I teach creative writing at the GWL and Helen said to me today, “Donna, can you write a blog post for us about what you do?” Oh dear. Basically, what I can teach anyone about creative writing boils down to just one sentence: You can’t teach anyone creative writing. So, I’m here under false pretences and I’ve been trying to keep that quiet. And now the cat’s out of the bag. I guess now I should just slink off home and never darken the Library’s doors again.
If you were to ask Jane Austen whether she took a creative writing course, I think she would give you a look of puzzlement and then take a quick whiff of her smelling salts.
You can teach the mechanics of writing – how to spell, how to punctuate a sentence, suggestions for how to structure a piece of writing – but what you can’t do is teach someone how to be creative. Creativity comes from somewhere inside, and that goes for writing, as well as the ability to paint, or sing, or dance. A ballet teacher could teach me the steps to The Dance of The Sugar Plum Fairy but, believe me, I’m still going to look and sound like a herd of wildebeeste thumping across the stage.
As a creative writing tutor, my role is to encourage, to support, to give hints and tips, to give feedback and to help draw out and nurture someone’s natural talent. So, every Wednesday, I do just that. The group does a variety of writing exercises to spark ideas and jumpstart the creative process. As inspiration we’ve used photographs, first lines of books, random words, objects, poetry, different scenarios. We’ve re-written fairy tales, taken bits from our own lives, and surprised ourselves and each other. We’ve murdered our characters, followed them home at night, given them gifts, granted their wishes, presented them with offers that are too good to refuse and, generally, shoved them kicking and screaming into situations they need to get out of. In the process, we’ve drunk gallons of tea and eaten a ton of biscuits. The possibility of me ever being able to do The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy recedes ever further with every chocolate Hob-Nob.
The women who come to the creative writing group all have great imaginations, and it’s fascinating to see what they come up with. What always surprises me is the way that each person can take the same photo or word and come up with something completely different.
Currently, the group are working on three pieces of writing inspired by memories from childhood, early adulthood, and the present day. Our next project will be to pick an object from the Library’s archive and use that as inspiration for a short story or poem. We’re also going to make our writing available for anyone who comes into the Library to browse through, and we’re working on putting that forever.
I really love working with the women who come to the group. Telling lies for fun is one of the most enjoyable things you can do. I hope that everyone who comes to the group gets something out of it (even if it’s just the chance of a blether and a biscuit), and I hope that sometimes everyone goes home pleased with what they’ve written. Most of all, I hope they all have as much fun as I do.
