Introduction to Creative

Writing

LECTURE # 1
UNIT 1
WEEKS 1 - 2
 Synesthesia

 the production of a sense impression relating to one

sense or part of the body by stimulation of another
sense or part of the body.
(https://www.google.com.ph/#q=synesthesia+meaning)
 a technique adopted by writers to present ideas,
characters or places in such a manner that they appeal
to more than one sense like hearing, seeing, smell etc.
at a given time.
(http://literarydevices.net/synesthesia/)
 Synesthesia

 “cool”
 “cool dress”
 “cool colors”
 “you are looking cool”
 “loud colors”,
 “frozen silence”
 “warm colors”,
 “bitter cold”
 Synesthesia

 “Back to the region where the sun is silent.”

(Inferno, Dante Alighieri)
 “Tasting of Flora and the country green,
Dance, and Provencal song, and sun burnt mirth!”
(John Keats Ode to a Nightingale)
 “The butterfly and I had lit upon,
Nevertheless, a message from the dawn,
That made me hear the wakening birds around,
And hear his long scythe whispering to the ground…”
(Robert Frost A Tuft of Flowers)

From:
http://literarydevices.net/synesthesia/
 On Sensory Images

 Visual
 Auditory
 Olfactory
 Gustatory
 Tactile
 Kinesthetic
 Organic
 Visual Imagery

“The deep blue hues of twilight were reflected in

the still water; the slight glint of moonlight
peeked through the clouds just enough to make
out the silhouette of a passing ship.”
 Auditory Image

 “The rooster crowed at early dawn, a sign that

it was time to start the day. John woke up,
listening to the quiet murmurs of his children
in the kitchen below; the clang of pots and
pans signaled that breakfast was almost
ready”.
 Olfactory Image

 “The sweet scent of maple wafted through the

room, causing Stephanie to stop what she was
doing and sniff the air. A second waft of scent
carried the underlying smoky scent of bacon;
a scent only bacon straight off the grill could
have”.
 Gustatory Image

 “Jason took one look at the cupcake in front of

him and couldn’t wait another second – he
stuffed it right into his mouth. The rich,
sweet, sugary taste of chocolate ran over his
taste buds as he chewed and swallowed the
whole dessert in less than ten seconds”.
 Tactile Imagery

 “Sarah placed her bare hand on the cold snow.

It was wet at first, then the frigid cold set in
like a thousand needles, all pricking her palm
at once”.
 Kinesthetic Imagery

 “The birds flapped their wings in excitement,

the promise of food so close. They sprung out
of the tree, one by one, soaring through the
branches and swooping down low to the pile
of berries beneath the tree”.
 Organic Imagery

 You might think you made a new world or a

new self, but your old self is always gonna be
there, just below the surface, and if
something happens, it’ll stick its head out and
say ‘Hi.’
(From: Haruki Murakami, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle)

Reference:
https://blog.udemy.com/imagery-in-literature/
 The Beautiful Beach by Mora Siregar

Paragraph A Paragraph B

I remember one time in particular that I

I like to go to the went to the beach with my friends. First, I
looked for good place when I arrived at the
beach. There is a lot of beach, because it would be very crowded
on weekends or holidays. I selected a cool
sand and some trees place under the trees and extended a mat
there. People play games on the white sand. The wind that blew
through the trees softly made the weather
on the beach, and some cool and pleasant. Peace came into my
heart when I looked at the very beautiful
people like to swim. I long, white sand. People played games on
used to go to the beach the beach; for instance they played
volleyball. Some of them swam in the
very often in my country. shallow sea. There were some kids trying
to make something in the sand, and then
trying to break it. Everybody looked happy
at that time.
 5 Basic Types of Writing

 Technical writing conveys specific information about a technical

subject to a specific audience for a specific purpose.
 Creative writing is fiction—poetry, short stories, plays, and novels—
and is most different from technical writing.
 Expressive writing is a subjective response to a personal
experience—journals and diaries—whereas technical writing might
be objective observations of a work-related experience or research.
 Expository writing “exposes” a topic analytically and objectively,
such as news reports. Like technical writing, the goal of expository
writing is to explain or reveal knowledge, but expository writing
does not necessarily expect a response or action from the reader. ●
 Persuasive writing depends on emotional appeal. Its goal is to
change attitudes or motivate to action.

Reference:
http://www.nefsc.noaa.gov/publications/tm/tm185/pdfs/micron.pdf
 What is Creative Writing?

 Creative writing is any writing that goes outside the bounds of

normal professional, journalistic, academic, or technical forms of
literature,
 typically identified by an emphasis on narrative craft, character
development, and the use of figures of speech.
 anything where the purpose is to express thoughts, feelings and
emotions rather than to simply convey information.
 It is writing that expresses the writer’s thoughts and feelings in an
imaginative, often unique, and poetic way.

Reference: http://assets.vmou.ac.in/CCE01.pdf
https://www.google.com.ph/#q=what+is+creative+writing.ppt
The improvement An escape from reality; a
Formalist
of reality (art as a sedative or distraction
hammer
Process…

A pile of crap; a
hoax; excuse for not
having a REAL job
Formalist A learnable skill

…Product…
 Key Points for understanding Creative Writing

 The Beginning: "What can I create out of a particular feeling, image, experience, or
memory?"
 The Purpose: compelling desire to imagine, invent, explore, or share. Writing
satisfies the creative soul. It often takes on a life of its own; the writer merely follows
along.
 The Form: Any form using a writer's imagination is suitable for creative
development of some element of fiction.
 The Audience: A specific audience may not be known in the beginning, and each
situation is different. However, if the finished piece has a universal meaning, the
story will speak to a wide range of readers and may have varied meaning for various
people.
 The Style: A writer's style comes from an array of choices that result in the sole
ownership of the finished product. The key to attaining a unique style is focused
control. The writer lays out a viewpoint and if it appeals to the readers, it influences
them. A good write up has the ability to rejuvenate a reader mentally and
emotionally. Sometimes a good write-up evokes realization of the abstract. As a
result, the reader will see, hear, smell, taste, and feel specific things.

Reference: http://assets.vmou.ac.in/CCE01.pdf
 6 Traits of Creative Writing

1. Ideas - what the writer has to say, a message. The ideas should be
fresh and original.
2. Organization - the structure of the paper.
3. Voice - shows the writer's personality.
4. Fluency - the readability of the paper.
5. Word choice - With good word choice, the writer creates a mental
picture for the reader by using words that are specific and
accurate.
6. Grammar – includes spelling, punctuation, capitalization,
grammar, and paragraphing. The writer should use conventions
to enhance the readability of the paper

Reference: http://www.owlteacher.com/support-
files/sixtraitsofcreativewriting.pdf
 Creative Writing VS Technical Writing

Technical Writing Creative Writing

Content factual, straight-forward imaginative, metaphoric or

symbolic

Audience specific general

Purpose inform, instruct, persuade entertain, provoke, captivate

Style formal, standard, academic informal, artistic, figurative

Tone objective subjective

Vocabulary specialized General evocative
Organization Sequential, systematic Arbitrary, artistic

 http://www.micron.com/k12/writing/differences.html (1 of 1) [1/12/2005 10:40:52

AM]http://www.nefsc.noaa.gov/publications/tm/tm185/pdfs/micron.pdf
 Types of Creative Writing

 Poetry
 Plays
 Movie and television scripts
 Fiction (novels, novellas, and short stories)
 Songs
 Speeches
 Memoirs
 Personal essays; travelogue, biographies, memoirs,
screenplay
Reference: http://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-creative-writing-definition-types-
examples.html
 Techniques used in Creative Writing

 Character development
 Plot development
 Vivid setting
 Underlying theme
 Point of view
 Dialogue
 Anecdotes
 Metaphors and similes
 Figures of speech
 Imaginative language
 Emotional appeal
 Heavy description

http://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-creative-writing-definition-types-
examples.html
 Imagery

 Image is a concrete representation of a sense

impression, a feeling, or an idea.

 Imagery refers to the pattern of related details in a

work. In some works one image predominates
either by recurring throughout the work or by
appearing at a critical point in the plot. Often,
writers use multiple images throughout a work to
suggest states of feeling and to convey implications
of thought and action.
 Imaginative Language

Diction is the selection of words in a

literary work. A work’s diction forms one of its
centrally important literary elements, as
writers use words to convey action, reveal
character, imply attitudes, identify themes, and
suggest values.
 Figurative Language

Figures of speech also known a figurative

language also creates figures in the mind of the
reader or listener. These pictures help convey
the meaning and more vividly than words than
words alone. We use figures of speech in
‘figurative language’ to add colour and interest,
and awaken the imagination. Figurative
language means something different from (and
usually more than) what it says on the surface.
“The wind screams her agony through the
fireplace, sending whitish-gray ashes
waltzing upon the carpet. I am a perfect
ice-maiden, frozen into my stone chair.
Even the picture window shudders, afraid of
the dark. Rain, joining forces with the dark,
sends millions of tiny footsteps hurrying
across the ground. The ceiling glitters an
evil flicker as the doorknob trembles and
rattles.”

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