Publication Date

4-2015

School

College of Arts and Sciences

Major

English

Keywords

short story

Disciplines

Creative Writing

Abstract

Creativity is the process of making something new. For those who desire to use their creativity, this process is discouraging because so many things have already been created. Originality becomes a battle to find a subject that remains untouched. However, Salman Rushdie, author of the1981 Booker Prize-winning novel Midnight's Children, gives a theory for "how newness enters the world" as written in his 1992 essay "Imaginary Homelands." In this essay, he explores the negative and positive consequences resulting from the co-mingling of cultures, and he comes to the conclusion that the merging of two or more things unalike will bring forth something undone before, though the pieces previously existed without co-habitation. When these pieces rest upon one object or person, they have inadvertently created something new out of old things. This is how newness enters the world. For the field of English, creativity means combining pre-existing ideas and experiences into one project and creating an original piece of writing. In order for writers to advance in their field, they must understand basic techniques in the mechanics of writing, some struggles that they may face, and how to succeed in the publishing arena.

Unlike other fields, the technique of writers rests on creating a work of art without easy access to sensory tools. Artists appeal to sight, musicians appeal to sound, chefs appeal to taste and smell, clothing designers appeal to touch and sight, etc. Writers must show readers their creation using concrete details to evoke sensory recognition and refrain from simply telling readers the story through vague descriptions. In her guide to narrative craft, Janet Burroway writes that "Your job as a fiction writer is to focus

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