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Jazmin Kitchen Sister Holt Eng 252 19 October 2013 Research Paper The Choice of Creative Writing One of the sweet tender mercies in life is finding that one thing you love doing, where no matter what is going on in your life when you get the chance to do what you love, you can just go to a different place, enjoy the moment, and find peace. For me, thats reading. So naturally I have always yearned to be able to create that kind of joy. One summer at girls camp when we had a bit of free time I was joking around with some of the girls in my ward telling them their futures. Pretty soon my whole ward was crowded around me and I was telling fortune after fortune. This was the first time I realized I could tell stories. With this realization came the spark of confidence to push me towards my dream of writing as a career, but there is so much more to writing than just being able to tell an interesting story. What does it take to be a creative writer? How can a person develop fiction so that it relates to others? What is the incentive to becoming a creative writer? Choosing creative writing as a career is worthwhile because of the benefits which include providing entertainment, improving the academic mind, expressing ones self, and touching others lives.
1. Describing Popular Fiction

On days that are especially hard and it is necessary to distract your mind, popular fiction is the genre of choice. Popular fiction is written to provide entertainment. According to S.E. Sinkhorn, popular fictions main focus is plot (par. 1). Rather, delving deeply into character development popular fiction hones in on plot: the conflict, the action, and the events of the story. The purpose of this is to appeal to the reader, to keep the page turning, and the entertainment to

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the maximum. Popular fiction books are the kind that you pull an all-nighter to finish. Elizabeth Lowell is in the opinion that the only critics that matter in popular fiction are the readers, after all they are the ones that pay to read the books. Readers are looking for writers who can retell a story in a new and fresh way (Par.5). Lowell goes on to say, Thats why people read popular fiction. To be reminded that life is worth the pain(Par. 35). On the last few pages of a popular fiction novel a happy ending is almost always sure to be found. This quote from Lowells article, Popular Fiction: Why We Read It, Why We Write It gives the perspective that authors write popular fiction to show that life has trials but you can find joy that makes all the hardships worthwhile. 2. Defining Literary Fiction
More than just entertainment, reading can be a learning and growing experience. Novels that provide academic benefits are called literary fiction novels. S.E. Sinkhorn defines literary fiction as a novel that is about the development of a character (Par. 1). If a novel is primarily how a character rises up or falls down it is literary fiction. Since it is based on the development of a character Sinkhorn said, Literary novels are paced more slowly and like to revel in language and human experience (Par. 3). Unlike the fast paced popular fiction novels literary novels explore human events and use artistic language. Authors who write literary fiction are masters of language. For inspiring literary fiction we can look to author Charles Dickens (see fig. 1).

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Photo of Charles Dickens Fig. 1 Browning, Stephen. The World of Charles Dickens. 2012. Photograph. The Telegraph. Web. 16 Oct 2013. Literary fiction is written to study the way of human life, literary fiction requires focus and thought. Literary fiction can be beautiful and inspiring, and that is why it is written. While there is a difference between literary and popular fiction, and each has its respective definition the two arent always separate. There are novels that contain a stimulating plot, as well as having well developed characters with intricate language. These novels are a mixture of both Novels do not have to be strictly popular or literary. 3. Making writing real There are different dimensions to fiction and the way it is written: whether or not the focus is on the plot or the characters, but what about going deeper into the construction of a novel? Books are supposed to be relatable, even if it is fiction. So as an author how does a person write realistic

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fiction. Definitely a major component is dialogue, the way your characters speak. Neal R. Norrickin his article Swearing in literary prose fiction and conversational narrative says this of using profanity in fiction: It represents the words or thoughts of characters rather than those of the author, and it serves to render dialogue more realistic (p. 33). The choice of swearing in writing can be a difficult one. According to Norrick the reason to use it should be to make it more realistic. Further expressing this is a portion of an article by Mark Nichol where he gives his opinion on the subject: If youre going to write novels or short stories, it seems that to be honest with yourself and your readers, if a story takes place in a milieu in which profanity is uttered, at least some of your characters are going to be swearing. If, however, the setting does not lend itself to cursing, its not an issue ( Par. 2). Writing should reflect the personality of the character. Having thus said Norrick also expresses that to an extent swearing can be traced to the, authors own voice (p. 33). To make writing realistic, it is necessary to use language that you as the author are comfortable with. Maria Antoniou and Jessica Moriarty in their article, What can academic writers learn from creative writers? Developing guidance and support for lecturers in Higher Education express, writing, of whatever genre, involves all aspects of the self: intellectual, physical, emotional and spiritual(p. 159). This discusses the fact that writing comprises of a person putting everything that they are into their writing. Language is supposed to sound natural, if you do not use profanity on a regular basis when you try to write it that way, it is going to sound out of place. Writing is most realistic when the author is true to who they are. 4. Choosing Creative Writing

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Fiction can be written in many different ways because how it is written pertains to the authors style, but why do people choose to write it? Towheed in his exploration of Vernon Lees relationship with fiction says having an appreciation that writing could be pursued as a productive, even lucrative, career (p. 206). Creative writing can be used as a career to make money, but the benefits are so much more than this. Writing can be used to teach. Gekoski talks of his experience with teaching a creative writing class. The writerexpresses his surprise that he was able to make a difference in his students, and he was able to help potential writers make their writing stronger (par. 4). Lena Paul also gives perspective on how writing can teach. In her blog, The Life-Changing Effects of Reading Lena Paul states, Reading a lot illuminates what constitutes as good and bad writing and allows a person to implement that knowledge in his or her own writing (par. 3). Writing can help those who are reading become better writers. Writing can also be a way to reach out to people, it can touch them in ways that you wouldnt be able to touch them otherwise. As an author you are providing readers with a piece of work that they can take into their homes and interpret in their own way and experience that over and over again. Lena Paul goes as far to say that the benefits of writing include these benefits for your readers: Whether it aids in the alleviation of devastating symptoms of depression, increased emotional intelligence, cultivating openness to different cultures and perspectives, a change in your worldview, or improved communication skills (Par. 10). One of the biggest benefits of being a creative writer is being able to affect your reader in providing an escape for them, working their brain, and providing new experiences for them. Creative writing is also beneficial for the writer. In creative writing the author has the opportunity to express who they are. The choice of becoming a creative writer can involve many aspects. There is more to creative writing than just writing fiction.There are different genres within fiction and writing is

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all about reflecting who you are. What you choose to write reflects back on you as the author, to create something realistic it is important to be true to yourself. The benefits of the choice include a vast variety. As a writer you can make a living, you can touch the lives of others, and you can express yourself. When you consider all of the things creative writing involves its clear that creative writing is a worthwhile endeavor.

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Works Cited Antoniou, Maria, and Jessica Moriarty. "What can academic writers learn from creative writers? Developing guidance and support for lecturers in Higher Education." EBSCOhost. 13.2 (2008): 157-67. 11p. Web. 16 Oct. 2013. Gekoski, Rick. "You can't teach creative writing. Can you?" thegardian. n.pag., 05 Jul 2012. Web. 9 Oct. 2013. Lowell, Elizabeth. "Popular Fiction: Why We Read It, Why We Write It." New York Times Bestseller Elizabeth Lowell suspense with a passion. n.pag.. Web. 9 Oct. 2013. Nichol, Mark. "What the Hell do you do About Profanity?." DailyWritingTips. n. pag. Web. 9 Oct. 2013. Norrick, Neal R. "Swearing in literary prose fiction and conversational narrative. ." EBSCOhost. 22.1 (2012): 24-49. 26p. . Web. 16 Oct. 2013. Paul, Lena. "The Life-Changing Effects of Reading." Writing Forward write on, shine on!. n.pag., 10 Octo 2012. Web. 9 Oct 2013. Sinkhorn, S.E. "Literary vs. Commercial Fiction." Maybe Genius. n.pag., 07 Mar 2012. Web. 9 Oct. 2013. Towheed, Shafquat. "Determining "Fluctuating Opinions": Vernon Lee, Popular Fiction, and Theories of Reading.." EBSCOhost. 60.2 (2005): 199-236. 38p. Web. .16 Oct. 2013.