Creative Writing

2011-03-12T06:03:00.000-08:00

Islamic nursery rhyme

I'm a little girl, bold and smart

Here is my sold and here is my heart

I will pray and duaa' to Allah

to forgive that I did wrong

2011-03-12T05:53:00.000-08:00

Haiku-Tanka

Cloud floating in sky

Blown by the softly fresh wind

Though knowledge garden

In the faint light before noon

Greeting sleepy girl in class

2011-03-12T05:46:00.000-08:00

Wallet

The empty black wallet in my bedroom is likely sad without friends. It is alone since few weeks ago. No one wants to be a friend. Last time, the empty wallet was happy when it has more brothers inside; green, red, violet, and gray papers. Mostly, it when to anywhere with the owner which so proud and smile like babies. Now, sadly wallet dream to be last time and wait till occur again. Lastly, I have got bonus of new years from my mom, I have any color of paper and I keep it in my black wallet. So, my lovely wallet feels happy again.

2011-03-12T05:32:00.000-08:00

Taman Tamadun Islam

On the day of the trip from Taman Tamadun Islam, it was a cold morning and we had been at Islamic garden<TTI> since 8.00 to capture the moment.

Taman Tamadun Islam is a showcase of Islamic Civilization in the form of architecture wonder. There are around 21 mosques and monument of historic Islamic monuments such as Taj-mahal, Madina mosque, Baitul Muqqadis, Masjid Al-haram and so on. The mosque monument that most interesting is a big mosque in Mecca, its name is Masjid Al-haram. The feeling that comes in my mine is I’m close with the Islamic history and the prophet Mohammad peace be upon him. In the afternoon we moved to have lunch at restaurant nearly the river. We have the delicious meals with “Nasi Ayam” and we felt a fresh atmosphere from a soft breeze through the river. After we finished the lunch, we walked straight to the Crystal mosque. It is very beautiful and it’s made from steel and glass to produce the crystal. It is very surprise that I never saw the image like this.

So, now it is time to take a photo and it still keep in my memory. Inshaallah, I would come back again.

2011-03-12T04:08:00.000-08:00

20 Creative Writing Careers

If creative writing is your passion, then you’d probably enjoy a career in which you could spend all day (or at least most of the day) pursuing that passion. But creative writing is an artistic pursuit, and we all know that a career in the arts isn’t easy to come by. It takes hard work, drive, dedication, a whole lot of spirit, and often, a willingness to take big financial risks — as in not having much money while you’re waiting for your big break.

When we think of people who make a living through writing, novelists and journalists come to mind immediately. But what other jobs are out there for folks who want to make creative writing the work that puts food on the table?

The Creative Writing Career List

Here’s a list of 20 creative writing jobs that you can consider for your career path. I’m not making any promises. You have to go out and find them yourself, but these are jobs that exist. You just have to look for them and then land them.

Greeting Card Author
Comic Book Writer
Novelist
Creativity Coach
Writing Coach
Advertising (Creative)
Screenwriter
Songwriter (Lyricist)
Freelance Short Fiction Writer
Creative Writing Instructor (give your own workshops)
Legacy Writer (write people’s bios and family histories)
Ghostwriter
Travel Writer (if you travel)
Article Writer (write, submit, repeat)
Columnist
Video Game Writer (includes storytelling/fiction!)
Personal Poet (write personalized poems for weddings, funerals, childbirths, etc.)
Playwright
Blogger (don’t tell me you don’t have a blog yet!)
Creative Writing Consultant

Now, I’m not saying you’re going to make a whole lot to live on with some of these creative writing jobs but if you do what you love, the money (i.e. the success) just might follow. You’ll never know unless you try, right?

2011-03-12T01:53:00.000-08:00

Where to Find Inspiration for Creative Writing (Art Begets Art)

Do you ever sit down to write only to discover hours later that you’ve done nothing but stare off into space with a dumb look on your face, occasionally breaking from your stupor to notice that you have not written a single word?

Conversely, have you ever noticed that after watching an intoxicating film or listening to a mesmerizing piece of music, you feel that creative impulse start to throb, luring you to your keyboard or notebook?

Don’t Tell Me It’s Writer’s Block

Writer’s block is nothing more than a myth. In some cases, it’s an excuse .

Creative writing is not supposed to be easy. If it were easy, it wouldn’t be so rewarding. Creative writing requires skill, focus, and motivation. When we’re tired, emotional, hungry, or distracted, we’re not suffering from writer’s block. We’re just stressed out like everybody else.

A Creative Writing Cure

If you want to keep your creativity flowing, start by taking care of yourself. Make sure you eat right, get plenty of rest and exercise, and keep your emotions in check by finding ways to be happy.

You have to take special care of your creativity too. Feed your imagination and keep a journal so you can store inspiration for later use. Try some creative writing exercises to get yourself going in new directions. And absorb art.

When you take some time to experience a little art or entertainment, you’ll find that your creative juices really start to flow. Not only will you enjoy yourself, you’ll also massage your creative muscles and come away with fresh inspiration for your creative writing.

Art Begets Art

Haven’t you heard? Creativity is contagious. The more you expose yourself to it, the more creative you’ll become. Here are five tips to keep the breeding grounds for creative writing fertile:

Watch a movie, preferably a really good one. It doesn’t matter what genre or whether it’s an award-winning film. The key is to pick a movie that will speak to you, the kind that leaves you feeling reawakened.
Read a book or even just a chapter. This is sure to get you back in touch with your muse, but make sure that whatever you read when you’re looking for inspiration is something that fully engages you.
Peruse art and photography. You can go to a museum or check out the many art sites on the web. Sometimes when I need a break from writing, I type something into Google, click on the images button, and spend a few minutes enjoying the beauty of art and imagery. It’s good refreshment for the mind.
Listen to music. One of the best things about listening to music is that you can do it while you’re also doing other things — like exercising, driving, or cleaning. Then again, you can just lie back, relax, and let yourself get swept away by the sounds. Or, you can…
Dance. Not only will this get your blood pumping, it will increase your energy level. You’ll be listening to music all the while, so this one’s a double hitter with the added benefit of exercise! Plus, you can listen to music (and maybe even dance) while working on your creative writing projects!

So next time you find yourself floating around inside your own headspace when you should be forging your masterpiece, take a break to take care of your body and mind, and then go take in a movie or an album or some incredible artwork, and let someone else’s art beget your own. That’s how you get creative writing to come naturally and effortlessly!

2011-03-12T01:19:00.000-08:00

How to Master the Creative Writing Process

Is Method Madness?

One day, many years ago, I was working in an office. The executives were having a meeting to discuss new procedures. It was a hot day and the conference room was small and crowded, so the door was open. As I passed by on my way to the filing room, I overheard my boss saying “Melissa can handle that. She’s very methodical.”

Methodical. I tried it on and decided yes, it fit. “I am methodical,” I declared, and went about my business.

And it was true, too. I was organized to a fault, always looking for systems and processes that would streamline the workflow and make business more efficient and therefore more effective. Hell, the clothes in my closet were organized by season, length, and color. I didn’t have to flip through my hangers to find an article of clothing. Everything was neatly filed in its place.

Selling the Method

Writing gurus and mentors often want us to believe that there is only one true writing process. It usually goes something like this:

Brainstorm (and/or mind map)
Outline and research
Rough draft
Revise (repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat)
Edit, proof, and polish

This is a good system and it works. But does it work for everyone?

Assessing the Creative Writing Process

I’ve been thinking a lot about the creative writing process. Lately, I’ve found myself working on all types of projects — web pages, blog posts, poems, essays, and fiction. Plus, I’m trying to decide if I’ll participate in NaNoWriMo this year (I won in 2008!) and write 50,000 words of fiction in 30 days.

How do I tackle all these different projects without some kind of plan or system?

I’ve thought about the steps I take with my own writing and realized that the writing process I use varies from project to project and depends on the level of difficulty, the length and scope of the project, and even my state of mind. If I’m feeling super creative, a blog post or an article will come flying out of my head. If I’m tired, hungry, or unmotivated, or if the project is complicated, then it’s a struggle and I have to work a little harder. Brainstorming and outlining can help. A lot.

It occurred to me that I don’t have one creative writing process. I have several. And I always use the one that’s best suited for a particular project.

You Might Not Hear My Drummer

One of my favorite sayings has to do with marching to the beat of your own drum. I like that saying because that’s how I walk — to my own rhythm. If I didn’t, then I probably would have never started my own business or believed that I could make it as a writer. In fact, I probably wouldn’t be a writer at all.

Some writers can sit down and pound out an article, a short story, or even a novel without ever planning or outlining. Others have to follow a strict writing process or they get lost and confused, tangled up in their own words.

For example, when I am involved in a copywriting or nonfiction project, I find that brainstorming and outlining are essential. I need to organize my thoughts and make sure that I cover the subject matter thoroughly. But with creative writing projects, such as fiction and poetry (and even the novel I wrote for NaNoWriMo last year), I just start typing and let the ideas flow. Longer projects may include note taking, but these types of project have a free and creative flow, so I make sure the process I use is free and creative too.

Listen to Your Own Rhythm

We all start with interesting creative writing ideas and hope to finish with a completely riveting piece of writing.

Like I said, that day when I overheard my boss saying that I’m methodical was many years ago. Since then, I’ve loosened up my methods. Oh, I can still whip up a streamlined procedure and implement it. I have to do that for my own business all the time, whether it involves maintaining my client contact list or managing my quotes and invoices – having a system for that stuff is extremely helpful.

But my closet no longer looks like it’s maintained by Martha Stewart. Sure, it’s still pretty organized, but not by color and season. It helps to know when a system works and when it’s all hype. The first few times I tried to write a novel, I did so using the exact same writing process that I used for writing essays in college, and it simply did not work. It wasn’t until I totally changed the process that I was able to succeed and complete my creative writing project.

Writing processes are good. The reason our predecessors developed these processes and shared them, along with a host of other writing tips, was to help us be more productive and produce better writing. Techniques and strategies can be helpful but it’s our responsibility to know what works for us as individuals and as creative (and sometimes crazy) writers and to know what will have us spinning our wheels all the livelong day.

I Showed You Mine

Now you show me yours...

What’s your creative writing process? Do you have one? Do you ever get stuck in the writing process? How do you get out?

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in August, 2008. It has been updated with new ideas and information, and therefore it is being republished for your reading pleasure.

7 Creative Writing Tips to Increase Productivity

2011-03-12T00:44:00.000-08:00

Productivity. It’s all been said and done. In fact, you could spend more time learning how to be productive than actually being productive.

For us creative types, productivity can be a fleeting thing. We experience highs (a whole month packed with inspiration) and lows (three more months fraught with the ever-annoying writer’s block).

It can be frustrating. But creative writing doesn’t have to be a fair-weather hobby. Many successful authors have harnessed creativity, reigned it in, and turned it into a full-time profession. So, we know it can be done.

That doesn’t mean it’s easy. Succeeding in the arts takes a tremendous amount of drive, ambition, and dedication. It’s not the kind of job you have to show up for every day or risk being fired. Nobody cares if you get your work done except you. And maybe your characters, if you’re a fiction writer.

Creative Writing Tips for More Output

Here are seven creative writing tips to help you be more creative more often. Try them all and see which ones work for you.

1. Show up for work Set a time every day, show up, and get your creative writing work done. It could be an hour a day (two hours on weekends!) or fifteen minutes. It can be first thing in the morning or right after dinner. The point is, make a schedule and stick with it. This will not only lead to more output, it will also lead to better writing.

2. Give yourself a quota Can you produce twenty pages a week? Ten? Five? Some of us work better when we count words rather than minutes. If that sounds like you, then forget about time allotments. Show up for work every day, but focus on your output rather than on your time card.

3. Reward yourself If you manage to show up every day or fulfill your quota, then by all means, give yourself a pat on the back. Whether it’s a trip to the masseuse or a weekend movie, reward your own positive behavior with special treats that keep you motivated week after week. Bonus reward tip: buy a book, and read it!

4. Punish yourself I’m not a big fan of negative reinforcement. It might curb bad behavior, but it does so for all the wrong reasons. Keep punishments light. Didn’t meet your goals? I don’t think you should cancel your vacation, but maybe you can skip dessert. Or, choose a punishment that promotes your goals. Read a textbook about creative writing or peruse a few articles on good grammar.

5. Hold yourself accountable If you’re having a hard time meeting your creative writing goals, then set up an accountability system. Take a creative writing class or workshop, join a writing group, hire a writing coach, or partner up with a fellow writer and establish weekly check-ins. For some reason, when someone else is holding us accountable, we perform better.

6. Use productivity tools There are unlimited tools at your disposal to help you stay productive and all of these can be used with your creative writing project. Put deadlines on your calendar. Hang a whiteboard and track your progress. Keep a journal of your writing sessions. Recording your goals and accomplishments can be extremely motivating.

7. Stay passionate Do things that keep your creative writing passions burning. Listen to music that inspires you to write. Watch movies and read books with stories that motivate you to write your own story. Dance, sing, and make sure you’ve always got your notebook or journal with you because you never know when your next great (or unusual) writing ideas will strike.

2010-12-24T21:28:00.000-08:00

2010-12-24T03:31:00.000-08:00

2010-12-24T00:19:00.001-08:00

2010-12-12T18:51:00.001-08:00

CreaTive WriTing

2010-12-12T18:40:00.000-08:00

successfully