When students start college they are expected to do a lot of writing. However, writing is bound to bring along some struggles. Students can seek help in improving their writing, but some are not motivated enough or are too busy to improve on it. One way to motivate students to enhance their writing is to encourage them to start creative writing.
Creative writing can help students expand their imagination of any genre from fantasy, romance, suspense, or drama. Students can express themselves with any ideas in their writing and create a story out of it. Whether the writing is difficult or unprofessional, it is a stepping stone for writing a story they are passionate about. Chances are that students will polish their writing with edits, revisions, and punctuation to get the story the way they want it. This is a good sign because they are passionate enough to want to improve their writing for their stories.
In an interview with Gina Weaver, Ph.D., Professor of English and Co-director of the Honors Program, she expressed that from experience, “creative writers do better in academic writing.” When I asked her if creative writing will help students to write more, she continued saying, “Creative writers are less afraid of writing more, so it helps them write better for their classes.”
Creative writing isn’t just helpful for classes, but it also helps expand students’ minds. When I asked Weaver if creative writing is helpful for developing students’ minds, she responded, “It can be because creative writing helps students experience the world and practice seeing through other people’s points of view in life. Step out of your own experience and jump into others.”
Creative writing can sound like a lot for students with constant assignments, but it can be something small and fun. Students could write a story that’s around one hundred words and if students want to write more than they can. Anyone can write a story of their own, they just have to have the idea and motivation behind it.
When I began creative writing, I was an amateur, but I had story ideas I wanted to tell. I wanted to write short stories anyone could read, so I worked on improving my writing in structure, punctuation, dialogue, etc. I motivated myself to read more and get on websites such as YouTube to help improve my writing this summer, and I think it was beneficial for me – not only for my stories but for writing assignments that will continue to come along. I’m still not the best writer, but I’m working to improve myself. I believe anyone can create a story and should attempt to write a story of their own. It will be beneficial for improving writing skills, and it could become a hidden talent.
Photo by Etienne Girardet on Unsplash