The attic is clear and clean, light cascades in from a vaulted ceiling, the beams meeting in a series of arches. All that is there is Malcolm's old writer's chair and the table that was painted so many times it became a rainbow of sorts, chaotic perhaps, but that was so him. I think he needed this sort of space to be creative in, a blank page for the eyes and ears, so that what came to him was purely his creations, stories eager to be told. Creative writing was his life and the words he gave us all still help so many.
Write with the emotion that burns, the joys that sing and the tears you never cried because you weren't sure anyone would care. Write with your own words because they are yours, only the ones that feel right in your mouth. Because we all need to hear you, and you do too. How else can you discover who you are? So I don't care about spelling or grammar or verbs or adjectives... all I wanna know is, "Are you okay?" I need to be sure that you can still feel your soul, that you care so much about this world and others it hurts that others suffer. I need to be sure that you feel the duty to use your talents to fix this world, because this is our home, not some hotel, so don't check out, stay awake, stay right here with those who care so much about you that we hurt if you do. That's love. You got it as a birth right so hold on. Just write, keep writing and be as bold as you dare. Let it out, let it go, then let it be.
As my old English teacher used to say, don't try to fix things as you write that first draft, it's like trying to run and tie your shoe laces at the same time. Have your creative writer head on for draft one, and your editor head on for later drafts. Every creative writer needs two modes! First drafts are by far and away the fun part, unless you're a natural born "completer-finisher" type the rest will feel like work. But don't send it to a publisher until it's a polished work of art. Be professional.
The golden advice that teachers of creative writing give is "show don't tell." by which they mean they want more of "as he spoke, his fists clenched..." and less of "he was angry." So use Descriptionari, it's awesome for helping with ideas to "show, don't tell."
Write even when you don't have the most amazing ideas or feel that creative buzz. A good writer can take almost any subject and make something of it. Creativity might even strike in the middle of a piece you feared might be less than amazing.
Writers write! That may sound like a ridiculous piece of advice but it's true. It takes many hours of writing to make a writer. Practise, practise, practise. There will be many many stories before that bestseller makes you an "overnight success."
Know your punctuation marks. A semi-colon and a colon are quite different. I learnt the difference some time ago just by googling for examples. It's not hard to get the hang of and it makes your writing look way better.
On later drafts look at the balance of your sentences. Sometimes creative writers might use many short sentences for special effect - generally to increase pace - but mostly a balance of long, medium and short makes for more interesting reading.
Don't over do the descriptive words, some are great but sprinkle them in like cherries on a cake. If they obscure the meaning or there are so many it feels cumbersome to read, you're not doing yourself any favours. In short - don't write purple prose. Good creative writing takes you places, makes you feel things - it's hard to achieve that if you are googling too many words.
Don't stop at the second draft, keep going until it is the best work you can produce! Creative writers treat their work as art.
Don't share your idea until that first draft is done, it somehow takes the fire out of the project that propels you to finish. When you write that last chapter ask someone you trust to read it over and tell you where they don't follow the plot or where you loose their interest. It helps you grow as a writer!
When you're on draft two be ruthless. If something isn't working cut it out. The time for saying "yes" to everything is over.
Creative writing can fall flat if your characters are "Mary-Sue's" (too perfect). This often happens when a writer identifies with the character too strongly and is unable to give them the necessary flaws to make them three dimensional. No-one is perfect and characters that are make for boring reading.
If you're spending a lot of time describing the eyes of your characters in your short stories or novel, you've gone wrong. There are many ways to give an impression of your characters, try diversifying your approach. I'm sure you'll love the results!
Some writers start with careful planning, others begin with a feeling or a single sentence and let it grow like crystals on a string. Sometimes work appear organically. Both methods work for different types of creative writers. Find what works for you!
If your reader has to check the thesaurus every few words the meaning, power and beauty of what you are writing will be lost. By all means use an expanded vocabulary in your creative writing but show a little restraint. We want to fall into your writing, get lost in the world you paint - too many archaic words will get in the way. Though I must admit I have a thing for words like "susurration," "tincture" and "virescent"!
Creative writing is an art, but once you are writing the second draft punctuation and conforming to proper spelling and paragraph structure is important. You have to know the rules before you can break them - with style!
As you write your first draft say yes to every new idea, this is not the time for self judgement and being critical. Let your creativity flow!
Your first draft of a piece of creative writing is like a lump of clay ready to be formed in later drafts. It's your starting material, not the finished work of art. As Justice Brandeis said, "There is no great writing, only great rewriting."
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