As an undergraduate, you have the opportunity to build your own writing portfolio, which you can use to land your dream job. But with many types of courses to choose from, what should you write about?
To help you figure out what kinds of creative writing pieces to submit to college, we’ve put together a guide that will help you choose the right subject for your creative writing paper.
Action And Adventure
One of the most popular topics among undergraduates is undoubtedly plot and character development in books, movies, and plays. If you’re looking to build a writing portfolio that will land you a job in a creative field, you should consider action and adventure elements that will have more than one opportunity for your characters to act.
This is not to say that you should only write about action and adventure, but it’s a good idea to have a balance of both in your work. The advantage of including both of these elements is that, as an audience, we are more than familiar with the situations that the protagonists face and how they overcome these challenges. This familiarity allows you to develop your characters and plot in a way that is meaningful not only to you, but to your audience as well.
Fiction
Another popular option among undergraduates is fictional prose. Much like the previous point, fiction is also incredibly popular because it’s something new for readers to engage with. What is fiction, you might ask? Simple. It’s stories that are not true. That is, events that didn’t actually happen as the story goes.
In other words, if you’re going to be writing about something that didn’t happen in real life, it’s almost certainly fiction. If you’re looking for something completely fictional, consider making up a story about a place or an event that formed part of your own life. This way, you’ll be able to draw on a personal experience that is rich in detail and give your writing a completely new and unique perspective.
Comedy
Comedy is another option that you should consider as a topic for your creative writing paper. After all, isn’t laughter one of the things that make us human? If you’re looking to build a substantial portfolio that will land you a job in a creative field, you should consider using comedy as a way to engage with your audience. As with the other topics mentioned so far, including comedy in your writing will give it a completely different flavor. A lighter tone, if you will.
What is stand-up comedy? It’s comedy that is performed by one person, the comedian, who interacts with the audience. The audience is often invited to join in on the joke as it’s being told. This is a fantastic tool for developing your observational skills as a writer, enabling you to write about anything, even things that you might not normally consider funny. The great thing about stand-up comedy is that it doesn’t require expensive equipment or a huge venue. Meaning, you can do it anywhere, even your dorm room. If you have a microphone, you have a stand-up comedy set.
Non-fiction
If you’re looking to build a portfolio that will lead you to a job in a more academic field, you should consider including non-fiction in your creative writing. There are many fascinating topics that you can write about, but the most popular ones are history and geography. If these are your areas of expertise, consider including them in your non-fiction writing. Not only will this give you a valuable insight into an area that you may not fully understand, but it will also give your writing a wider appeal.
These are just a few examples of topics that you can write about. The key is that you should consider a variety of options so that you can build the best possible portfolio that will land you a job in a creative field.