Creative Writing Workshop

Lesson 1: What is Creativity?

The Truth About Creativity

Truth 1: Creative thinking often springs from frustration. Like Einstein we have to give the creative process time to work.

Truth 2: Creative thinking is original thinking. To be original in your thinking takes time, and you won’t always do original thinking sitting at your computer keyboard. Creative solutions to our writing problems come to us at odd moments and as unexpected breakthroughs. A break through may come when you are walking, driving in traffic, waking up or about to fall asleep.

Truth 3: “You encourage your creativity when you allow yourself to play with new combinations of words, images and ideas,” said Cook. Edward De Bono a world authority on developing creative thinking skills believes that anyone can learn to be creative. When you pay attention to your creative flashes, you find fresh, new ways of thinking about writing.

Truth 4: It’s possible to kill good ideas by too much evaluation. Instead of finding everything that is bad about a creative idea list what is good. Evaluation comes later. Marshall Cook says, “When it’s time to evaluate and act on your inspiration, remember to play the angel’s advocate first. Instead of trying to decide what’s wrong with an idea, first note everything, that’s right with it, every thing it might become, all the possibilities it might suggest.”

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