Creative Writing vs.
other forms of Writing
Lesson 1
How to be a WRITER?
Do you agree with this saying?
“Great writers are born, not made."
DON'T TELL ME THE MOON IS SHINING; SHOW ME THE GLINT OF LIGHT ON BROKEN GLASS.
-Anton Chekhov
What is CREATIVE WRITING?
-it is an art
-just as art is subjective and hard to define so as CREATIVE WRITING.
The ART of Creative Writing
Creative Writing
-Is any writing that is original, artistic, and self- expressive.
-Its purpose is to entertain, and share human experiences, and it does so by expressing feelings or
thoughts that are borne out of imagination as you can see in poetry, fiction, plays, and personal essays.
-is a form of artistic expression that draws on the imagination to convey thoughts, ideas, and feelings
through the use of narrative craft, character development, literary techniques, and various traditions of
poetry and poetics.
TYPES OF CREATIVE WRITING
✓ Poetry
✓ Plays
✓ Movie and television scripts
✓ Fictions (novels, novellas, and short stories)
✓ Songs
✓ Speeches
✓ Memoirs
✓ Personal Essays
TECHNICAL WRITING VS. CREATIVE WRITING
• Factual
• Informative, instructional or persuasive
• Clear, precise and straightforward
• Objective
• Specialized vocabulary
TECHNICAL WRITING VS. CREATIVE WRITING
• Fictional and imaginative
• Entertaining, provocative and captivating
• Artistic, figurative, symboli c or even vague
• Subjective
• Generalized vocabulary
WHAT IS SENSORY EXPERIENCE?
● Writer's ability to make a memorable story by incorporating the use of the 5 senses.
● Sensory details include sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste. Writers employ the five to engage a
reader's interest.
● Readers can personally experience what the author is trying to describe, reminding them of their
own experiences.
What are sensory experiences in creative writing?
1) Sight. Sight is the cardinal sense. Generally, before you smell, hear or taste something, you see it.
When you're writing, don't just see it, really see it. Get specific.
Ex: The full moon rose slowly over the trees.
2) Sound. The world is not a quiet place.
Even in the still of the night, you can hear the refrigerator's hum or the clock's ticking. Then describe the
sounds, not the action. Use this newly discovered sensory information to enrich your story.
Ex: The room was noisy.
Marco sat alone at the table nearest the door so he wouldn't
miss her. The room was noisy. The clank of heavy plates drifted from the kitchen and fought with the
steady hum of couples in conversation. Ice clinked as it settled in his water glass. He ran his fingers over
the drops of condensation and watched them make tracks down and onto the tablecloth. His watch read
9:30. She wasn't coming.
3) Touch. Let your characters feel their surroundings through their skin and their bodies. A good writer
would use all of those sensations to describe the scene.
Ex: He went for a swim in the cool pond
4) Smell. Smell is the sense that is most linked to memory.
Ex: "That stinks," said Seth, holding his hand over his nose.
5) Taste. the sense that gets the least use in fiction writing. When you do get to use taste,? don't rush it.
Ex: Winter has always tasted like hot chocolate to me.
Her kisses tasted like strawberries in the sun.
LANGUAGE OF CREATIVE
WRITING: IMAGERY
1. Imagery
• Language used by poets, novelists and other writers to create images in the mind of the reader.
• Includes to figurative and metaphorical language improve the reader's experience through their senses.
IMAGERY USING VISUALS
"The night was black as ever, but bright stars lit up the sky in beautiful and varied constellations which were
sprinkled across the astronomical landscape."
IMAGERY USING SCENTS (OLFACTORY)
"She smelled the scent of sweet hibiscus wafting through the air, its tropical smell a reminder that she was
on vacation in a beautiful place."
IMAGERY USING TASTE (GUSTATORY
"The candy melted in her mouth and swirls of bittersweet chocolate and slightly sweet but salty caramel
blended together on her tongue."
IMAGERY USING TOUCH (TACTILE)
"After the long run, he collapsed in the grass with tired and burning muscles. The grass tickled his skin and
sweat cooled on his brow."
IMAGERY USING SOUNDS (AUDITORY)
"Silence was broken by the peal of piano keys as Shannon began practicing her concerto."
Types of Imagery
Auditory
Describes what we hear:
- Music
- Noise
- Silence
Visual
Describes what we see:
- Colors Patterns
- Shapes
- Size
Olfactory
Describes what we smell:
- Nice fragrances
- Bad odors
Gustatory
Describes what we taste:
- Sour
- Sweet
- Acidic
- Bitter
- Salty
Tactile
Describes what we touch or feel:
- Texture
- Movement
- Temperature
IMPORTANCE OF IMAGERY
• It allows readers to directly sympathize with characters and narrators as they imagine having the same
sense experiences.
• Imagery is found throughout literature in poems, plays, stories, novels and other creative compositions.
LANGUAGE OF CREATIVE WRITING: DICTION
DICTION
• as style of speaking or writing, determined by the choice of words by a speaker or a writer.
• Diction, or choice of words, often separates good writing from bad writing.
FUNCTION OF DICTION
• In literature, writers choose words to create and convey a typical mood, tone, and atmosphere to their
readers.
• A writer's choice of words, and his selection of graphic words, not only affect the reader's attitude, but also
conveys the writer's feelings toward the literary work.
