When I think about my school days, I usually think about the creative writing class that I hated. Even now, when I read a creative writing exercise, I can feel myself getting annoyed. This isn’t because I don’t understand the point of the exercise, but because I’ve become so immune to them. Since the class was such a chore, I’d often look for ways to avoid it. I’d find a book that I thought would suit the assignment and read it, hoping that it would stimulate some creative thinking. Unfortunately, this never worked out.
Now, as an adult, I understand the importance of staying positive when facing a writing assignment. I’ve worked in the creative writing department of a university, where I had to teach and grade student work. This is why I’m aware of the pitfalls that can arise from giving a creative writing exercise. While most of the assignments that I had to grade were relatively straight-forward, some of the assignments could really annoy me. I’ll never forget the time that I had to grade a piece that was almost identical to something that I’d had to grade before. As much as I wanted to be positive and encourage my students, that piece of writing really got the better of me.
When I think about my time at university, I always wonder what would have happened if I had taken a different approach. What if I’d had the courage to be a bit more negative while I was there? Could I have encouraged my students to be a bit more creative?
When it comes to writing, there are a variety of tricks and techniques that you can use to make your writing style shine through. One of the most effective tools that you can use is to write what is known as a character sketch. A character sketch is when you give the reader the chance to get to know the character. It can be a short story, a novel, or even a play. The important thing is that you give the reader a glimpse of the character’s personality traits and their struggles. This helps the reader to understand who the character is and what they are going through. To illustrate, when I teach creative writing, I often use character sketches to show the difference between the two approaches to creative writing that I described above. Here, we’ll explore why Mary Kinzie doesn’t teach creative writing and what you can do instead.
Why Mary Kinzie Doesn’t Teach Creative Writing
If you’re curious about why Mary Kinzie doesn’t teach creative writing, you’re in the right place. Let’s explore the issue from the perspective of a college English instructor. When I was an undergraduate at a different university, I took a class called Introduction to Literature. One of the requirements of this class was to read a novel and give a short summary of what we learned from it. For my A-Level (advanced year in university), I chose to do my summary in creative writing. My lecturer, who had no experience of teaching creative writing, warned me that it was a scary subject and that I shouldn’t take it if I didn’t want to. Although I’ve never been the type of person to listen to authority figures, I decided to challenge her. Why should I be scared of something that I enjoy doing?
As a way of teaching creative writing, my lecturer assigned me the unenviable task of teaching a class called ‘The Importance of Craft in Creative Writing’ (a play on words). In this class, we were taught various craft elements, such as planning, outlining, and editing. Although I enjoyed learning about these topics, I found the practical application of these skills very tedious. While I was looking through my student’s work, I came across a character sketch. The moment that I read it, I knew that this was something that I could do and something that I’d be good at. When I realized that I was going to enjoy teaching this aspect of English, my excitement grew. Instead of dreading the task, I looked at it as a challenge and in a way, a joy. After completing The Importance of Craft in Creative Writing, I decided to include a character sketch in every one of my creative writing assignments. Since then, I’ve always included them and find that my students enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy writing them.
The Difference In Focus
One of the most significant differences between my college coursework and Mary Kinzie’s is in the way that we approach our subjects. In my coursework, the emphasis was heavily on understanding the craft of writing and applying this craft to each individual piece of writing as a means of producing an overall quality impression. For example, in my English A-Level, we were taught to look at a piece of writing in terms of its construction. This involved analyzing different types of sentences (e.g., who, what, where, when, and how many) to determine the overall structure of the text. For an A grade, we were required to write a 500-word essay on a topic of our choice and to show an understanding of how a certain text flows and how this flow enhances the narrative. We were also given a character analysis of an iconic English author and told to show how this author’s construction influenced their style.
The Difference In Skill
Another significant difference between my college coursework and Mary Kinzie’s is in the way that we teach writing. One of the most important issues regarding teaching creative writing is to make sure that you’re not simply mimicking what you’ve learnt in university. While I did enjoy getting a deeper understanding of the craft of writing, I found that much of what I learnt at university was applicable only to academic essays or dissertations. Even now, many of the assignments that I’m given by publishers or article writing platforms don’t require much in the way of originality. In order to write a good piece of creative writing at university, you need to make sure that you’re using your creative mind and not just following the formulas that you were taught. To do this, you first need to learn to relax and not be so concerned about following a ‘correct’ procedure. When teaching creative writing, it’s important to remember that every single one of your students is an individual with their own set of strengths and weaknesses. Make sure that you’re not simply teaching them to write what you’re telling them to write, but to use their existing skills and abilities to produce something new and unique. This is where the joy of teaching comes in – you get to watch your students grow and develop as individuals while engaging with a subject that they’re passionate about.
What You Can Do Instead
If you’re interested in pursuing a career in creative writing, there are a variety of things that you can do. One of the best things that you can do is to write. Since we’re on the topic of writing, let’s explore what you can do to make your writing stand out. First and foremost, make sure that you’re presenting your ideas to the world in a different way. This could be through blogging, micro-blogging, or even setting up an online journal. By presenting your thoughts and ideas through written language, you’re giving the world a different viewpoint and something new to think about. If this sounds like something that you’re passionate about, then look into applying for a full-time teaching job at a good university. Once you’re established at a university, you’ll be able to take a class or two that you’re interested in and develop your skills. Above all else, make sure that you’re having fun and that you’re enjoying yourself.