Creative Writing Tips?

Can anyone please give me any advice or tips on creative writing please?

Might need to be a bit more specific, what are you having trouble with?

Anything really, erm how to mindmap your best ideas, coming up with ideas in the first place, using adjectives to describe settings and characters.

IIBentII39 wrote:Anything really, erm how to mindmap your best ideas, coming up with ideas in the first place, using adjectives to describe settings and characters.

Surely you just answered your own question there?

RobynVanPersie wrote:

IIBentII39 wrote:Anything really, erm how to mindmap your best ideas, coming up with ideas in the first place, using adjectives to describe settings and characters.

Surely you just answered your own question there?

Not really, I presume there are many other things to make a piece of creative writing good besides, using adjectives to describe settings and characters.

Creative writing tips?

Listen to your teacher.

IIBentII39 wrote:

RobynVanPersie wrote:

Surely you just answered your own question there?

Not really, I presume there are many other things to make a piece of creative writing good besides, using adjectives to describe settings and characters.

Similes, personification, etc.

Shouldn't they be teaching you this in English?

They are.

But I thought that maybe because most people on here are in college or even older, that you could help me with things that I might not have learnt in school before.

Maybe you'd be best posting an article that you have already written for others to give you some constructive criticism.

Jelavic9|RFC wrote:Maybe you'd be best posting an article that you have already written for others to give you some constructive criticism.

I wouldn't say an article is an example of creative writing.



On another note, is Creative Writing a GCSE now, or is it just part of an English GCSE? I don't get how you can teach people to be creative.

RobynVanPersie wrote:

Jelavic9|RFC wrote:Maybe you'd be best posting an article that you have already written for others to give you some constructive criticism.

I wouldn't say an article is an example of creative writing.



On another note, is Creative Writing a GCSE now, or is it just part of an English GCSE? I don't get how you can teach people to be creative.

Well I've never done anything like this before.


Yeah it's part of the English course.

Do you have an assignment due? Hard to know where to begin if not.

IIBentII39 wrote:

RobynVanPersie wrote:On another note, is Creative Writing a GCSE now, or is it just part of an English GCSE? I don't get how you can teach people to be creative.

Well I've never done anything like this before.


Yeah it's part of the English course.

Well that's a relief.

We're starting a topic of Horror stories on either Friday or after Christmas.

Was just wondering if anyone could give me any tips or advice to prepare me for it.

IIBentII39 wrote:We're starting a topic of Horror stories on either Friday or after Christmas.

Was just wondering if anyone could give me any tips or advice to prepare me for it.

Follow these simple steps:

1. Turn up to the lesson.



But on a serious note, I don't quite get how they plan on teaching people to be creative. It's one of those things where you've either got it or you haven't.

RobynVanPersie wrote:

IIBentII39 wrote:We're starting a topic of Horror stories on either Friday or after Christmas.

Was just wondering if anyone could give me any tips or advice to prepare me for it.

Follow these simple steps:

1. Turn up to the lesson.



But on a serious note, I don't quite get how they plan on teaching people to be creative. It's one of those things where you've either got it or you haven't.

Well yeah I guess so, so you're saying I'm either going to be good or bad at this naturally?

IIBentII39 wrote:

RobynVanPersie wrote:

Follow these simple steps:

1. Turn up to the lesson.



But on a serious note, I don't quite get how they plan on teaching people to be creative. It's one of those things where you've either got it or you haven't.

Well yeah I guess so, so you're saying I'm either going to be good or bad at this naturally?

Like you said in the OP, it's all about thinking of good ideas. Some people are full of them when it comes to writing stories, scripts, etc. and others just aren't. But since it's just for a GCSE, your teacher should cover every technique you'd need to get marks in your coursework and/or exams.

If you go on to pursue writing afterwards, those techniques will obviously come in handy but if you haven't got the ideas in the first place then there's little point.

You'll probably find out more when you start doing assignments. If after a few weeks you still find it interesting and still have some enthusiasm for it, that's the best you could hope for.

RobynVanPersie wrote:

IIBentII39 wrote:

Well yeah I guess so, so you're saying I'm either going to be good or bad at this naturally?

Like you said in the OP, it's all about thinking of good ideas. Some people are full of them when it comes to writing stories, scripts, etc. and others just aren't. But since it's just for a GCSE, your teacher should cover every technique you'd need to get marks in your coursework and/or exams.

If you go on to pursue writing afterwards, those techniques will obviously come in handy but if you haven't got the ideas in the first place then there's little point.

You'll probably find out more when you start doing assignments. If after a few weeks you still find it interesting and still have some enthusiasm for it, that's the best you could hope for.

Okay, thank you for your help

You are welcome. Even if it turns out that Creative Writing isn't your cup of tea, the techniques you'll learn will come in handy for most sorts of prose anyway.

So stay in school, kids.

RobynVanPersie wrote:You are welcome. Even if it turns out that Creative Writing isn't your cup of tea, the techniques you'll learn will come in handy for most sorts of prose anyway.

So stay in school, kids.

I think I'll enjoy it rather than studying books or poems but it just all depends if I am any good at it I suppose.

RobynVanPersie wrote:

Jelavic9|RFC wrote:Maybe you'd be best posting an article that you have already written for others to give you some constructive criticism.

I wouldn't say an article is an example of creative writing.



On another note, is Creative Writing a GCSE now, or is it just part of an English GCSE? I don't get how you can teach people to be creative.

RobynVanPersie wrote:

IIBentII39 wrote:We're starting a topic of Horror stories on either Friday or after Christmas.

Was just wondering if anyone could give me any tips or advice to prepare me for it.

Follow these simple steps:

1. Turn up to the lesson.



But on a serious note, I don't quite get how they plan on teaching people to be creative. It's one of those things where you've either got it or you haven't.

Someone from our exam board came in and did a 3 hour lesson on how to improve your writing among other things. Our story was you had to write a story how your mum embarasses you.

The tips definately helped me, went from a C to an A.

Bent what Exam board are you on?

Ben 10 wrote:

RobynVanPersie wrote:

I wouldn't say an article is an example of creative writing.



On another note, is Creative Writing a GCSE now, or is it just part of an English GCSE? I don't get how you can teach people to be creative.

RobynVanPersie wrote:

Follow these simple steps:

1. Turn up to the lesson.



But on a serious note, I don't quite get how they plan on teaching people to be creative. It's one of those things where you've either got it or you haven't.

Someone from our exam board came in and did a 3 hour lesson on how to improve your writing among other things. Our story was you had to write a story how your mum embarasses you.

The tips definately helped me, went from a C to an A.

Bent what Exam board are you on?

What did you write about?

Can you remember any of the tips?

I think it is AQA, not sure though.

Ben 10 wrote:Our story was you had to write a story how your mum embarasses you.

I suddenly have the urge to write my autobiography.

IIBentII39 wrote:

Ben 10 wrote:



Someone from our exam board came in and did a 3 hour lesson on how to improve your writing among other things. Our story was you had to write a story how your mum embarasses you.

The tips definately helped me, went from a C to an A.

Bent what Exam board are you on?

What did you write about?

Can you remember any of the tips?

I think it is AQA, not sure though.

My mum came into school and confronted the headteacher about something

Can't really remember the tips, just focus on a particular plot, like focus on the main thing you want the story to centre around, and build your story around that.

Creative Writing is shit and so is fucking English

no matter how much effort I put into my work I always get the same fucking mark

I got help on Creative Writing from my teacher (he just kept reading over it and told me what to add) he said it was one of the best he'd seen in a long time

I get it back and get a fucking Achieved.

EVERY SINGLE FUCKING THING I DO IN ENGLISH IS ONLY GOOD ENOUGH TO ACHIEVE (I think thats like a C in England)

So the time has come.


I need inspiration and ideas.

A horror story. With a slight link to Macbeth (not relevant yet though) Written from 2 peoples perspectives, alternating between villian and victim with each paragraph.

I never looked forward to these type of assignments.

Fuck I hated them.

King Carlos wrote:So the time has come.


I need inspiration and ideas.

A horror story. With a slight link to Macbeth (not relevant yet though) Written from 2 peoples perspectives, alternating between villian and victim with each paragraph.

The victim is a cat, the killer is MacBeth's dog. Keep the fact that they are animals a secret until the end and it will be a M. Night Shyamalan style twist. Works every time.

I never mind-map, doesn't really flow.

Zzonked wrote:

King Carlos wrote:So the time has come.


I need inspiration and ideas.

A horror story. With a slight link to Macbeth (not relevant yet though) Written from 2 peoples perspectives, alternating between villian and victim with each paragraph.

The victim is a cat, the killer is MacBeth's dog. Keep the fact that they are animals a secret until the end and it will be a M. Night Shyamalan style twist. Works every time.

Did Macbeth have a dog?

Zzonked wrote:

King Carlos wrote:So the time has come.


I need inspiration and ideas.

A horror story. With a slight link to Macbeth (not relevant yet though) Written from 2 peoples perspectives, alternating between villian and victim with each paragraph.

The victim is a cat, the killer is MacBeth's dog. Keep the fact that they are animals a secret until the end and it will be a M. Night Shyamalan style twist. Works every time.

Yeah I was going for a twist just can't think of a suitable one, and I don't think I'll use your idea

Isn't he the guy who directed/wrote The Village?

Eternal Witcher wrote:I never mind-map, doesn't really flow.

I think mind maps are good to get all your ideas down though.

Cam wrote:

Zzonked wrote:

The victim is a cat, the killer is MacBeth's dog. Keep the fact that they are animals a secret until the end and it will be a M. Night Shyamalan style twist. Works every time.

Did Macbeth have a dog?

I doubt it.