Creative Writing I. Introduction of creative writingA.

Creative Writing
    Good morning, everyone. Today we’ll talk about creative writing. Creative writing normally refers to the production of texts which have an aesthetic rather than a purely informative, instrumental or pragmatic purpose. Most often, such texts take the form of poems or stories, though they are not confined to these genres. Letters, journal entries, blogs, essays, travelogues, etc. can also be more or less creative. In fact, the line between creative writing and expository writing is not carved in stone. (1) In general, however, creative writing texts draw more heavily on intuition, close observation, imagination, and personal memories than expository writing texts.
    One of the chief distinguishing characteristics of creative writing texts is a playful engagement with language, stretching and testing its rules to the limit in a guilt-free atmosphere, where risk is encouraged. Such writing combines cognitive with affective modes of thinking. The playful element in creative writing should not, however, be confused with a lax and unregulated use of language. (2) On the contrary, creative writing requires a willing submission on the part of the writer to the "rules" of the sub-genre being undertaken. If you want to write a limerick, then you have to follow the rules governing limericks. If not, what you produce will be something other than a limerick: obvious, perhaps, but important too. The interesting thing is that the very constraints which the rules impose seem to foster rather than restrict the creativity of the writer. This apparent paradox is explained partly by the deeper processing of thought and language which the rules require.
What are the benefits of creative writing for learners?
    To start with, creative writing aids language development at all levels, including grammar, vocabulary, phonology and discourse. It requires learners to manipulate the language in interesting and demanding ways in attempting to express uniquely personal meanings. (3) In doing so, they necessarily engage with the language at a deeper level of processing than with most expository texts. The gains in grammatical accuracy and range, in the appropriacy and originality of lexical choice, in sensitivity to rhyme, rhythm, stress and intonation, and in the way texts hang together are significant.
    As mentioned above, a key characteristic of creative writing is a willingness to play with the language. In recent years there has been a resurgence of interest in the role of play in language acquisition. (4) Proponents of "play" point out, rightly, that in L1 acquisition, much of the language encountered and used by children is in the form of rhythmical chants and rhymes, word games, jokes and the like. Furthermore, such playfulness survives into adulthood, so that many social encounters are characterized by language play, such as punning and spontaneous jokes. These are precisely the kinds of things L2 learners are encouraged to do in creative writing activities. (5) This playful element encourages them to play creatively with the language, and in so doing, to take the risks without which learning cannot take place in any profound sense. As Crystal (1998) states, "Reading and writing do not have to be a prison house. Release is possible. And maybe language play can provide the key."
    Normally, much of the teaching we do tends to focus on the left side of the brain, where our logical faculties are said to reside. (6) Creative writing puts the emphasis on the right side of the brain, with a focus on feelings, physical sensations, intuition and musicality. This is a healthy restoration of the balance between logical and intuitive faculties. It also affords scope for learners whose hemisphere dominance or learning-style preferences may not be intellectual or left brain dominant, and who, in the normal process of teaching are therefore at a disadvantage.
    Perhaps most notable is the dramatic increase in self-confidence and self-esteem which creative writing tends to develop among learners. (7) Learners also tend to discover things for themselves about the language... and about themselves too, thus promoting personal as well as linguistic growth. Inevitably, these gains are reflected in a corresponding growth in positive motivation.
    All these conditions are met in a well-run creative writing class. (8) The exponential increase in motivation is certainly supported by my own experience in teaching creative writing. Learners suddenly realize that they can write something in a foreign language that has never been written by anyone else before, and which others find interesting to read. (9) And they experience not only a pride in their own products but also a joy in the "flow" of the process.
    Finally, creative writing feeds into more creative reading. It is as if, by getting inside the process of creating the texts, learners come to understand intuitively how such texts function, and this makes similar texts easier to read. Likewise, the development of aesthetic reading skills, provides the learner with a better understanding of textual construction, and this feeds into their writing.
And teachers?
    I argued previously that teachers, as well as learners, should engage with extensive reading. In the same spirit, I would argue that there are significant benefits to teachers.
    If they participate in creative writing, there is little point in exhorting learners to engage in creative writing unless we do so too. The power of the teacher as model, and as co-writer is inestimable.
    Also, creative writing is one way of keeping teachers’ English fresh and vibrant. For much of our professional lives we are in thrall to the controlled language of textbook English and the repeated low level error-laden English of our students. As teachers of language, we surely have a responsibility to keep our primary resource alive and well.
    Besides, creative writing seems to have an effect on the writer’s level of energy in general. (10) This tends to make teachers who use creative writing more interesting to be around, and this inevitably impacts on their relationships with students.
    Finally, the experimental stance with regard to writing in general appears to feed back into the teaching of writing. Teachers of creative writing tend also to be better teachers of writing in general.
    Time does not allow me to expand on these findings, nor on some of the possible activities teachers might try. I will attempt to make good these omissions in some of my blogs during the month of December. I will also make reference there to ways in which creative writing intersects with some of our major current concerns. Meantime, anyone interested could sample some of the books from the list below.