
Creative Writing Styles: 8 Tips for Creative Writing
Writing is a function of creativity. Writing is never complete with just the technical aspects fulfilled. A strong dose of creativity is what makes any writing wholesome. We all write in some capacity, but not everyone is a celebrated and most-read author. What makes writing and stories stand out is their creative potential. This is one reason why creative writing has come to be known as a skill.
For aspiring authors, it is a must to get acquainted with different ways and routines that can help elate creative writing skills. You can also check our step-by-step guide on how to become an author. You might be investing a good deal of time writing and still wonder how to become a better creative writer. It is not just about investing time but more about investing time in the right direction. If you aim to master the art of creative writing, this blog is for you. Breathe deep, focus, and analyze what you are practicing and what new steps need to be undertaken.
Before we dive into the creative writing tips, let us look at the common creative writing styles.
1. Narrative Writing
Narrative Writing is the most common writing style that you may be familiar with. Think about short stories, novellas, and anecdotes. Yes, they are the ideal examples of narrative writing. Whether fiction or nonfiction, narrative writing is a style that tries to construct and narrate a story. It has a conflict, characters, resolution, and a story. Therefore, narrative writing can be broadly defined as story writing.
2. Descriptive Writing
In Descriptive writing, the writer paints a picture of a person, place, or thing in descriptive words for the reader. It can be written in a fictional setting or in a nonfictional. The author merely describes things as they are. They don’t try to convey a whole story or a narrative. Journals, memoirs, and diaries are some examples of descriptive writing.
3. Persuasive Writing
This style is often used in recommendation letters, cover letters, and academic papers. When a writer uses a persuasive writing style, they try to convince the reader of a set of beliefs or a position. It contains the viewpoints and opinions of the writer, and they justify their points with reasoning. Think about writing an argumentative essay or a letter of complaint in school. Yep, that is a persuasive style of writing.
4. Expository Writing
When an author writes with an expository style, they try to explain a specific notion to a large audience. Expository writing is all about unfolding a topic based on facts, figures, and statistics. It uses evidence to impart information to the audience. Expository does not depend on the writer’s viewpoints and opinions but is based on accepted facts about a topic. Textbooks, recipes, new stories are all examples of expository writing.
How to get in the mood for creative writing?
Sometimes, you don’t feel like writing at all. It just doesn’t come to you naturally. You will be staring at the blank page for hours, but you might not be able to get anything on the paper. It happens to all of us! The name is writer’s block. Believe it or not, tackling writer’s block is not as hard as you think. First things first, start off easy. Clear your mind off any distractions and write about something you feel like you could easily write about. Just be kind to yourself and let your words pour out from your brain onto the paper. If you start to get frantic all over again, play your favorite songs to lighten up your stress. Create short goals and always reward yourself when you accomplish them. If you follow these steps, we assure you, you will have a wonderful time writing!
Here is a list of creative writing tips to get the most out of your creativity and writing skills.
1. Nurturing Creative Writing
We have used the word ‘nurturing’ with creative writing because it will not always dawn upon you as a revelation. This will happen sometimes, and when it doesn’t, make sure you have trained your mind to think creatively. When you pursue writing as your passion, you have to write every day. So, it all begins when you accept that you can nurture creative writing; not in a day, but gradually. Develop a habit of reading as consistently as you write. The reading can come in any form, and it also includes reading material online. Whatever you read, it will expose you to a plethora of ideas and the many creative ways in which ideas are approached. We, at Austin Macauley Publishers, have a vast collection of published books to choose from.
2. Practicing Freewriting/Journaling
Nothing will help you with your writing skills as much as freewriting. Some people are fond of journaling; if you are one of them, congratulations! You are already there. But, if you are not a fan of journals, you can still practice free writing. Freewriting entails just writing and recording anything of your choice at leisure. While journaling becomes a little strict to penning down your day, freewriting allows you to write about anything you want. It is in freewriting that you will discover the writer in you. Consider freewriting as one of the types of creative writing.
3. Creating a Space That Facilitates Creative Flow
Whether you are a budding author or a seasoned one, your surroundings will always impact your thinking process. Apart from training your mind in other ways, it will always be a great idea to take control of external stimulants. Getting to discover a favorite space or organizing your writing corner according to your likeability is the easiest thing in the whole journey of acquiring creative writing. Easy steps first; do that as quickly as you can!
4. Writing in Short Sessions
Scientific facts and observations indicate that extensive work can halt productivity. Sitting for long hours will negatively impact not just creatively, but also your overall writing ability. Write in short, crisp sessions. A brief writing session might also look like catching a quick idea while reading something online and sketching two to three paras around it.
We really encourage and appreciate aspiring writers to come forward and publish with us. We have made the process in real-time, and you can submit by filling out our online submission form.
5. Practicing Stillness or Yoga Meditation
From catching an idea to processing it in a manner that fits your story, it demands focus. While we are talking about creative writing, it becomes essential to note that there are two parts to it: one being a creative idea and the other being the translation of that idea into what you write. Our take on how to become a better creative writer will entail a focused mind. So, practice yoga or any other form of meditation that helps you.
6. Creating a Character Around Someone You Know
For all fiction writers, creating a character around a real-life friend or acquaintance or family member helps you get more creative with your writing. This is one of the elements of creative writing almost all great authors adhere to. Creativity pours in since you have actually encountered a person around whom you are weaving a character. Creativity also enhances as you begin to put a real-life human into the pages of your story. It's worth a shot, so try it!
7. Abandoning Routine
Routine kills! This becomes even truer in the case of creative writing. The problem with routine is that your mind might refuse to be productive when you want it to be. The reason writer’s block is such a widely discussed topic is that the problem is pretty genuine. The best way to avoid falling prey to a writing block is to not stick to a routine. Being a creative writer requires a good deal of freedom, the reason writing is mostly pursued as side work. So, to allow creative writing to happen, walk out of routine and write at different hours.
8. Recording Ideas Quickly
A handy diary or your smartphone can serve the purpose of saving a thought you might get while doing day-to-day activities. You will not want any creativity to go wasted. This habit is quite a prerequisite to creative writing. Quick notes are also a form of writing. Believe us or not, even they play a part in getting your creative writing skills to a higher level.
We hope our excerpt on the types of writing styles will give you a better understanding of the various forms of writing techniques. Along with that, our list of 8 creative writing tips on getting the most out of your creative writing will definitely enhance your creative writing skills.
With all essentials covered, you can now work on your creative writing skills with a better sense of direction.
All the best!
Austin Macauley is a leading book publishing company headquartered in the UK, US, and UAE. We are currently accepting manuscripts, and you can submit your manuscript on our website. For online submission of manuscript click the online submission form.
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