Enhance Your Creative Writing Abilities

Enhance Your Creative Writing Abilities

Creative writing is considered to be one of the most perplexing forms of articulating thoughts and ideas on paper. It turns out to be a hard nut to crack because it requires the ability to think freely, giving thoughts a modicum of leeway, and express ideas and experienced feelings sincerely and openly.

That’s why putting wind in the sails with creative writing is not within every writer’s grasp. It means that a person, who succeeded in process writing approach that is all about planning, revising, re-arranging, and deleting text, re-reading, and producing multiple drafts before producing finished documents, will have the same good results in creative writing.

Surely, it doesn’t imply that creative writing process doesn’t need proper planning and preparation, it means that creative writing permits the author to deviate from the specific writing styles and not to be consistent with all the standards of this style. In a word, creative writing gives the author leeway in terms of presentation and development of a piece of writing.

Since creative writing is not simply a matter of sitting down, putting pen to paper, following smart instructions of emeritus pundits, commence at the beginning and write through to the end. Creative approach treats all writing as a creative act that requires time, positive feedback, and inspiration to be done well. People who engage in creative writing do not merely think freely; they view the world from free-thinking perspective.

Without a doubt, creative writing is not only about inspiration and gift of the writer, and it is far from coming easy to the writer, it also needs a lot of elbow grease in order to produce a piece of writing worth the attention of the readers.

The key to success in creative writing lies in the author’s ability to be frank with his readers and honest with himself. Don’t be afraid to step aside from the established standards of the particular writing style, and open the door of your brain to the new ideas that cross the threshold of your imagination and knock around your mind.

Remember that process and explorations are the keystones in creative writing, rather than the finished product. Let yourself release your inner genius and vent on paper the most bizarre ideas that amassed in your mind. The source of ideas for your creative writing can be various kinds of resources of creativity such as oral tradition, dreams, childhood memories, sense perceptions and intuition.

Katrina Crosbie, a tutor of creative writing in Edinburgh University's Open Studies programme, asserts that getting in touch with subconscious mind is the key to original and creative writing. She also claims that every writer can harness three simple techniques to enhance his creative writing abilities, they are mental focusing techniques, harnessing the power of your dreams and journal writing. Harnessing these techniques takes hard work; so, if you are ready, roll up your sleeves and follow these simple strategies.

I. Mental focusing techniques

Mental focusing techniques involve focusing on the positive outcome. It implies that you should concentrate and regulate your mental activity in order to enter a quiet state of your mind. The key point in mental focusing is to get rid of all the stray thoughts and replace it with one thought; this process should gradually induce a calm sensation. The procedure is very simple, you make yourself comfortable in a cozy armchair, and in all possible ways try to awake creativity inside of you.

You should say something like “I’m getting in touch with my creativity source”, and imagine physically how the stream of creativity comes into your mind. Remember the sensation of clear, cool water on your face, or a stream of fresh breeze, which is blowing in your face. Then imagine yourself sitting at your word processor, typing fluently, and writing avidly. After several minutes open your eyes and commence writing.

II. Harness the power of your dreams

Dreams have tremendous power. The subconscious memory can be the direct cause of the certain dreams. “When the mind is centered on certain things, the sleeper goes over his life again and again in phantom fashion. He lives over the experiences of his daily life.”

Overall, your daydreams can be important, just write them down after waking up in the morning. Perhaps, later on, re-reading the notes of your dreams will prompt you some interesting ideas for your creative works.”These can be triggers for an especially imaginative piece of work. American writer Joyce Carol Oates has said that her novel Bellefleur was inspired by a dream of a walled garden which haunted her for years 'till she felt she had to write about it.”

III. Keep the writing journal

This technique of enhancing your creativity is very simple and at the same time highly productive. Buy yourself a notebook, so that you can always have it at hand and write some brief narratives in it on a daily basis.

Don’t focus on the style, mistakes, and, in general, in the way you write. Just write down the first things that occur in your mind, even if you think that this is junk. The main idea is to keep your hand moving and to feel a growing sense of inspiration and confidence. In the course of time, you will become a practiced hand in writing. Surely, you’ll find your journal notes a rich source of inspiration and ideas.

If you really want to enhance you creative writing abilities, give a try to these simple techniques, and bring your craft as a writer into play!

BONUS : Essay Reveals A Writer In You…

During your study at college, many eyes will evaluate your essay, many heads will be thinking about its content. And your aim is not to disappoint them, not to hand in just another ordinary essay. There are some fundamentals common for all the essays we want to share with you. Though it may appear too obvious to you, but please DO read the essay topic very attentively and thoughtfully. One of the most common mistakes I come across when checking the essays is misinterpretation of the topic. Some students stick off the point, others don’t answer the target problem of the essay. Avoid this mistake. Some tutors assign their own topics and very often they might be too abstract. Others offer the choice of the topic to the students, mentioning the necessary type of the essay (e.g. comparison/contrast essay comparison/contrast essay). In either case don’t despair! Your tutor wants you to demonstrate your abilities in thinking and your skills in committing them to paper. Impress him, because you can. Though essay excludes plagiarism, you can’t do with referring to useful literature. Read a lot, read diverse literature… Then you will put down all the sources into your reference list.

It is a good thing to discuss your topic with someone. An ideal variant is your tutor, because he will give you useful advice and will clarify his own opinion on the subject. If he is not available, discuss your issue with a person you respect. The essay answers the question WHY? (E.g. a persuasive essay answers the question WHY do I have such an opinion on the point?). In other words, essay can be defined as some kind of a letter to your imaginary friend (your perspective reader) who asked you the question “WHY?”. So, the first section of your “letter” is - introduction. Here you inform the reader about the essence of the problem and prepare him for the course of the discussion.

Then you continue your discourse in supporting paragraphs. Your aim is to gain the reader over and to capture his imagination. How can you do it? Examples: A lot of sound, pertinent examples make a convincing and effective essay. Especially rich in the examples must be expository essays which aim at explaining something to the audience. Last sentences of the essay make up a conclusion. It is your final word with the reader. So, use it efficiently and make a strong notable conclusion. Though essay is not the easiest task, but if you give a conscious approach to it, if you treat it with spirit, then your essay will help you to win the tutor’s respect. And what is more important you will believe that you are creative and inventive!