CREATIVE
WRITING

LESSON 1: CREATIVE (IMAGINATIVE)
vs TECHNICAL WRITING

WHAT IS CREATIVE
WRITING?

The word creative is defined in varied ways.
• It is the “ability to create”, “imaginative”,
“characterized by originality and expressiveness”.
• Creative writing is therefore generally defined as
writing that is imaginative, creative and original.
• This generally covers all areas of fiction, such as
novels, short stories, poetry, etc.
• However, it can also include non-fiction, such as
feature articles for magazines.

Genres of Creative writing
• Poetry
• Prose
a. Fiction: Novels Novelettes Short
stories
b. b. Creative Nonfiction
• Drama Tragedy Comedy

The World of Creative and Imaginative
writing
Generally, ideas flow once you begin writing.
If you are planning to write a short story, you
should fairly have an idea of the theme of the
story. You must be already aware of the
conflict that your characters will face. You
can already imagine the details and scenery
that you will describe.

Here are some helpful approaches you can adopt when you begin writing:
Read all forms of writing. Reading always helps generate all sorts of ideas.
Keep a notebook handy. You will never know when an idea will come along.
Write in your notebook your observations, impressions, and the lines that
you hear from someone.
Learn to appreciate the magic and power of words, their meanings and their
vagueness.
 People who love to say and hear words generally have better chances of
putting something on paper.
Observe how people talk and relate to one another.
Listen to their conversations.
Make guesses about their characters and personalities and watch out for
their mannerisms and ways of talking.
Clip articles of interest from previous newspapers and magazines. You’ll
never know when you can use them

Here are some helpful approaches you can adopt when you begin writing:
Read anecdotes, song lyrics, facebook posts, and descriptions of people,
films, painting, dance, and music.
When you have written something, read it aloud or even record it. This is a
good way to spot errors in your language and sentence constructions, the
dialogues or descriptions that are not working, or phrases that are awkward.
Ask somebody to check your work. Other people can see our faults better than
us.
Keep an open mind about criticisms. What you have written is not the final
one, and it can still be improved and developed through time and practice.
Understand the possibilities of intertextual forms.
What you write, whether a poem, a story, or a play, may be connected to other
types of literature.
Also, writers use references that influence readers and add layers of
understanding to a text. These references may have basis in the readers’
previous knowledge and experiences.

WHAT IS TECHNICAL
WRITING?

Technical writing is a type of writing where the
author is writing about a particular subject that
requires direction, instruction, or explanation.
This style of writing has a very different purpose
and different characteristics than other writing
styles such as creative writing, academic writing
or business writing.

Technical writing is straightforward with easy to
understand explanations and/or instructions
dealing with a particular subject. It is an efficient
and clear way of explaining something and how it
works.

Some examples of technical writing include:
• Instruction manuals
• Policy manuals
• Process manuals
• User manuals
• Book Reports
• Research paper
• Instructions for assembling a product
• Business letters
• Memorandum

Pre-Activity: In your notebook, answer the
following questions in your own words.
1.) Explain in three (3) sentences why
creative writing is considered an imaginative
writing.
2.) How will you write short paragraphs or
short stories creatively?