ELECT 1: CREATIVE WRITING

WEEK 13: CONSTRUCTING TRUTHS: PERSONAL ESSAY

ELECTIVE 1: CREATIVE WRITING
MODULE 13: Constructing Truths
“The Personal Essay”
Learning Objectives:
At the end of this module you are expected to:
a. Identify personal essay
b. Describe the building materials of the personal essay through reading and writing assignments.
c. Examine the elements that convince the reader of the truth of their tales and explore how to confront their own
experiences creatively.
Personal Essay- is a short work of an autobiographical non- fiction characterized by a sense of intimacy and a
conversational manner. It is also called a” personal statement”
Examples of Personal Essays:
• An Apology for Idlers, by Robert Louis Stevenson
• On Laziness, by Christopher Morley
• Coney Island at Night, by James Huneker
• New Year's Eve, by Charles Lamb
• How It Feels to Be Colored Me, by Zora Neale Hurston
• My Wood, by E.M. Forster
• Two Ways of Seeing a River, by Mark Twain
• What I Think and Feel at 25, by F. Scott Fitzgerald Qualities of Personal Essay:
Communication Skills. How effective are your communication skills? Do you write clearly, concisely, and correctly?
Note that many employers put communication skills at the top of the list of essential qualifications.
Critical Thinking Skills.
- How fresh and imaginative are you in your thinking? Is your writing cluttered with cliches, or is it obvious that you have
original ideas to contribute?
Maturity
- What specific lessons have you learned from experience, and are you ready to apply those lessons to the job or the
academic program you're considering? Keep in mind that it's not enough to be able to recount a personal experience; you
should be prepared to interpret it as well.
Self and Subject in Personal Essays
- where the familiar essay is characterized by its everyday subject matter, the personal essay is defined more by the
personality of its writer, which takes precedence over the subject.
The Essayist's Persona
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- Personal essayists from Montaigne on have been fascinated with the changeableness and plasticity of the materials of
human personality. Starting with self-description, they have realized they can never render all at once the entire
complexity of a personality. So they have elected to follow an additive strategy, offering incomplete shards, one mask
or persona after another: the eager, skeptical, amiable, tender, curmudgeonly, antic, and somber. If 'we must remove the
mask,' it is only to substitute another mask..."
The "Antigenre": An Alternative to Academic Prose - The more personal essay offers an escape from the confines
of academic prose. By using this antigenre form that in contemporary essays embodies multiple kinds of writing, many
essayists in search of democracy find a freedom for expressing in their writings spontaneity, self-reflexivity, accessibility,
and a rhetoric of sincerity."
Teaching the Personal Essay
- Given the opportunity to speak their own authority as writers, given a turn in the conversation, students can claim their
stories as primary source material and transform their experiences into evidence..."
Essay Forms
- Despite the anthologists' custom of presenting essays as 'models of organization,' it is the loose structure or apparent
shapelessness of the essay that is often stressed in standard definitions.
- Samuel Johnson famously defined the essay as 'an irregular, indigested piece, not a regular and orderly performance.'
And certainly, a number of essayists (Hazlitt and Emerson, for instance, after the fashion of Montaigne) are readily
identifiable by the wayward or fragmentary nature of their explorations. Yet each of these writers observes certain
distinctive organizing (or disorganizing) principles of his own, thus charting the ramble and shaping the form. As Jeanette
Harris observes in Expressive Discourse, even in the case of a personal essay, which may appear informal and loosely
structured, the writer has crafted with care this very appearance of informality.
Steps in Writing Personal Essay:
1. Find Inspiration and Ideas- If you are stuck on what to write about, look to some of these sources of inspiration.
o Consult lists of ideas to get your brain thinking about the possibilities of your essay. Remember that a personal essay is
autobiographical, so do not write about anything untrue.
o Try writing a stream of consciousness. To do this, start writing whatever is on your mind and don't stop or leave
anything out. Even if ideas aren't connected to each other whatsoever, a stream of consciousness gets everything in your
brain on paper and often contains many ideas.
o Do a little research. Browsing through whatever interests you can really get the creative juices flowing and lead to
small self-reflections. Grab onto any of these that you think you might want to write about.
2. Understand the composition of an essay- remind yourself of basic essay composition. The five-paragraph essay is a
common iteration of this and it contains an introductory paragraph, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion paragraph.
Use an outline, or general essay plan, to jot down your ideas before writing.
Introduction: Start your personal essay with a hook, or an interesting sentence that grabs your readers' attention and
makes them want to read more. Select a topic that you know you can write an interesting essay about. Once you have a
compelling topic, decide on the main idea you want to communicate and use it to capture your readers' interest in the first
sentence.
After the hook, use the introductory paragraph to briefly outline the subject of your essay. Your readers should have a
clear understanding of the direction of the rest of your piece from the introduction.
Body: The body of your essay is made up of one or more paragraphs that inform your readers about your topic, each
paragraph accomplishing this in a unique way.
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The structure of a paragraph resembles the structure of an essay. A paragraph contains an attention-grabbing topic
sentence, several sentences elaborating on the point of the paragraph, and a conclusion sentence or two that summarizes
the main idea. The conclusion sentence of a paragraph should also be used to transition into the next paragraph by
smoothly introducing the next topic without going into too much detail.
Each paragraph should have its own idea that is closely related to the topic of the whole essay but elaborates on the main
idea in a new way. It is important that topics flow logically from one to the next so that your essay is easy to follow. If
your paragraphs are not related to each other or the main idea, your essay may be choppy and incoherent. Keeping your
sentences concise also helps with clarity. Feel free to break a large paragraph up into two separate paragraphs if the topic
changes or goes on for too long.
Conclusion: Close your essay with a final paragraph that summarizes the points you have made and states the takeaways.
When writing personal essays, conclusion paragraphs are where you talk about the lessons you learned, ways that you
changed as a result of your subject, or any other insights that were gained from your experience. In short: restate the ideas
from the introduction in a new way and wrap up your essay.
3. Use Appropriate Voice for Essay and Verbs
-determine the quality of your work and voice is one of the most important.
Two types of voice:
1. the author's voice
2. the voice of verbs.
Author’s voice- One of the things your teacher will be looking for when reading your personal essay is the use of voice in
your essay, which is your own personal style of telling a story. They will be looking for features of your writing that make
it unique, analyze the pacing of your essay, and determine how you establish your authority.
Voice of verbs- Don't be confused—verbs have their own voice that is entirely separate from the author's voice.
The active voice occurs when the subject of your sentence is performing the action or verb and the passive voice occurs
when the subject is receiving the action.
The subject is italicized in the following examples.
Passive: An essay was assigned by Ms. Peterson.
Active: Ms. Peterson assigned a personal essay about summer vacation.
4. Be Consistent with Point of View and Tense- Personal essays are about yourself, so it is important that your point of
view and tense be consistent with this.
- Personal essays are almost always written in first person tense, using the pronouns I, we, and us to tell what
happened. Readers need to know what something was like from your perspective.
- speak to your own thoughts and feelings in first person tense unless you know for sure what another person was
thinking or feeling and can quote them.
5. Use your own Vocabulary- choice of vocabulary choice of vocabulary can help you establish and maintain themes
throughout your essay. Every word matters.
o Use the words that naturally come to mind when you are writing and don't try to be something that you are not. Your
language should fit the topic and guide readers to interpret your writing in a certain way. o Here are some examples of
how to choose the right words:
ü When you are making a statement of opinion or fact, use powerful words that make your ideas clear. For example, say,
"I ran like my life depended on it," rather than, "I ran pretty fast."
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ü If you are trying to communicate uncertainty that you felt during an experience, use words that convey these feelings. "I
questioned whether or not it was a good idea," rather than, "I didn't know what would happen."
ü Use positive language. Write about what did happen or what is rather than what did not happen or what is not. "I left
room for dessert after dinner," instead of, "I hated dinner and couldn't even finish it."
6. Edit, Edit, Edit- English grammar is tough even for native English speakers. Brush up on grammar rules before writing
and revisit your work when you are finished to ensure that you have written an essay that you can be proud of.
o No matter what you write, one of the most important parts of the writing process is editing. It is good practice to give
yourself some space from your essay just after finishing it before you dive into editing because this can help you analyze
your writing more objectively. A second opinion is always helpful too.
When editing, ask yourself these questions:
• Is the grammar/sentence structure of your essay correct?
• Is your essay well-organized and easy to follow? Does it flow?
• Is your writing on topic throughout the essay?
• Will your readers be able to picture what you have described? Did you make your point?

WEEK 14: THE SCREEN PLAY

MODULE 14: The Screenplay
Learning Objectives:
At the end of this module you are expected to:
a. Identify different steps in screen play
b. Explain the function of cinematic approach of drama and screen play in writing.
c. Analyze the importance of writing in the development of drama and screen play.
d. Classify the elements of screen play and drama presentation.
Screenplay- is a written work by screenwriters for a film, television program, or video game. These screenplays
can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression
and dialogues of the characters are also narrated. A screenplay written for television is also known as a teleplay.
What is script writing?
ü It is all about delivering a character’s motivation, emotion, priorities and background using only speech
The basic content of script writing
a. Characters
b. Settings
c. Conflict
Characters
• Start simple
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• Fill up a page writing each one's story, favorite phrases, fears, loves and desires.
• Get to know them a little Settings
• Characters will dictate the time and place
• Don’t spend much time about the settings
Conflict
• Vital component of drama and script writing.
Three types:
1. External conflict
2. Internal conflict
3. Interactional conflict
Dialogue
• Heart of screenwriting/ scriptwriting
• Is conversation
• Has rhythm
• Easily spoken
Things to keep in mind:
v Tips
v Solo Speeches
v Exercises
Tips
v Keep stage directions minimal
v Character's voice should be so distinct
v Resist unnatural-sounding details to the dialogue
§ Emphasize the most drama- tic parts like: a. Words
b. Phrases
c. Images
d. Sounds & Rhythm
§ Mark the parts: slowly, speak up or pause
§ End with a punctuation mark
§ Make notes describing the persona & characters/ speaker
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§ Clarify the tone
Solo Speeches
• Monologue - a lengthy speech
• Soliloquy - a long speech
• Aside - a short secret speech Screenwriting vs Script writing
Script writing- process of writing dialogue which can be used in talk shows, news programs, sports broadcasts
and infotainment programs.
Screenwriting- also a process of writing a script, involve discussing the visuals of a TV show or a movie.
Things to consider in screen play:
ü In a "shooting script", each scene is numbered, and technical direction may be given.
ü In a "spec" or a "draft" in various stages of development, the scenes are not numbered, and technical direction
is at a minimum.
Standard font for a screenplay:
§ 12 point, 10 pitch Courier Typeface.
Major Components:
§ Action
§ Dialogue
Action-is written in the present tense.
Dialogue-are the lines the characters speak.
A slug line- also called a master scene heading, occurs at the start of every scene.
Three parts of slug line:
a. Part one states whether the scene is set inside (interior/INT.) outside
(exterior/EXT.), or both.
b. Part two states location of the scene.
c. Part three, separated from Part two by a hyphen, refers to the time of the scene.
Note: Each slug line begins a new scene.
Shooting script- the slug lines are numbered consecutively. These scene numbers serve as mile-post markers in
a script. This allows any part of the script to be referred to by scene number.
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WEEK 15: INTRODUCTION TO DRAMA
MODULE 15: Introduction to Drama
“The Dramatist and their Works and Drama Views”

Learning Objectives:
At the end of this module you are expected to:
a. Explain the function of cinematic approach of drama and screen play in writing.
b. Analyze the importance of writing in the development of drama and screen play.
c. Classify the elements of screen play and drama presentation.

Drama- is a type of literature telling a story, which is intended to be performed to an audience on the stage.
- Generally, while drama is the printed text of a play, the word theatre often refers to the actual production of
the text on the stage. Theatre thus involves action taking place on the stage, the lighting, the scenery, the
accompanying music, the costumes, the atmosphere, and so on.
Elements of Drama:
a. Plot- The events in a play
b. Setting- The time and place of a literary work
c. Characters- People or creatures in a play.
d. Dialogue- conversation in a play.
e. Theme- the central thought of a play; the idea or ideas with which a play deals.
f. Scenery- the various elements that are used to create a particular visual setting for a play.
Types of drama
a. Tragedy- in the Greek sense, a play that ends with the death of at least one of the main characters. In
modern usage, it refers to a play that doesn’t have a happy ending.
b. Comedy-in the Greek sense, it is a play that doesn’t end in death. In modern usage, it refers to a play that
ends happily or that is humorous.
c. Tragicomedy- a play in which serious and comic elements are mixed.
Origins and a Brief History of Drama:
Drama is generally thought to have started in Greece between 600 and 200 BC, although some critics trace it to
Egyptian religious rites of coronation.
Greek Drama- in Greece, dramatic performances were associated with religious festivals. The Greeks produced
different types of drama, mainly tragedy and comedy.
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Famous Greek tragedians include:
§ Aeschylus
§ Sophocles
§ Euripides.

Aristophanes -the best writer of comedy theatre mask.

Roman Drama- the Romans inherited the drama traditions from the Greeks. The expansion of the Roman
Empire helped spread drama to many places in Europe and the Mediterranean world.
Seneca- is the most important Roman tragedian.
Roman Theatre
Medieval Drama- the Middle Ages start with the fall of the Roman Empire. Most of classical learning was lost
in medieval times.
Middle Ages -were dominated by religion and the study of theological matters. The Christian doctrine and
Christian values were the measure of everything.
v During the Middle Ages, drama was looked down upon as evil and a means of corruption. However, faced
with the need to spread the word of God to the illiterate masses, the Church came to devise some form of
dramatic performance to help in teaching Christian beliefs and biblical stories. In which the characters
personify moral qualities (such as charity or vice) or abstractions (as death or youth) and in which moral
lessons are taught.
v The three main types of medieval drama:
a. mystery plays- about Bible stories
b. miracle plays- about the lives of saints and the miracles they performed.
c. morality plays- which the characters personify moral qualities (such as charity or vice) or abstractions
(as death or youth) and in which moral lessons are taught.
The Renaissance:
The Renaissance is the period that followed the Middle Ages. It started in Italy in the fourteenth century and
spread to other parts of Europe. The word Renaissance is a French word which means rebirth. The Renaissance
period witnessed a new interest in learning and discovery of the natural world. The works of the Greek and
Roman writers were rediscovered. The invention of the printing press helped make the production of books
easier and cheaper, hence, available to more people.
Humanism- The humanist movement stressed the role of man and reason in understanding the world and
rejected the predominance of religious thinking.
Renaissance Drama- during the Renaissance, the works of Greek and Roman dramatists were rediscovered and
imitated. Plays were no longer restricted to religious themes. This happened first in Italy and spread then to
other parts of Europe. In England, drama flourished during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558-1603), who
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was a patron of literature and the arts. Theatres were built in London and people attended plays in large
numbers.
The most important dramatists:
a. William Shakespeare b. Christopher Marlowe

Dramatic Terms
· Playwright: The writer of plays (dramatist)
· Stage directions: Instructions written in the script of a play, describing the setting and indicating actions
and movements of the actors.
· Soliloquy (Monologue): A speech in a play in which a character, usually alone on the stage, talks to
himself or herself so that the audience knows their thoughts.
· Protagonist: The main character in a play.
· Antagonist: The character opposing the main character.
· Tragic hero: A character of high repute, who, because of a tragic flaw and fate, suffers a fall from glory
into suffering.
· Tragic flaw: A weakness or limitation of character, resulting in the fall of the tragic hero.
· Dramatis Personae: "People of Drama" in Latin; a list of the characters in a play, usually found on the
first page of the script.
· Blank Verse: Unrhymed iambic pentameter verse. It is the preeminent dramatic verse English (as in the
plays of Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare).
· Chorus: The course in Greek drama is a group of actors who speak or sing together, commenting on the
action. In Elizabethan drama, the course consisted of one actor who recites the prologue and epilogue to a play
and sometimes comments on the action (as in Doctor Faustus).
· Comic Relief: Humorous episodes in a play that is mainly tragic.
Some of the famous dramatists:
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WEEK 16: WOMEN FICTION WRITERS OF 20TH AND 21ST
CENTURY
The following list of the 100 Great 20th Century Works of Fiction by Women were selected by Feminista! in
response to Modern Library 100 Best Novels of the 20th Century.
Title Author
Bastard Out of Carolina Dorothy Allison
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings Maya Angelou

Cat's Eye Margaret Atwood

The Bottle Factory Outing Beryl Bainbridge
Gorilla, My Love Toni Cade Bambara
Nightwood Djuna Barnes
Regeneration Pat Barker
Hotel du Lac Anita Brookner
Rubyfruit Jungle Rita Mae Brown
The Good Earth Pearl S. Buck
Possession A. S. Byatt
Nights at the Circus Angela Carter
So Far From God Ana Castillo
My Antonia Willa Cather
The Awakening Kate Chopin
The House on Mango Street Sandra Cisneros
Elders and Betters Ivy Compton-Burnett
Clear Light of Day Anita Desai

Out of Africa Isak Dinesen

Stones for Ibarra Harriet Doerr
The Radiant Way Margaret Drabble
Rebecca Dumaurier
Second Class Citizen Buchi Emecheta
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Tracks Louise Erdrich
At Freddie's Penelope Fitzgerald

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe Fannie Flagg

Owls Do Cry Janet Frame

The Women's Room Marilyn French
The Mind-Body Problem Rebecca Goldstein

July's People Nadine Gordimer

The Rest of Life Mary Gordon
The Well of Loneliness Radclyffe Hall
When Rain Clouds Gather Bessie Head
The Talented Mr. Ripley Patricia Highsmith

The Furies Janet Hobhouse

The Bone People Keri Hulme
Their Eyes Were Watching God Zora Neal Hurston

The Haunting of Hill House Shirley Jackson

Heat and Dust Ruth Prawer Jhabvala

Fear of Flying Erica Jong

Lucy Jamaica Kincaid
The Bean Trees Barbara Kingsolver

Tripmaster Monkey Maxine Hong Kingston

Obasan Joy Kogawa

The Fire-Dwellers Margaret Laurence

To Kill A Mockingbird Harper Lee

The Golden Notebook Doris M. Lessing
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Moon Tiger Penelope Lively
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Anita Loos

The Balkan Trilogy Olivia Manning

The Group Mary McCarthy
Ballad of the Sad Cafe Carson McCullers
Mama Terry McMillan
Patience and Sarah Isabel Miller
Gone with the Wind Margaret Mitchell
Anagrams Lorrie Moore
Beloved Toni Morrison
Wife Bharati Mukherjee
Lives of Girls and Women Alice Munro
A Severed Head Iris Murdoch
House of Splendid Isolation Edna O'Brien
A Good Man is Hard to Find Flannery O'Connor
Tell Me a Riddle Tillie Olsen
Enormous Changes at the Last Minute Grace Paley

The Collected Stories of Dorothy Parker Dorothy Parker

Black Tickets Jayne Anne Phillips
Braided Lives Marge Piercy
The Bell Jar Sylvia Plath
Ship of Fools Katherine Anne Porter
The Golden Spur Dawn Powell
The Shipping News E. Annie Proulx
The Fountainhead Ayn Rand
The King Must Die Mary Renault
Wide Sargasso Sea Jean Rhys
Housekeeping Marilynn Robinson
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The God of Small Things Arundati Roy
Mrs. Stevens Hears the Mermaids Singing May Sarton
The Stone Diaries Carol Shields
The Weight of Water Anita Shreve
Anywhere But Here Mona Simpson
By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and wept Elizabeth Smart

The Age of Grief Jane Smiley

The Volcano Lover Susan Sontag
The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie Muriel Spark
Angel Elizabeth Taylor
The Joy Luck Club Amy Tan
If Morning Ever Comes Anne Tyler
Away Jane Urquhart
The Color Purple Alice Walker
The Life and Loves of a She-Devil Fay Weldon
The Collected Stories of Eudora Welty Eudora Welty

The Return of the Soldier Rebecca West

Ethan Frome Edith Wharton
Frost in May Antonia White
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit Jeanette Winterson
Mrs. Dalloway Virginia Woolf
Famous Feminist Writers of the 21st Century
Feminist writers are often the first ones to really get people thinking about what it means to be a feminist. They
are often the voice boxes that help men understand the struggles of being female and regularly spark social
change in ways that others can't.
Margaret Atwood
Margaret Atwood's science fiction dystopia was written during the 80s — but quickly turned into a cautionary
tale of what could happen in the near future.
Atwood has always been an outspoken feminist and still encourages women to fight back against oppression
that comes with tyrannical rule.
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Naomi Woolf
- Her writing focuses on how society tends to force women into achieving a certain look, and how often women
are discredited in mainstream media.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
-One of the most famous feminist writers of the 21st century specializing in intersectional feminism. Adichie's
talent is bringing out often underrepresented voices from the feminist movement to the foreground, reminding
us that we're all in this together.
Her writing takes a non-Western viewpoint in what feminism is all about, why it should be a universally
appealing concept, and why many viewpoints help us become better as a society. Her top works
include Americanah, Purple Hibiscus, and We Should All Be Feminists.
Caitlin Moran-one of the most outspoken feminists to hit the book scene in recent years, and that's why one of
her most recent books launched her into stardom. Her hit memoir, How to be a Woman, points out all the
ridiculous double standards society has been dealing with the "fairer sex."
Alice Walker- most people already know this name as one of the most famous feminist writers of the 21st
century.
- author of The Color Purple, has been repeatedly applauded for her brilliant work detailing racial
struggles, domestic violence, issues with misogyny, and more.
Maya Angelou-one of the most famous feminist writers of the 21st century also happens to be one of the most
famous civil rights figures of the 20th century.
- She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011, and has written over 36 different books
in her time.
Hillary Clinton-the woman who won the popular vote during the 2016 presidential election, and happens to be
one of the biggest feminist icons of the new century. She's famous for saying that "women's rights are human
rights," and for being the first woman to run for president.
Her memoirs, as well as a number of books she published on the state of human rights, touch heavily on
feminist subjects and inspire girls to continue the fight for equality, including her 2017 book, What Happened.

WEEK 17: SPECIAL TOPIC IN 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 literary tropes or with various traditions of poetry and poetics.
Importance
Writing equips us with communication and thinking skills. Writing expresses who we are as people.
Writing makes our thinking and learning visible and permanent. Writing fosters our ability to explain and refine
our ideas to others and ourselves. Creative writing is not only a means to help students unleash their creative
side and feel more comfortable when writing in and about everyday life, but has also been proven to improve
language learning. It also develops creative thoughts, using their imaginations, suggest alternatives, broaden
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their though process and problem-solving abilities. It also allows the child to show their opinions and develop
their voice.
Techniques to Improve Your Creative Writing Skills
Good composition skills in any aspect of creative writing will take you to amazing heights. You should
remember that in order for your creative writing to reap rewards, it should captivate the reader. Your words
should be carefully thought out, and they should have meaning.
1. Have a Broad Understanding of the Subject
Writing creatively requires a focused approach and broad understanding of the subject in order to create a larger
picture for the reader to visualize. You should spend time researching and conducting informational interviews
in order to gain this knowledge about the subject. The more knowledge that you have, the more that you are
able to convey to the reader through your writing.
2. Do Something Different
Never be scared of doing something different or unique that will bring your writing to a whole new realm that
may be unexpected or out of the ordinary. Oftentimes, this can evolve into something that is different yet
amazing— something that readers will enjoy. To achieve this, think differently and put yourself in environments
that are inspiring or relaxing. Sometimes, having no rules is the best way to reach your full potential when it
comes to creative writing.
3. Think of the Three Act Structure
This method is prevalent not only in modern writing, but also in television and film. These “acts” are not
distinct from one another, rather they flow seamlessly through the piece.
1. Setup - the setup will establish characters, how they relate, and their world. There will be an inciting incident
that has an attempted resolution and a turning point.
2. Confrontation - the confrontation will be the central problem with the main character attempting to resolve it
with much adversity, turning into a journey.
3. Resolution - the resolution consists of the climax and the resolution of the problem.
4. Add Interesting Details about the Setting and Location
Bring your essay to life—literally. Using specific details about settings and locations, readers will be
transported into your piece. Literature can be dry if focused only on the hard facts, but can become increasingly
interesting when adorned with details about a location or setting. Even the smallest details can prove to have a
major impact in creative writing.
5. Extended Metaphors
This is when the writer uses an analogy to explain a complex concept so that the readers may understand it
better. Unfamiliar concepts can be explained in a way that is familiar and can be visualized. One example of a
well-known extended metaphor is when Shakespeare wrote “It is the East, and Juliet is the sun!” in Romeo and
Juliet.
6. Record Your Ideas
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Keep a notebook with you at all times so that you can scribble down any ideas when they come to mind.
Inspiration can strike at any hour. Think about your topic when you’re doing mundane tasks or when you are
out and about.
You’d be surprised at what you’ll think of when you’re out of your working mode.
7. Use Meaningful Dialogue
Meaningful dialogue will demonstrate how the character feels or what they mean by what they are saying.
Rather than only including the words that are being spoken, include one or two details about the character that
will invoke an image in the reader’s mind about how the person is feeling. Most people know how to write a
creative essay, but having meaningful dialogue transforms it into a masterpiece.
8. Create Tension or Conflict
Tension and conflict is created between characters and can be internal or external. You should balance these
opposing forces to keep the reader interested in the story and anxious to see how it will be resolved. There are
plenty of themes for conflict which include, but are not limited to, high stakes, universality, insight, empathy,
surprise, causality, progression, empowerment, and mystery.