creating characters that people can relate to, that are dynamic, and have many different elements is really important. People can relate to characters that feel genuine, with complicated reasons for doing things, mistakes they make, and how they develop throughout the story.

Plot and Structure

Creative writing doesn’t have to be all structured and formal; it doesn’t even have to follow a traditional path. The main thing is that it makes sense and has a purpose. Even if it’s a bit weird and wacky, it should still have a point.

Emotional Impact

Writing creatively usually tries to stir up some feelings in readers, like a sad poem, an interesting story, or a reflective essay.

Creative writing isn’t confined to published works; it exists in personal journals, blogs, spoken word performances, and even in advertising and marketing content. It allows individuals to explore their inner thoughts, express themselves uniquely, and communicate ideas in a way that resonates with others.

Characteristics of creative writing can often be confused with the elements of creative writing . Let’s now explore the latter below.

Elements of Creative Writing

Creative writing involves lots of elements that help make it awesome. When used properly, these elements can really make a piece stand out, adding deeper meaning, vibrancy, and making it really resonate.

The plot is basically what happens in a story. It’s the sequence of events that make up the story, like the beginning, the buildup, the climax, and the ending. Writers often get creative with it, using techniques like out-of-order storytelling or surprising plot points.

Characters are the backbone of any story. Crafting believable characters means fleshing out their personalities, what motivates them, their flaws, and how they develop as the story progresses. Characters are the ones that keep the plot going and help readers form an emotional bond with the tale.

The background of the story is set out right away – when and where it takes place, the mood, and the surroundings. Creating a detailed setting can make readers feel like they’re in the story.

Characters come alive when they talk and it helps move the story along. It gives us a better understanding of their personalities, relationships, and any issues that might be present. When dialogue is written well it has a natural flow and can help to build suspense or subtly provide information.

The ideas that a piece of writing is exploring are known as themes. These can range from big topics like love, justice, and identity, and they help give the story depth and purpose.

Point of View (POV)

The decision about who’s telling the story is all about the POV – you can go with first person (me/us), second person (you), or third person (him/her/them). It all depends on what kind of angle you want to go for, and it affects the way readers connect with the story.

Style and Tone

Style is how the author expresses themselves, the words they use, and how they put them together. The tone is the feel of the piece, whether it’s official, funny, thrilling, or poetic.

Imagery and Figurative Language

Using vivid figures of speech such as imagery, metaphors, and similes can make writing pop and help readers picture the scene and connect to the story.

Conflict and Resolution

Disagreements and clashes keep us hooked on the story and make us want to know what happens next. This can be inside a person or between characters and different sides. The end of the story gives us the answers and gives us a sense of completion.

Symbolism and Allegory

Authors frequently employ symbols or figures of speech to express ideas that go beyond the literal meaning of the narrative. Adding these literary elements to the tale brings additional levels of interpretation and importance.

Types of Creative Writing

Creative writing covers a huge range of genres and styles, each with its purpose and readership. Here are different forms of creative writing with examples:

Novels: Novels that span multiple chapters and tell an unfolding story, such as Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird”.

Short Stories: Shorter stories with just one storyline and fewer characters. For example, “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson.

Flash Fiction: Really short tales that are usually only a few hundred words long. For instance, the famous “For sale: baby shoes, never worn” is attributed to Ernest Hemingway.

Free Verse: An example of poetry that doesn’t have a set pattern of rhyming or rhythm is “The Waste Land” by T.S. Eliot.

Haiku: A classic Japanese style of poetry that is made up of three lines with a syllable count of 5-7-5. For example, Basho wrote “An old silent pond / A frog jumps into the pond— / Splash! Quiet once more.”

Sonnet: A 14-line poem with a set rhyme scheme, like Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18 – ya know, the one that starts with “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”

Plays: Works meant to be acted out on stage, usually with dialogue and instructions for how the actors should move and act. A good example is “Romeo and Juliet” by William Shakespeare.

Screenplays: The script for the movie “The Shawshank Redemption” was written by Frank Darabont.

Creative Nonfiction

Memoir: Stories about a particular moment or event in someone’s life, like Jeannette Walls’ “The Glass Castle”, that’s what personal accounts are all about.

Personal Essays: Thinking deeply and looking inwards at your own experiences or observations can result in some really interesting essays. Take for example, Joan Didion’s “On Self-Respect” – a piece that gets you to reflect on yourself.

Journalistic Writing

Feature Articles: Detailed stories that dive into a particular topic or issue. For example, long pieces in publications like The New Yorker or The Atlantic.

Profiles: A comprehensive look into someone or a group’s life, accomplishments, and adventures. For example, “The Profile of Elon Musk” in Forbes.

Experimental Writing

Stream of Consciousness: Writing that copies the way we think, without conforming to regular sentence structure. For instance, “Ulysses” by James Joyce.

Found Poetry: Making poems by changing up existing words, like in newspapers or ads, to give them a new purpose. An example would be “A Humument” by Tom Phillips.

Children’s Literature

Picture Books: Books for young kids that are filled with pictures and don’t have a lot of words, like “Where the Wild Things Are” by Maurice Sendak.

Middle-Grade Novels: Books that are great for kids between 8 and 12, like “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” by J.K. Rowling.

You should note that forms of creative writing are not limited to this list only. Each kind of creative writing has its own rules, techniques, and goals. Writers usually try out different forms during their time writing, altering their style to match the special needs and potential of each one.

How to write creatively?

Getting creative with writing requires a mixture of imagination, ability, and technique. Here’s a comprehensive look at how to go about it:

Generate Ideas

Observation: Take notice of the environment around you. Inspiration can be found in the little things, like everyday life, chat, nature, or even in your dreams.

Brainstorming: Write whatever comes to mind without worrying about whether it’s good or bad. Just jot down your ideas and see where it takes you. Experiment with different ideas and don’t be afraid to go off on tangents.

Understand Your Audience

Think about who you’re writing for. Knowing your readers will help you adjust your language, style, and content to make a bigger impact on them.

Choose Your Form or Genre

Think about what sort of creative writing would work best for your idea – whether it be a story, poem, play, a piece of nonfiction writing, or something else.

Develop Your Characters and Setting

Characters: Come up with multi-faceted characters, with different personalities, motives, downfalls, and pasts. This makes them seem real and interesting.

Setting: Create an atmosphere that really draws your readers in and makes them feel like they’re part of your story. Include lots of details about when and where it’s taking place, the mood, and any cultural elements that are relevant. That’ll make your narrative really come alive.

Craft a Compelling Plot

Structure: Figure out the order of events in your story. Even if you like to go with the flow, it can help to have a loose plan to guide your writing.

Conflict: You need to create a bit of tension or struggle in your story to keep readers hooked. Without it, your story won’t be nearly as engaging.

Use Descriptive Language and Imagery

Show, Don’t Tell: Rather than just giving a bunch of facts, make your story come alive by using vivid language and including as many senses as possible.

Metaphors, Similes, and Descriptive Phrases: Use these literary techniques to stir up emotions and create a vivid picture.

Focus on Voice and Style

Create your own writing style that shows off your personality and the feeling of what you’re writing about.

Try out different writing approaches and voices that work with the story’s needs.

Edit and Revise

Rework your writing as much as you can to make it the best it can be. Look over it a bunch of times to make sure it makes sense and the words flow nicely. Don’t forget to double-check for typos and other mistakes in grammar, punctuation, and spelling.

Think about what your friends or readers say. Getting feedback on your work can be really helpful and give you ideas to make it even better.

Read Widely and Analyze

Check out the writing of different authors and types of literature. Take a closer look at how they craft their stories and use different writing styles. Doing this will give you a better understanding of writing creatively.

Practice Regularly

If you want to get better at writing, you should make time in your schedule to practice. Doing this regularly will help you sharpen your writing skills.

Don’t be scared to try something new or take chances. It’s often when you push yourself outside of your usual routine that you get the most creative ideas.

Stay Open to Inspiration

Whenever you get a spark of inspiration, make sure to write it down! Whether you have a notebook or a note-taking app, jot down those ideas so you don’t forget them.

Persistence and Patience

Creating something new takes time and dedication. Don’t be too hard on yourself and recognize the progress that you make. Don’t forget to pat yourself on the back for the successes and use your failures as lessons.

Creative Writing Example

Going through examples of creative writing can help us grasp the essence of such an activity. So let’s get to reading a well-written example of creative writing.

Title: The Midnight Library

As Amelia sat by the hearth, the old clock on the mantelpiece gently sounded out the hour. She ran her fingers along the edges of a timeworn leather-bound book, The Midnight Library, which was nestled in an obscure part of town. Rumors circulated of its mysterious powers, claiming that lost souls could find comfort within its pages.

As Amelia took a stroll, her curiosity drew her closer and closer. The sounds of the outside world faded away, and the solid wooden doors of the library opened up. Inside, the room was dimly lit, and the shelves of books seemed to stretch endlessly into the darkness.

She came across books that discussed forgotten aspirations, unfulfilled aspirations, and narratives that had been carried on over the years. Subsequently, her digits lightly touched a tome that appeared to gently vibrate. Its title shone faintly: “Whispers of the Heart.”

Her interest was piqued, and she opened the book to find pages filled with stories that resembled pieces of her own life. Recollections that she thought she had forgotten were illuminated by the light of the library’s old lamps.

As she explored further, she came across a section that seemed strangely recognizable. It described an abandoned childhood ambition, something that had been pushed to the back of her memory. The words stirred up vivid memories of painting with a brush, mixing colors on a canvas, and a delight that had been suppressed by the burden of obligations.

She was caught up in the story, and a sensation of longing rose up inside her. The aged walls of the library seemed to be giving her a gentle push to pursue a desire that had lain dormant for a long time.

She made her way out of the library with her determination firmly set. The air was different in the night, a feeling of potential filling the atmosphere. Her footsteps echoed in the stillness as she walked through the empty streets, her heart pounding in her chest.

She cautiously made her way to the attic, carefully pushing away the cobwebs. After uncovering an easel and paints, she was filled with emotion as the moonlight illuminated the dust motes. Taking a brush, she immersed it in a variety of colors, feeling her passion for painting being reignited.

Time flew by unnoticed as hues began to appear on the canvas, proof of her innermost feelings being expressed. In that tranquil environment of creation, she found peace, reconnecting to an aspect of herself that had been missing for a long time.

When the sun rose the next day, Amelia was inspired by what she had heard in the Midnight Library and determined to search the depths of her own heart and pursue aspirations that she had once thought were gone forever.

This narrative displays key traits of creative writing, such as character growth, location, a stimulating writing style, and topics like self-realization and chasing after abandoned ambitions.

10 creative writing topics and prompts

Here are ten concise creative writing prompts:

Unexpected Encounter: Write about a chance meeting between two strangers that changes the course of their lives.

The Forgotten Letter: A character discovers an old, unopened letter that leads to a life-altering revelation.

A World Without Technology: Describe a society where technology doesn’t exist and explore how people live in this world.

The Forbidden Forest: Create a story about a person’s journey into a mysterious forest that is said to be off-limits to all.

The Last Person on Earth : Imagine being the sole survivor after an apocalyptic event and chronicle a day in this person’s life.

The Hidden Door : Write about a character finding a hidden door in their house that leads to an unexpected place.

Time Travel Dilemma: A person discovers a time-traveling device but faces a moral dilemma about changing the past or future.

The Magical Artifact: Tell a story about an ordinary object that possesses magical powers and its impact on the person who finds it.

The Abandoned Carnival: Describe the eerie experience of exploring an abandoned carnival at night.

A New Civilization: Create a narrative about the founding of a new civilization on a distant planet.

How to Write Creatively: 5 Common Effective Tips

Here are ten of the best creative writing courses that are highly regarded for their quality content and instruction:

Experiment with Perspective and Voice

Try writing from different points of view (first-person, third-person, etc.) and experiment with various narrative voices. Changing perspectives can offer fresh angles to your storytelling and character development.

Use Constraints to Spark Creativity

Give yourself a challenge, like writing a story with a certain word cap, only one plot, or including some specific elements. Limiting yourself can bring out surprising ideas and spark creativity.

Explore the Unfamiliar and Unusual

Delve into subjects, settings, or themes that you are unfamiliar with. Research and embrace the unknown. This exploration can inspire unique storylines and add depth to your writing.

Embrace Silence and Reflection

Creativity often flourishes in moments of quiet reflection. Allow yourself time for introspection and contemplation. Disconnecting from distractions can spark new ideas and allow existing ones to evolve.

Blend Genres and Styles

Experiment with blending different genres or mixing styles of writing. Combining elements from multiple genres can create innovative narratives that defy traditional boundaries.

Expert Tips to Master Creative Writing Skills

Here are some creative writing tips for beginners:

Read Widely and Analytically

Broaden your reading by exploring a variety of genres and writing styles. Examine how authors create their narratives, construct their characters, and employ language.

Write Regularly

Regular practice is essential. Make sure you reserve regular intervals for writing regularly. Even brief periods of writing every day can have a major impact on your abilities.

Experiment with Different Styles and Genres

Do not restrict yourself to a single category or style. Trying out diverse forms of writing can widen your imagination and abilities.

Develop Characters and Setting

Develop characters that possess a range of traits, and are driven by motivations and shortcomings. Ensure that the environment in which your story takes place is vivid enough to capture the attention of the reader.

Show, Don’t Tell

Rather than simply stating facts, employ descriptive language and sensory details to create vivid, evocative images that will draw readers in and make them feel as if they are truly immersed in your writing.

Revise and Edit

Repeatedly editing your writing is essential to ensure it is of the best quality. Carefully consider the clarity, flow, and speed of your writing.

Embrace Constructive Criticism

Getting feedback from other people such as peers, writing groups, or mentors can be beneficial as it can provide you with useful advice and help you to develop as an author.

Develop Your Unique Voice

Your writing style should be unique to you – don’t try to copy someone else’s. Work on creating a voice that showcases your personality and point of view.

Use Dialogue Effectively

It’s important to make sure your dialogue reflects the characters involved, helps to move the story along, and sounds realistic. So, when writing dialogue, make sure it’s genuine and meaningful.

Learn from Rejection and Failure

Facing rejections and failures are all part of the process. Use them as a chance to learn, take in any feedback you get, and keep working on getting better at what you do.

Stay Curious and Observant

Keep being inquisitive about everything happening in your surroundings. Take motivation from regular happenings, people, places, and occurrences.

Embrace the Writing Process

Realize that writing is made up of writing a first draft, making changes and adjustments, and then reviewing and polishing it. Don’t be too harsh on yourself throughout each step of the journey.

Set Realistic Goals

Come up with some realistic writing objectives so you can stay consistent and monitor your progress. Could be something like how many words you want to write each day/week, the number of chapters you want to complete, or how much time you want to dedicate to writing each day/week.

Join Writing Communities

Join a writing squad, attend some workshops, or hop on an online forum. Chatting with other authors can give you a boost of inspiration, keep you motivated, and provide helpful advice.

Keep Learning and Growing

It’s never-ending when it comes to learning how to write. Keep picking up new tricks, hit up some classes, and check out all the different kinds of writing out there.

Just note that these creative writing tips for beginners are not solely meant for beginners. Even experienced writers can take advantage of them.

Creative writing is an art form that lets us express our creativity and use language to reach out to people and make a connection. It’s all about being imaginative and coming up with something new, while still using words to give things meaning.

Crafting a piece of writing is a tough job. coming up with ideas, getting them down on paper, revising, and making sure they all fit. Even our writers suggest that It usually takes a few tries to get it just perfect.

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Discovery: The Ultimate Guide to Creative Writing

Elyse Popplewell

Friday 4th, March 2016

If you’re a first time reader, then you might not be aware of my free online HSC tutoring for English (including HSC creative writing), and other subjects. Check it out! Also – I have a deal for you. If this post is crazy helpful, then you should share it with your friends on Facebook . Deal? Awesome.

HSC Creative Writing: The Guide.

HSC creative writing can be a pain for some and the time to shine for others. Getting started is the most difficult part. When you have something to work with, it is simply a matter of moulding it to perfection. When you have nothing, you have a seemingly difficult road ahead. After several ATAR Notes members expressed that they need help with HSC creative writing, I wrote this to give you some starting points. Then I edited this, and re-wrote it so that it helps you from the beginning stages until the very last days of editing. Fear no more, HSC creative writing doesn’t have to be the foe that it is in your head! Let’s get started.

Surprise: You’re the composer!

Write about what you know

In the years 2010-2015, not once has Paper 1 specified a form that you have to use. Every year in that time frame they have asked for “imaginative writing” except in 2011 when they asked for a “creative piece” of writing. Most commonly, students write in the short story form. However, students can also write speeches, opinion articles, memoirs, monologues, letters, diary entries, or hybrid medium forms. Think about how you can play to your strengths. Are you the more analytical type and less creative? Consider using that strength in the “imaginative writing” by opting to write a feature article or a speech. If you want to ask questions about your form, then please check out my free online HSC tutoring for English and other subjects.

Tense is a very powerful tool that you can use in your writing to increase intensity or create a tone of detachment, amongst other things. Writing entirely in the present tense is not as easy as it seems, it is very easy to fall into past tense. The present tense creates a sense of immediacy, a sense of urgency. If you’re writing with suspense or about action, consider the present tense.

“We stand here together, linking arms. The car screeches to a stop in front of our unified bodies. The frail man alights from the vehicle and stares into my eyes.”

The past tense is the most common in short stories. The past tense can be reflective, recounting, or perhaps just the most natural tense to write in.

“We stood together, linking arms. The car screeched to a stop in front of us. The frail man alighted from his vehicle and stared into my eyes.”

The future tense is difficult to use for short stories. However, you can really manipulate the future tense to work in your favour if you are writing a creative speech. A combination of tenses will most probably create a seamless link between cause and effect in a speech.

“We will stand together with our arms linked. The man may intimidate us all he likes, but together, when we are unified, we are stronger he will ever be.”

It is also important to point out that using a variety of tenses may work best for your creative. If you are flashing back, the easiest way to do that is to establish the tense firmly.

Giving your setting some texture

You ultimately want your creative writing to take your marker to a new place, a new world, and you want them to feel as though they understand it like they would their own kitchen. The most skilled writers can make places like Hogwarts seem like your literary home. At the Year 12 level, we aren’t all at that level. The best option is to take a setting you know and describe it in every sense – taste, smell, feel, sound and sight.

Choose a place special and known to you. Does your grandmother’s kitchen have those old school two-tone brown tiles? Did you grow up in another country, where the air felt different and the smell of tomatoes reminded you of Sundays? Does your bedroom have patterned fabric hanging from the walls and a bleached patch on the floor from when you spilled nail polish remover? Perhaps your scene is a sporting field – describe the grazed knees, the sliced oranges and the mums on the sideline nursing babies. The more unique yet well described the details are, the more tangible your setting is.

Again, it comes back to: write about what you know.

How much time has elapsed?

You want to consider whether your creative piece is focused on a small slot of ordinary time, or is it covering years in span? Are you flashing back between the past and the present? Some of the most wonderful short stories focus on the minutiae that is unique to ordinary life but is perpetually overlooked or underappreciated. By this I mean, discovering that new isn’t always better may be the product of a character cooking their grandmother’s recipe for brownies (imagine the imagery you could use!). Discovering that humans are all one and the same could come from a story based on one single shift at a grocery store, observing customers. Every day occurrences offer very special and overlooked discoveries.

You could create a creative piece that actually spans the entire life span of someone (is this the life span of someone who lived to 13 years old or someone who lived until 90 years old?). Else, you could create a story that compares the same stage of life of three different individuals in three different eras. Consider how much time you want to cover before embarking on your creative journey.

Show, don’t tell:

The best writers don’t give every little detail wrapped up and packaged, ready to go. As a writer, you need to have respect for your reader in that you believe in their ability to read between the lines at points, or their ability to read a description and visualise it appropriately.

“I was 14 at the time. I was young, vulnerable and naïve. At 14 you have such little life experience, so I didn’t know how to react.”

This is boring because the reader is being fed every detail that they could have synthesised from being told the age alone. To add to the point of the age, you could add an adjective that gives connotations to everything that was written in the sentence, such as “tender age of 14.” That’s a discretionary thing, because it’s not necessary. When you don’t have to use extra words: probably don’t. When you give less information, you intrigue the reader. There is a fine line between withholding too much and giving the reader the appropriate rope for them to pull. The best way to work out if you’re sitting comfortably on the line is to send your creative writing to someone, and have them tell you if there was a gap in the information. How many facts can you convey without telling the reader directly? Your markers are smart people, they can do the work on their end, you just have to feed them the essentials.

Here are some examples of the difference between showing and telling.

Telling: The beach was windy and the weather was hot. Showing: Hot sand bit my ankles as I stood on the shore.

Telling: His uniform was bleakly coloured with a grey lapel. He stood at attention, without any trace of a smile. Showing: The discipline of his emotions was reflected in his prim uniform.

Giving your character/persona depth

If your creative writing involves a character – whether that be a protagonist or the persona delivering your imaginative speech – you need to give them qualities beyond the page. It isn’t enough to describe their hair colour and gender. There needs to be something unique about this character that makes them feel real, alive and possibly relatable. Is it the way that they fiddle with loose threads on their cardigan? Is it the way they comb their hair through their fingers when they are stressed? Do they wear an eye patch? Do they have painted nails, but the pinky nail is always painted a different colour? Do they have an upward infliction when they are excited? Do the other characters change their tone when they are in the presence of this one character? Does this character only speak in high/low modality? Are they a pessimist? Do they wear hand-made ugly brooches?

Of course, it is a combination of many qualities that make a character live beyond the ink on the page. Hopefully my suggestions give you an idea of a quirk your character could have. Alternatively, you could have a character that is so intensely normal that they are a complete contrast to their vibrant setting?

Word Count?

Mine was 1300. I am a very fast writer in exam situations. Length does not necessarily mean quality, of course. A peer of mine wrote 900 words and got the same mark as me. For your first draft, I would aim for a minimum of 700 words. Then, when you create a gauge for how much you can write in an exam in legible handwriting, you can expand. For your half yearly, I definitely recommend against writing a 1300 word creative writing unless you are supremely confident that you can do that, at high quality, in 40 minutes (perhaps your half yearly exam isn’t a full Paper 1 – in which case you need to write to the conditions).

There is no correct word count range. You need to decide how many words you need to effectively and creatively express your ideas about discovery.

Relating to a stimulus

Since 2010, Paper 1 has delivered quotes to be used as the first sentence, general quotes to be featured anywhere in the text and visual images to be incorporated. Every year, there has been a twist on the area of study concept (belonging or discovery) in the question. In the belonging stage, BOSTES did not say “Write a creative piece about belonging. Include the stimulus ******.” Instead, they have said to write an imaginative piece about “belonging and not belonging” or to “Compose a piece of imaginative writing which explores the unexpected impact of discovery.” These little twists always come from the rubric, so there isn’t really any excuse to not be prepared for that!

If the stimulus is a quote such as “She was always so beautiful” there is lenience for tense. Using the quote directly, if required to do that, is the best option. However, if this screws up the tense you are writing in, it is okay to say “she is always so beautiful.” (Side note: This would be a really weird stimulus if it ever occurred.) Futhermore, gender can be substituted, although also undesirable. If the quote is specified to be the very first sentence of your work: there is no lenience. It must be the very first sentence.

As for a visual image, the level of incorporation changes. Depending on the image, you could reference the colours, the facial expressions, the swirly pattern or the salient image. Unfortunately, several stimuli from past papers are “awaiting copyright” online and aren’t available. However, there are a few, and when you have an imaginative piece you should try relate them to these stimuli as preparation.

The techniques:

Don’t forget to include some techniques in there. You study texts all year and you know what makes a text stand out. You know how a metaphor works, so use it. Be creative. Use a motif that flows through your story. If you’re writing a speech, use imperatives to call your reader to action. Use beautiful imagery that intrigues a reader. Use amazing alliteration (see what I did there). Avoid clichés like the plague (again…see what I did) unless you are effectively appropriating it. In HSC creative writing, you need to show that you have studied magnificent wordsmiths, and in turn, you can emulate their manipulation of form and language.

Some quirky prompts:

Click here if you want 50 quirky writing prompts – look for the spoiler in the post!

How do I incorporate Discovery?

If you click here you will be taken to an AOS rubric break down I have done with some particular prompts for HSC creative writing.

Part two: Editing and Beyond!

This next part is useful for your HSC creative writing when you have some words on the page waiting for improvement.

Once you’ve got a creative piece – or at least a plot – you can start working on how you will present this work in the most effective manner. You need to be equipped with knowledge and skill to refine your work on a technical level, in order to enhance the discovery that you will be heavily marked on. By synthesising the works of various genius writers and the experiences of HSC writers, I’ve compiled a list of checks and balances, tips and tricks, spells and potions, that will help you create the best piece of HSC creative writing that you can.

Why should you critique your writing and when?

What seems to be a brilliant piece of HSC creative writing when you’re cramming for exams may not continue to be so brilliant when you’re looking at it again after a solid sleep and in the day light. No doubt what you wrote will have merit, perhaps it will be perfect, but the chances lean towards it having room for improvement. You can have teachers look at your writing, peers, family, and even me here at ATAR Notes. Everyone can give their input and often, an outsider’s opinion is preciously valuable. However, at the end of the day this is your writing and essentially an artistic body that you created from nothing. That’s special. It is something to be proud of, and when you find and edit the faults in your own work, you enhance your writing but also gain skills in editing.

Your work should be critiqued periodically from the first draft until the HSC exams. After each hand-in of your work to your teacher you should receive feedback to take on board. You have your entire year 12 course to work on a killer creative writing piece. What is important is that you are willing to shave away the crusty edges of the cake so that you can present it in the most effective and smooth icing you have to offer. If you are sitting on a creative at about 8/15 marks right now (as of the 29/02/2016), you only have to gain one more mark per month in order to sit on a 15/15 creative. This means that you shouldn’t put your creative to bed for weeks without a second thought. This is the kind of work that benefits from small spontaneous bursts of editing, reading and adjusting. Fresh eyes do wonders to writer’s block, I promise. You will also find that adapting your creative writing to different stimuli is also very effective in highlighting strengths and flaws in the work. This is another call for editing! Sometimes you will need to make big changes, entirely re-arranging the plot, removing characters, changing the tense, etc. Sometimes you will need to make smaller changes like finely grooming the grammar and spelling. It is worth it when you have an HSC creative writing piece that works for you, and is effective in various situations that an exam could give you.

The way punctuation affects things:

I’ll just leave this right here…

Consistency of tense:

Are your sentences a little intense?

It is very exhausting for a responder to read complex and compound sentences one after the other, each full of verbose and unnecessary adjectives. It is such a blessed relief when you reach a simple sentence that you just want to sit and mellow in the beauty of its simplicity. Of course, this is a technique that you can use to your advantage. You won’t need the enormous unnecessary sentences though, I promise. “Jesus wept.” This is the shortest verse in the Bible (found John 11:35) and is probably one of the most potent examples of the power of simplicity. The sentence only involves a proper noun and a past-tense verb. It stands alone to be very powerful. It also stands as a formidable force in among other sentences. Sentence variation is extremely important in engaging a reader through flow.

Of course, writing completely in simple sentences is tedious for you and the reader. Variation is the key in HSC creative writing. This is most crucial in your introduction because there is opportunity to lose your marker before you have even shown what you’re made of! Reading your work out loud is one of the most effective ways to realise which sentences aren’t flowing. If you are running out of breath before you finish a sentence – you need to cut back. Have a look here and read this out loud:

The grand opening:

Writer’s Digest suggested in their online article “5 Wrong Ways to Start a Story” that there are in fact, ways to lose your reader and textual credibility before you even warm up. It is fairly disappointing to a reader to be thrown into drastic action, only to be pulled into consciousness and be told that the text’s persona was in a dream. My HSC English teacher cringed at the thought of us starting or resolving our stories with a dream that defeats everything that happened thus far. It is the ending you throw on when you don’t know how to end it, and it is the beginning you use to fake that you are a thrilling action writer. Exactly what you don’t want to do in HSC creative writing.

Hopefully neither of these apply to you – so when Johnny wakes up to realise “it was all just a dream” you better start hitting the backspace.Students often turn to writing about their own experiences. This is great! However, do not open your story with the alarm clock buzzing, even if that is the most familiar daily occurrence. Writer’s Digest agrees. They say, “the only thing worse than a story opening with a ringing alarm clock is when the character reaches over to turn it off and then exclaims, “I’m late.””So, what constitutes a good opening? If you are transporting a reader to a different landscape or time period than what they are probably used to, you want to give them the passport in the very introduction otherwise the plane to the discovery will leave without them. This is your chance to grab the marker and keep them keen for every coming word. Of course, to invite a reader to an unfamiliar place you need to give them some descriptions. This is the trap of death! Describing the location in every way is tedious and boring. You want to respect the reader and their imagination. Give them a rope, they’ll pull.However, if your story is set in a familiar world, you may need to take a different approach. These are some of my favourite first lines from books (some I have read, some I haven’t). I’m sure you can appreciate why each one is so intriguing.

“Call me Ishmael.” -Herman Melville, Moby Dick.

This works because it is simple, stark, demanding. Most of all, it is intriguing.

“It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.” – George Orwell, 1984.

Usually, bright and sunny go together. Here, bright and cold are paired. What is even more unique? The clocks tick beyond 12. What? Why? How? You will find out if you read on! See how that works?

“It was a pleasure to burn.” Ray Bradbury, Farenheit 451.

This is grimacing, simple, intriguing.

“I write this sitting in the kitchen sink.” -Dodie Smith, I Capture the Castle.

Already I’m wondering why the bloody hell is this person in a kitchen sink? How did they get there? Are they squashed? This kind of unique sentence stands out.

“In case you hadn’t noticed, you have a mental dialogue going on inside your head that never stops. It just keeps going and going. Have you ever wondered why it talks in there? How does it decide what to say and when to say it?” – Michael A Singer, The Untethered Soul: The Journal Beyond Yourself.

This works because it appeals to the reader and makes them question a truth about themselves that they may have never considered before.

“Mr and Mrs Dursley, of number four Pivet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.” JK Rowling, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.

Who was questioning that they weren’t perfectly normal? Why are they so defensive and dismissive? I already feel a reaction to the pompous nature of the pair!

Resolving the story well!

There are so many ways to end stories. SO many. What stories have ended in a very efficient way for you? Which stories left you wanting more? Which stories let you down?

Because you are asked to write about discovery in HSC creative writing, you want the ending to be wholesome. This means, you need your marker to know that the ending justifies the discovery. You can’t leave your marker confused about whether or not the discovery had yet occurred because this may jeopardise your marks. If your discovery is an epiphany for the reader, you may want to finish with a stark, stand alone sentence that truly has a resonating effect. If your story is organised in a way that the discovery is transformative of a persona’s opinions, make sure that the ending clearly justifies the transformation that occurred. You could find it most effective to end your story with your main character musing over the happenings of the story.

In the pressure of an exam, it is tempting to cut short on your conclusion to save time. However, you MUST remember that the last taste of your story that your marker has comes from the final words. They simply cannot be compromised!

George Orwell’s wise words:

Looking for a bit of extra help?

We also have a free HSC creative writing marking thread here!

Don’t be shy, post your questions. If you have a question on HSC creative writing or anything else, it is guaranteed that so many other students do too. So when you post it on here, not only does another student benefit from the reply, but they also feel comforted that they weren’t the only one with the question!

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How Many Words Should My Book Be?

July 9, 2018 / Writing Tips / 16 COMMENTS

Man sitting at a table loaded with books.

by Caleb Kaiser, @ReedsyHQ

Word count is one of those things you don’t think about when you start writing the first page of your novel. It’s only after your book is completed, when you’re shopping around for agents or thinking of self-publishing, that you think, “Is my book the right length for selling?”

At Reedsy, we’ve connected thousands of authors with editors, proofreaders, designers, and marketers, and as a result, have access to a lot of data on books—particularly, book length.

Below we’ve broken down our insights on how long different genres of books should be.

1. Writing For Middle Grade Or YA Audiences? Keep It Brief

The average young adult manuscript clocks in at between 50,000 and 75,000 words, while the average middle grade manuscript is much shorter, at 20,000-55,000 words.

While these numbers can be a bit skewed by the fantasy genre—which across the board tends to run longer—the trend is clear. If you’re writing for a younger audience, keep your novel shorter. Think about how many books you were assigned in school at that age, and how long the average one was.

2. If You’re Writing Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Shoot Longer

Sci-fi and fantasy are two genres were books, on average, go far longer than normal. The average sci-fi and fantasy books run between 100,000 and 115,000 words—which means that most other genres of books have a maximum length of sci-fi/fantasy’s minimum length.

When you think about it, this makes intuitive sense. Sci-fi and fantasy are both genres where intense world-building is more common, and with the exception of romance, there is probably not a genre where fans become more loyal to the authors they love—and therefore, more willing to read longer works.

3. For Anything Else, You’ve Got An Easy Sweet Spot

For all other genres of writing, a manuscript clocking in between 80,000 and 100,000 words should be perfect length-wise. Really, it’s remarkable how many different genres fall into this neatly:

Commercial and literary novels: 80,000 – 100,000 words.
Romance: 80,000 – 100,000 words.
Mystery: 75,000 – 100,000 words.
Thriller: 90,000 – 100,000 words.
Memoir: 80,000 – 90,000 words.

The one big exception to this is westerns, which are traditionally shorter (between 45,000 and 75,000 words) and fall into series.

Exceptions To The Rule

Now of course, if you’re writing a phenomenal manuscript that happens to go over these averages (or fall under them), no one is going to refuse to read your book because of its length. Harry Potter and The Order of The Phoenix clocked in at 257,045 words, and was still an international bestseller.

However, understand that when you do deviate from these norms, you’re asking agents and readers to take a risk on you. There’s a reason the first Harry Potter novel clocked in at 76,944 words—no one was willing to take a risk yet.

If you have a classic on your hands, don’t fret the word count. In general, however, try to fall between these averages if you want a commercially viable book.

Caleb Kaiser runs outreach at Reedsy , a marketplace connecting authors and publishers with top talent in the publishing world.

What’s the word count of your books? How long are the books you usually choose to read?

Photo credit: ♔ Georgie R on VisualHunt.com / CC BY-ND

Well, my science fiction books all ran on the short side, about 20,000+ short. I did try to make them longer! I wonder if space opera tens to be shorter…? You got your money’s worth when buying a Harry Potter book.

The Harry Potter books were big books!

I tend to write short, myself. When I wrote for Penguin, I was under contract for 75,000 words. On my own, it’s closer to 55K.

Authors need to be aware of their genre length when writing. I get a lot of submissions that are either way too short or way too long.

I can only imagine! I bet you get a ton that are not a fit for the genre.

Thanks for the helpful insights. I tend to be brief when I write – 60,000 or so words. But I can see the sense of writing even less for YA/middle grades audiences, and more in other situations. Word count, like everything else, seems contextual.

I’m brief, too. :) I honestly think it fits cozies best that way, but I’d adjust for another genre.

I find authors who self-pub in the contemporary romance area often have shorter than 80k – but agented/traditionally pubbed works are right in these word count suggestions. It’s interesting how the style of publishing changes the word count!

They will charge more for bigger books, too. I had a few with Penguin that they bumped the price down a dollar because of the books’ length. Makes sense that they would prefer them to be a little longer (depending, again, on genre).

Great advice. I had to learn the hard way on word counts in my first manuscript where I had to cut 30,000 words. Now I try to keep a reasonable word count in mind as I plot out my story.

Ouch! That’s a lot of cutting! That sounds really typical of a first manuscript. I find that I go on longer if I’m stalling writing a big/important scene.

This is so helpful and disturbing as I ask myself do I have 75000 -100000 words in my head for one book?

If you’re self-publishing (as I am now), you can go much lower. I think a lot of readers enjoy short reads.

Sci-fy can easily be made into a sequel then into a trilogy and on and on and on. I love Sci-fy and the endless possibilities the genre offers.

Series sell really well!

Hi Elizabeth – thanks to Caleb for this post … and useful information for us all. Interesting to know about and to see the comments – cheers Hilary

Thanks for coming by, Hilary!

Comments are closed.

Superprof's Creative Writing Guide

8 minutes reading time

01. What is Creative Writing?
02. Getting Started with Creative Writing
03. Challenging Aspects of Creative Writing
04. Common Creative Writing Mistakes
05. Practice Creative Writing with Superprof

"I kept always two books in my pocket, one to read, one to write in." Robert Louis Stevenson

While the term “creative writing” might seem quite self-explanatory, there's a little more to it than first meets the eye.

In this article, we'll include everything you need to know about creative writing so that you can start writing.

Let's get straight to it!

What is Creative Writing?

Naturally, creative writing is using the written language for creative purposes. To better understand, we should first look at what doesn't constitute as creative writing .

A desk with a laptop and writing materials.

Creative writing can include a lot of different types of writing from a lot of different writers, but what it generally doesn't include is technical writing, academic writing, journalism, business writing, legal writing, instructional writing, and scientific writing.

Most factual and technical types of writing aren't included, which means that creative writing mostly includes everything else done with the written word.

Novels, Short Stories Poetry Drama, Screenplays Memoirs, Personal Essays

Technical Writing Business Writing Legal Writing Scientific Writing

In reality, you'll see that most kinds of writing will still include some creative writing, even if the overall piece isn't necessarily poetry or literature.

You can find types of creative writing that aren't poetry or novels, either, short stories, plays, essays, letters, memoirs, and speeches can all be included in types of creative writing.

Some students will dread creative writing courses whereas others will look forward to them. If you study English in college, you'll likely attend a creative writing course or two, and anyone interested in writing a novel would do well to study creative writing extensively.

Getting Started with Creative Writing

While you can learn by doing, it also helps a lot to do your research. One of the most fun ways to “research” creative writing is by reading extensively.

A person at a desk with a laptop, writing materials, and a cup of coffee.

Just as academics and students should write an essay outline and do their research before they start, creative writing begins with background reading, research, and planning.

This can include reading examples of creative writing like poetry, literature, fiction and nonfiction pieces, and any examples of the written word you can find. Even the drier and more technical examples of writing we referenced before can still make good reading material to better understand the forms and structures that are and aren't used in creative writing.

Creative writing students should also consider writing as often as they can . Some students will just spend a lot of time reading and assume that their writing is going to be great because of it.

Don't fall into this trap!

Any successful creative person will tell you that whether you're writing fiction or nonfiction, you need to practice writing as much as you read, even if a lot of this writing ultimately ends up being thrown away to never be seen again.

In fact, in almost every artistic career, it's very common for artists and creatives to create far more than they use. Successful musicians, for example, will come up with hundreds of ideas for songs that will never be properly recorded or released on their albums. It's all part of the experience.

One of our favorite tips on creative writing is to explore as many different genres as you can. The best writers will have a wide-ranging education (formal or otherwise) and will have studied both fiction and nonfiction and all manner of literary works.

Good creative writing doesn't limit itself to one genre or even just English, if you speak more than one language, be sure to look at examples of creative writing in other languages as they may show you something fascinating that could be used in your writing.

Create a space where you can read and write comfortably and then start exploring different writers and genres and doing your creative writing.

Here's a great podcast on creative writing to get you started. The last episode was in 2022, but the podcast was active from 2014 so there are plenty to listen to.

Challenging Aspects of Creative Writing

Creative writing goes well beyond the actual process of writing. You may have excellent English writing skills, but there are broader concepts in creative writing that go beyond the words you put on the page.

You'll get all these ideas across through your words, but both fiction and nonfiction creative writing can include some broader elements that even the best writers struggle with.

Creating Characters and Character Development

Have you ever read something well-written but found that the characters were lacking? Writers need to work on their characters and intimately understand them so that they're properly represented and developed on the page.

This is easier said than done of course and each writer will have different ways of doing it, but you can't overlook the importance of characters. A good writer will craft characters while making sure to include satisfying and important character development throughout their work.

Generally, characters need to have detailed backgrounds , even if these details aren't explicitly laid out in a story. It can help readers to understand a character's motives even if they don't necessarily agree with them. Nothing frustrates readers more than characters that do things solely to advance the plot rather than acting with no consideration for their backgrounds and personalities.

Creating Good Dialog in Creative Writing

You need to consider how characters interact with one another. Dialog can work as both character development and to drive the plot.

Conversations between characters can tell us more about who they are, but they can also be the catalysts for events within your stories.

Readers tend to like believable conversations , but there is room in a novel or story for more fanciful language and conversation types. After all, the cool one-liner or witty retort might not be something that the average person can manage in a typical conversation, but in literary works, the audience is usually more forgiving of the creative license taken by an author.

As always, reading a lot of works will give you a better idea of all this because acceptable dialogs and norms differ by genre. For example, superheroes get away with all kinds of dialog that would sound awful in a period drama. There are a lot of different types of creative writing as well as lots of different genres and they all have their conventions that writers will need to think carefully about breaking with.

Good Creative Writing Includes Compelling Plots

A compelling plot is what ensures that a reader will continue reading your story or creative writing. Our innate curiosity will drive us on as not only do we want to know what's coming next, but we also want to enjoy the ride.

All art forms play with this idea to some extent. Songs have verses, choruses, and middle sections to keep us engaged and in some cases, even a narrative element or story.

Movies use the plot to keep us watching and while TV shows ending an episode or a season on a cliffhanger might be annoying to some, if the plot's compelling enough, we'll want to keep watching.

In creative writing, the plot and the characters work together to keep us reading . You can write interesting or likable characters so that the reader wants to read about what happens to them, but you also need to create stories with events that are interesting to the reader.

Generally, plots will include tension, conflicts, challenges, and ultimately, their resolution, and different genres tend to feature different types of plots.

Unlock your creative potential by enrolling in english classes near me , where expert instructors will guide you through the art of creative writing. With personalized feedback and hands-on exercises, you'll explore various techniques to craft compelling narratives, develop vivid characters, and bring your stories to life. Join us on this journey of literary discovery and unleash your imagination like never before!

Choosing the Right Setting for Your Creative Writing

Think of the typical question words. Who , what , when , where , why , and how . Most creative writing, especially stories, will seek to answer these.

Good characters and the plot answers the "who?", "what?", and "how?", but your setting is the "why" and "when". The setting helps to establish the atmosphere and mood in creative writing, explaining why certain characters do certain things and also can provide context and background for stories.

A location and a certain period will usually do a lot of work for the reader in contextualizing what's going on and will help support the plot and the character's decisions.

Most importantly, the setting can help build your world within the reader's mind . They'll imagine things based on the setting you create and how you describe it while the choice of setting itself will be pivotal in establishing the genre of your work.

Here's an excellent video by the Jamaican author Nalo Hopkinson on writing descriptively.

Common Creative Writing Mistakes

Creative writing students and those new to creative writing will naturally make a lot of mistakes. Some of the most common mistakes involve being overly verbose. Fortunately, there are plenty of great tools and resources for creative writing that can help writers trim the fat from some of their wordier sentences.

For a lot of creative writing, less is more. The same is true for the adage “show don't tell”.

Character depth, compelling plots, and interesting settings all need to be woven into your writing. Don't give your readers more than they need at any given stage and avoid the temptation to front all your writing with details about characters or the setting.

You'll likely learn in creative writing programs or courses how to sprinkle these details throughout your writing as you craft worlds where readers are given critical information as and when they need it.

Practice Creative Writing with Superprof

Whether you're studying an English degree, attending a creative writing course, or just wanting to develop your writing skills, english tutoring is an excellent way to do better at school or simply improve your writing.

On the Superprof website, you can find plenty of English language and literature tutors, creative writing tutors, or even tutors specializing in aspects of creative writing like plot and character development, world-building, or working with publishers!

Just search for what you want to learn and start browsing the profiles of local and an english tutor online today. Many of them offer the first lesson for free so try a few out before choosing the right one for you!

Enjoyed this article? Leave a rating.

Joseph is a French and Spanish to English translator, copywriter, and all-round language enthusiast.

Frequently asked questions

Can you teach yourself creative writing.

Absolutely! There are plenty of great resources out there and lots of ways to practice.

Is creative writing difficult?

Yes. Creative writing requires a range of different skills and it’s unlikely that anybody will be instantly excellent at it.

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IMAGES

Creative Writing Styles
Creative writing word concepts banner Royalty Free Vector
Describing Words: 1000+ Descriptive Words to Describe our World! • 7ESL
College Rec: Descriptive Words
Pin by Helen on Creative writing
Pin on Education

VIDEO

Force, Effort & Word Count
How Many Words To Learn Per Day? #podcast #english #learningenglish
The Power of Words: 21 Writing Techniques with Scott Keyser
How many words should your essay?
How many words should a 30 minute essay be?
How many words should you use to generate an image

COMMENTS

What Is Creative Writing? (Ultimate Guide + 20 Examples)
Creative Writing is the art of using words to express ideas and emotions in imaginative ways. It encompasses various forms including novels, poetry, and plays, focusing on narrative craft, character development, and the use of literary tropes.
Word Count Guide: How Long Is a Book, Short Story, or Novella?
On the technical side of things, authors need to consider the number of words that will be in their completed manuscript. There is a sweet spot when it comes to word count, and it’s based on a book’s genre and target audience. Follow this rough word count guide as you embark on your literary journey.
How to Write a Short Story: The Short Story Checklist
A short story is a piece of fiction between 1,000 and 7,500 words. Learn how to write a short story in this comprehensive guide to the form.
How Long Should Your Story Be? - writing-world.com
The simple answer is: As long as it takes to tell the whole story. However, there are certain word lengths that most editors prefer to see when submitting work. Here is an approximate guideline for story lengths.
How to Write WAY More Words Per Hour (Without Sacrificing ...
Some writers would consider 100 words an hour to be a perfectly productive rate. Others would be disappointed by 1,000 words an hour.
A Complete Guide to Creative Writing You Need - paperperk.com
Each kind of creative writing has its own rules, techniques, and goals. Writers usually try out different forms during their time writing, altering their style to match the special needs and potential of each one. How to write creatively? Getting creative with writing requires a mixture of imagination, ability, and technique.
Discovery: The Ultimate Guide to Creative Writing | ATAR Notes
For your half yearly, I definitely recommend against writing a 1300 word creative writing unless you are supremely confident that you can do that, at high quality, in 40 minutes (perhaps your half yearly exam isn’t a full Paper 1 – in which case you need to write to the conditions).
How Many Words Should My Book Be? – Elizabeth Spann Craig
The average young adult manuscript clocks in at between 50,000 and 75,000 words, while the average middle grade manuscript is much shorter, at 20,000-55,000 words. While these numbers can be a bit skewed by the fantasy genre—which across the board tends to run longer—the trend is clear.
How many words/hour should you aim for when writing your ...
I write about 350 words an hour and judging from what i've read about famous writers (like Hemingway or Jack london) who typically only write 1,000 words a day while working around 4 hours a day or more, their words rate must be quite slow. fiction is an inefficent business.
A Comprehensive Guide to Creative Writing | Superprof
While the term “creative writing” might seem quite self-explanatory, there's a little more to it than first meets the eye. In this article, we'll include everything you need to know about creative writing so that you can start writing. Let's get straight to it! The best English tutors available. 5 (12 reviews) Laura. $50. /h. 1 st lesson free!

What Is Creative Writing? (Ultimate Guide + 20 Examples)

What Is Creative Writing (Long Description)?

Types of Creative Writing

Short Stories (The Brief Escape)

Novels (The Long Journey)

Poetry (The Soul’s Language)

Plays (The Dramatic Dialogue)

Screenplays (Cinema’s Blueprint)

Memoirs (The Personal Journey)

Flash Fiction (The Quick Twist)

Creative Nonfiction (The Factual Tale)

Fantasy (The World Beyond)

Science Fiction (The Future Imagined)

What Are the 5 Cs of Creative Writing?

Conciseness

Consistency

Is Creative Writing Easy?

What Does a Creative Writer Do?

How to Get Started With Creative Writing?

Final Thoughts: What Is Creative Writing?

The Core Elements of a Short Story

1. Start With an Idea

2. Outline, OR Conceive Your Characters

3. Write Scenes Around Conflict

4. Write Your First Draft

5. Step Away, Breathe, Revise

6. Compare Against Our Short Story Checklist

Learn How to Write a Short Story at Writers.com

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A Comprehensive Guide to Master Creative Writing

Everything You Need to Know About Creative Writing

What Defines Creative Writing?

Originality

Language and Style

Character Development

Plot and Structure

Emotional Impact

Elements of Creative Writing

Point of View (POV)

Style and Tone

Imagery and Figurative Language

Conflict and Resolution

Symbolism and Allegory

Types of Creative Writing

Creative Nonfiction

Journalistic Writing

Experimental Writing

Children’s Literature

How to write creatively?

Generate Ideas

Understand Your Audience

Choose Your Form or Genre

Develop Your Characters and Setting

Craft a Compelling Plot

Use Descriptive Language and Imagery

Focus on Voice and Style

Edit and Revise

Read Widely and Analyze

Practice Regularly

Stay Open to Inspiration

Persistence and Patience

Creative Writing Example

10 creative writing topics and prompts

How to Write Creatively: 5 Common Effective Tips

Expert Tips to Master Creative Writing Skills

Read Widely and Analytically

Write Regularly

Experiment with Different Styles and Genres

Develop Characters and Setting

Show, Don’t Tell

Revise and Edit

Embrace Constructive Criticism

Develop Your Unique Voice

Use Dialogue Effectively

Learn from Rejection and Failure

Stay Curious and Observant

Embrace the Writing Process

Set Realistic Goals

Join Writing Communities

Keep Learning and Growing