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Why Learn Creative Writing?

Sean Glatch | November 1, 2022 | 5 Comments

Why learn creative writing? Truthfully, creative writing is one of the most misunderstood disciplines in the 21st century. When people think of a creative writing course, they often imagine a group of lofty, out-of-touch people who wear argyle sweater vests and have unproductive conversations about abstract concepts.

In reality, nothing could be further from the truth: the best writing classes remain engaged with the real world, and the skills gained in a creative writing course apply to nearly every facet of daily life.

If you’re wondering whether it’s worth picking up a course in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry, we have five reasons to learn creative writing. But first, let’s talk about what actually happens in a creative writing course.

The Basics of a Writing Workshop

Whether you’re enrolled in a poetry, fiction, or nonfiction writing class, you can expect the following writing process – at least in a quality writing course like the ones at Writers.com.

Weekly prompts and writing exercises to sharpen the precision and necessity of each word you use.
Constructive critiques from a community of writers who are each growing their writing skills alongside you.
A creative space to explore new ideas, experiment with language, and arrange words in new and exciting ways.
Focused writing instruction from a master of the craft.

The benefits of creative writing come from engaging with the course material, the writing prompts, and the other class members. These elements help you become a better writer, both in creative realms and in everyday life. How? No matter what form of writing, a creative writing class pushes you to connect ideas and create effective narratives using the best words – and that skill translates into real world success.

The Benefits of Creative Writing

1. why learn creative writing: improved self-expression.

Improving your writing skills leads to stronger communication. When you practice finding the right word in a story or poem, you engage the same parts of your brain that are active in everyday writing and speaking. A creative writing course subconsciously turns you into a more effective communicator.

The importance of precise language and self-advocacy translates well into both interpersonal relationships and working environments. Take it from this expert on how writing and self-advocacy results in career and leadership success.

2. Why Learn Creative Writing: Job Success

This brings us to our next point: great writing leads to job success. Of course, your boss probably isn’t expecting you to write emails in the form of a short story or a sonnet – though if they are expecting this, you have a pretty cool boss.

In reality, almost every job requires some sort of written work, whether that’s simple written communication or something more elaborate, like publishing data or marketing materials. In a creative writing class, you practice the style and grammar rules necessary for effective writing, both within the realms of literature and in career-related writing. Sharpening your writing and creativity skills might just land you your next promotion.

3. Why Learn Creative Writing: Improved Thinking Skills

Strong writing leads to strong thinking. No matter what type of writing you pursue, learning how to write is another form of learning how to think.

That might seem like a bold claim, so think about it this way. Without language, our thoughts wouldn’t have form. We might not need language to think “I’m hungry” or “I like cats,” but when it comes to more abstract concepts, language is key. How would you think about things like justice, revenge, or equality without the words to express them?

When you hone in on your ability to find choice, specific words, and when you work on the skills of effective storytelling and rhetoric , you improve your ability to think in general. Good writing yields great thinking!

4. Why Learn Creative Writing: Empathy

Reading and writing both rely on empathy, especially when it comes to being an effective workshop participant. When we read and write stories, we situate ourselves in the shoes of other people; when we read and write poetry, we let language navigate us through emotion.

The importance of creative writing relies on empathy. We practice empathy whenever we listen to another person’s life story, when someone tells us about their day, and when we sit down with a client or work partner. When we write, we practice the ability to listen as well as to speak, making us more effective communicators and more compassionate human beings.

5. Why Learn Creative Writing: It’s Fun!

In case you’re not convinced that a writing course is right for you, let’s clarify one more fact: creative writing is fun. Whether you’re in a fiction writing course, starting a memoir, crafting a poem, or writing for the silver screen, you’re creating new worlds and characters. In the sandbox of literature, you’re in control, and when you invest yourself into the craft of writing, something beautiful emerges.

The Importance of Creative Writing

Simply put, creative writing helps us preserve our humanity. What better medium to explore the human experience?

To learn creative writing, like any art form, requires compassion, contemplation, and curiosity. Writers preserve the world as they observe it in stories and poetry, and they imagine a better world by creating it in their works.

Through the decades, literature has explored society’s profound changes. Literary eons like the Naturalist movement and the Beat poets responded to the increase in Western Industrialization. Confessional poets like Virginia Woolf helped transform poetry into a medium for emotional exploration and excavation. And, genre movements like the cyberpunk writers of science fiction helped popularize the idea of an “information economy.”

Thus, the importance of creative writing lies in its ability to describe the world through an honest and unfiltered lens. Anyone who engages in creative writing, no matter the genre or style, helps us explore the human experience, share new ideas, and advocate for a better society. Whether you write your stories for yourself or share them with a wide audience, creative writing makes the world a better place.

Jobs for Creative Writers

Because creative writing isn’t a STEM discipline, many people don’t think that learning it will help their job prospects. Why learn creative writing if it doesn’t make any money?

In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. Creative writing skills are much sought after on resumes, since both creativity and the ability to write are soft skills in decline. Additionally, if you’re considering a career change—or ready to start one!—these are some popular jobs for creative writers.

Average Starting Salary: $51,000
Demand: High
Skills needed: creativity, grammar, timeliness

Copywriters help companies put their branding into words. A copywriter might write emails, blogs, website content, or ad copy that encompasses the company’s voice and purpose. Copywriting requires you to write in a mix of styles and forms, flexing your writing muscles in new and exciting ways.

Grant Writer

Average Starting Salary: $50,000
Skills needed: storytelling, research, argumentation

Nonprofits and research facilities rely on local and national grants to fund their projects. Grant writers help secure that funding, writing engaging grants that tell the organization’s story in an engaging, tailored, and convincing way. Creative writers will enjoy the opportunity to tell a meaningful story and create positive community change through this career.

Communications/Public Relations Specialist

Skills needed: creativity, communications, social media

A communications specialist helps drive a company’s image through various social channels. They may help create a positive narrative for their company through blogs, journalist outreach, social media, and other public-facing avenues. Much like copywriting, a PR specialist helps weave an effective story for a company.

Average Starting Salary: $55,000
Demand: Medium/High
Skills needed: creativity, storytelling, organization, self-reliance

The dream job for many writers is to write and sell books. Being a novelist is an admirable career choice—and also requires the most work. Not only do you have to write your stories, but you also have to market yourself in the literary industry and maintain a social presence so that publishers and readers actually read your work. It’s a tough business, but also incredibly rewarding!

Reasons to Learn Creative Writing: Finding a Writing Community

Finally, creative writing communities make the writing struggle worth it. The relationships you foster with other creative writers can last a lifetime, as no other group of people has the same appreciation for the written word. Creative writing communities create transformative experiences and encourage growth in your writing; if there’s one reason to study creative writing craft, it’s the friendships you make in the process.

You don’t need a class to start writing, but it’s never a waste of time to learn the tools of the trade. Creative writing requires the skills that can help you in everyday life, and a creative writing course can help.

At Writers.com, we believe that creative writing can transform both individual lives and the world at large. See the importance of creative writing for yourself: check out what makes our creative writing courses different , then take a look at our upcoming course calendar today.

Sean Glatch

Would like to apply for a course to write a novel.

The Real Person!

I’d be happy to help! Please email [email protected] with any questions, and we’ll find the right course for your writing.

[…] Sean. “Why Learn Creative Writing.” writers.com. June 7, 2020. https://writers.com/why-learn-creative-writing . Accessed November 7, […]

[…] And last of all it’s fun! I hope to live my life doing the things I love, with like-minded creative people who I love. I have many exciting things upcoming as I continue with the process of completing my first novel, Les Année Folles, such as publishing to my first magazine, journal, and working on the millions of short story ideas I have stored in my head. Stay tuned! References: Glatch, S. (2020, June 7). WHY LEARN CREATIVE WRITING? Retrieved from Writers.com: https://writers.com/why-learn-creative-writing […]

8 Writing Lessons That Can Be Applied to Everyday Life

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Written by Joanna Kimmerly-Smith

Published authors have offered loads of advice to beginning writers—everything from going after inspiration "with a club" (Jack London) to simply eating chocolate biscuits ( Neela Mann and Lliana Bird ).

But what's great about growing as a writer is that the lessons you learn from writing can also be applied to your general life. Insights into the writer's craft can help us interpret and live in the real world.

By examining writing lessons from well-known authors, we can extrapolate advice about the importance of creativity, motivation, relationships, and personal and intellectual growth.

1. Learn through reading.

"If you don't have time to read, you don't have the time—or the tools—to write. Simple as that." — Stephen King

Many authors have agreed that, to become a great writer, you must read. Chris Bradford argues that reading is "vital to fill that well of creativity within you. Otherwise you'll simply run out of words and ideas."

There are, of course, practical reasons for this advice; following it can expand your vocabulary, spark your imagination, or teach you the mechanics of fiction writing. However, learning through reading is also relevant to daily life.

Although you can read for entertainment, you can also read to actively better yourself—to learn about new topics, exercise your imagination, or empathize with other people's experiences. Reading about the world acquaints you with knowledge and perspectives you might not have encountered otherwise. Whether or not you intend to write your own story, reading is an important tool for educating yourself and understanding more about the world.

2. Express yourself.

"Start telling the stories that only you can tell, because there'll always be better writers than you and there'll always be smarter writers than you. There will always be people who are much better at doing this or doing that—but you are the only you." ― Neil Gaiman

Another writing lesson that we can apply to daily life is the importance of expressing individuality. We each have our own unique story and set of perspectives. Yet we tend to fear being ourselves, so we try to copy the decisions, attitudes, or actions of others.

This is particularly true for writers who try to imitate the style of successful authors, only to discover that their writing is generic and soulless.

As Anne Rice argues, "The world is crying for new writing. It is crying for fresh and original voices and new characters and new stories. If you won't write the classics of tomorrow, well, we will not have any." The advice to "write your own story" can be taken literally, but it can also be taken as a metaphor for living your own life.

3. Allow yourself to make mistakes.

"Teach yourself by your own mistakes; people learn only by error." ― William Faulkner

If you're a perfectionist, this writing lesson probably sets your teeth on edge. But don't fool yourself; if you don't allow yourself to make mistakes, you'll never learn from them. This will rob you of personal growth.

Writers know what it's like to seek perfection, but they also know the importance of letting themselves fail occasionally. Since it's pretty much impossible to create something new without making mistakes, a little tolerance for error is not only permissible but also necessary. Author Joshua Wolf Shenk once said, "The old writer's rule applies: Have the courage to write badly." Why not have the courage to live imperfectly.

4. Be honest.

"…Write your story as it needs to be written. Write it honestly, and tell it as best you can." — Neil Gaiman

Whether in writing or in daily interactions, honesty is compelling. Beloved children's book author Madeleine L'Engle advises new authors to "keep an honest, unpublishable journal that nobody reads, nobody but you. [J]ust put down what you think about life, what you think about things, what you think is fair, and what you think is unfair."

Reflecting honestly about yourself and others helps authors to engage with ideas more deeply, which allows them to write compelling words that ring true.

Being honest is a challenge that everyone faces, but you can learn how to live more openly by writing in the same way.

5. Be open to—yet critical of—criticism.

"Advice to young writers? Always the same advice: learn to trust our own judgment, learn inner independence, learn to trust that time will sort the good from the bad―including your own bad." ― Doris Lessing

Criticism, like honesty, is often a bitter pill to swallow. For authors, negative feedback is a necessary evil. Roddy Doyle advises authors to be flexible enough to "change [their] mind[s]. Good ideas are often murdered by better ones." The willingness to receive criticism and let go of your original preconceptions can be both painful and rewarding.

The source from which you receive criticism is another issue. While Anne Rice asserts that "anybody can be a critic, [but] writers are priceless," Rose Tremain advises authors to "listen to the criticisms and preferences of [their] trusted 'first readers.'" By extension, we shouldn't listen to just anyone with a negative opinion, but we should heed the constructive criticism of trusted friends, family, and/or professionals.

Just as we need to make mistakes so we can learn from them, so too do we require constructive criticism to strengthen both our writing and our character.

6. Share your insights and skills with others to promote positive change.

"Becoming a writer is about becoming conscious. When you're conscious and writing from a place of insight and simplicity and real caring about the truth, you have the ability to throw the lights on for your reader[, decreasing] the terrible sense of isolation that we have all had too much of." ― Anne Lamott

This advice, in part, is an extension of the first writing lesson in this article: read and write to learn about others. We wouldn't have as much insight about others—their social, psychological, environmental, and economic conditions—if it were not for the courage of authors to represent these issues in published writing.

Andrew Solomon comments on the "moral purpose" of writing: "Remember that writing things down makes them real; that it is nearly impossible to hate anyone whose story you know." Sharing your own or another's point of view can help both you and your readers to identify with others.

If you don't consider yourself a talented writer, you might wonder how this writing lesson is relevant to daily life. Well, empathetic communication doesn't have to occur through words; you can open avenues of communication through social interactions, acts of kindness, or simply listening, which can promote positive change. It's important not only to listen to the unheard stories of others in society, but also to give them a voice.

7. Keep going, even when things get tough.

"Make yourself write regularly. It's like anything: The more you practise, the better you'll get." — Jennifer Gray

"I know it sounds obvious, but one of the best pieces of advice for a new author (or anyone pursuing anything new) is to try, try, and try again. Effort doesn't necessarily equate to innate skill, but you can't develop your skills without putting in a bit of grunt work. Madeleine L'Engle encourages authors to "write a little bit every day. Even if it's for only half an hour—write, write, write."

You can take this writing lesson to heart in any area of life. When you become discouraged with your progress in a new fitness routine, be persistent. When your fifteenth attempt at organic quinoa and ancient grain salad goes sour, tweak the recipe again. When you want to curl up into a ball and refuse any work that bears the slightest risk of failure, take a deep breath, and try it!

Sarah Waters describes how sticking with things can help authors—and the rest of us—overcome the overwhelming fear of failure: "Don't panic. Midway through writing a novel, I have regularly experienced moments of bowel-curdling terror… Working doggedly on through crises like these, however, has always got me there in the end." In short, the progress you'll make by doing what you can do will eventually help you do what you can't.

8. Love what you do. Be intrinsically motivated.

Write the book that you're desperate to read. Fall in love with your characters. Finish the day's writing at a point where you want to know what happens next. And keep writing every day." — Keren David

Benet Brandreth upholds that "You have to write because you love writing, not because of something external the writing might bring you. Most of what you write only you will ever see, and that needs to be enough or you will never do the work that's needed."

Isn't it true that most of the work we do goes unnoticed—that it takes years of hard work to become proficient at something? If you're not willing to go through the hard times, if you're not willing to fail, if you're not willing to work unless you receive external affirmation, you will likely miss the joys of self-sufficiency, growth, and fulfilling your potential.

Writers might seem like a special group of people with word-related superpowers, but underneath, we're just human. Whether you're a writer who practices your craft daily or struggles to put pen to paper, the preparation, perseverance, and fulfilment of the writing process can inform your character as well as your writing—and, occasionally, your actions and words will even hold the power to transform the lives of others.

Image source: Ben White/ UnSplash.com

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Joanna's passion for English literature (proven by her M.A. thesis on Jane Austen) is matched by her passion to help others with their writing (shown by her role as an in-house editor with Scribendi). She enjoys lively discussions about plot, character, and nerdy TV shows with her husband, and she loves singing almost as much as she loves reading. Isn't music another language after all?

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