As a writer, I find it’s incredibly easy to get stuck in a rut wherein I write what I know and nothing else. While it’s good to have a specialized skill, it’s also good to branch out. After all, the best way to expand your creativity is to keep trying new things.
Studying creative writing in an academic environment has helped me in so many ways, however, it has limited me too. After all, I can’t write a novel or a screenplay in a semester and expect my professor to grade it (along with all of my classmates’) within a few weeks. That’s not fair to me or to my professor, and it certainly wouldn’t be a reflection of my ability as a writer.
As a result of my academic experience, I’ve found that I’ve grown very comfortable writing short stories, as they are the formats most often assigned. Each time I write one I receive valuable feedback which helps me write my next one better. As much as I do love writing them, I know that I cannot strictly write short stories for the rest of my career.
Recently I’ve joined a creative writing group that meets weekly over video chat to share pieces of varying themes. I was pleasantly surprised by the prompts provided each week. They were topics and formats I would never have considered trying on my own, but I enjoyed exploring them thoroughly.
Some examples are: a myth/legend, an imitation, a ten-word story, and a rant.
For some of my pieces, I was quite surprised at how proud I was of them, but others I know will never see the light of day again. Regardless of how they turned out, I still benefited from making them. As I’m sure you’ve heard before, the mind is a muscle that needs to be exercised. This is an absolute truth. The more I explore new avenues of writing, the stronger my creative mind becomes, and my writing follows suit. Solidifying my capabilities like this helps prepare me for the bigger projects I plan to take on in the future.
Another benefit to expanding my creative endeavors is that I became more aware of my personal strengths and weaknesses. Since realism is my preferred genre, I was nervous to try writing a myth.
After writing and sharing, I found I was more imaginative than I thought I was capable of. But I simultaneously learned that I struggle with using too much exposition in an effort to make a theoretical world more logical.
I would never have known either of those aspects of my craft had I not joined that writing group. So, I encourage you to join one of your own. And if that’s not an accessible option for you, then look up some different prompts on the internet and try them by yourself. You’ll be surprised how quickly you’ve dug yourself out of that rut.