Creative Writing

Whether you're a beginner or an experienced writer, creativity and imagination will go a long way in creative writing. If you already have those things, you are one step closer to attaining your dream of being a great creative writer--possibly even a published writer.

Creative Writing is defined as a term used to distinguish the imaginative writing where the purpose is to convey your thoughts, feelings or emotions (as opposed to technical writing where you simply convey information). Most writing that focuses on self-expression (fiction and non-fiction) would be categorized as creative writing. Some have said that what was once referred to as literature is now more commonly known as creative writing. However you choose to explain it, defining it is actually the easy part--doing it can be a little more tricky.

Spark Your Creativity

1. Use Images:
A picture is worth a thousand words so why not pull out one of your old photos or find a picture on the web to spark your creative juices and start putting some of those

2. Find a Dictionary:
Pull out that dusty old dictionary and choose 10 - 15 words at random. Write a poem with them and make sure you use all the words you select...no cheating!

3. Start an Idea Count Down:
Take a pen, a piece of paper and a watch. Give yourself 2 minutes on the clock and start writing non-stop until your time runs out. Its doesn't matter what you write, be it ideas or scattered words, just as long as your pen keeps moving. When your time is up go back and read what you wrote down and see what kind of ideas materialize.

4. Rework a Classic:
Select one your favorite scenes (from a book or even a movie) and rewrite the scene. Give them new dialogue, a different direction--whatever comes to mind. Not only is this wonderful practice but it's also great fun!

5. Use Writing Prompts:
This is an easy, fun way to get inspired and break through that pesky writer's block. There are tons of great sites dedicated to just this topic. Don't know where to start? No problem! Visit our forums to browse our latest Writing Prompts.

Creative Writing Resources

Creative Writing: Article about Creative Writing at Wikipedia.org

Seton Hill University: 10 Tips for Novice Creative Writers (for Short-Stories)

essortment.com: How to write a short story the creative way

be-a-better-writer.com: Creative writing tips for fiction writers

theadventurouswriter.com: 10 Fast Tips for Creative Writing

Creative Writing Community

This basic introduction serves as a jumping off point for people who are interested in diving into the wonderful world of creative writing and to provide some resources for getting started. If you write poetry, short-stories, novella's, novels etc..., we invite you to join our writing community. We like to think of ourselves as a lovely mix of both writing worlds; The creative & The Technical. We provide a place for you to express yourself creatively and share your writing while taking advantage of our review system which allows you to receive in-depth, constructive feedback from other writers.