Writing is one of those things that seems like it should come easily, but doesn’t. While the global literacy rate is now over 86%, that doesn’t mean that everyone has it in them to be a wordsmith. And, what’s more, there’s a big difference between, say, technical writing and styles with flair, personality, and gusto. Today, we’ll go deeper into the world of the creative writer, and learn a bit more about how to become one, or spot one to help you out with your writing needs. After all, you may not be able to outsource ideas, but anything else’s definitely on the menu.

We refer to creative writing as the style that is outside the confines of the technical, journalistic, academic, or professional realms. Thus, this type of writing would be more within the world of literature, drawing on narrative and literary tropes. Also, it can include works of fiction and non-fiction and is notoriously hard to pin down. Why? Because its tenuous boundaries make it a prime target for intersecting with other styles.

For example, a feature story in journalism can contain can use a narrative structure. So, it would be fair to say that several disciplines can intersect make use of creative mechanisms.

Here’s what we’ll learn:

  • What is a creative writer?
  • How can you develop your own style?
  • What do you need if you want to get into the writing trade?
  • Where, oh where, do you find great writers if you’re in dire need of assistance?
  • How can you structure bullet points so that they look like neat, little pyramids, such as here? (You can’t.)

For everything else but the fifth bullet point, read on!

What is a Creative Writer?

There are many schools of thought about being a creative writer. For the scope of this article, I’ll stick to common wisdom:

Simply put, creative writing is an original artistic work that aims to produce fresh ideas through imagination. 

While this was once part of the world of “high literature”, it would be no exaggeration to say that most of the pop culture we consume today comes from a form of creative writing. That’s right, the stories, TV shows, and movies we love so much were some writer’s flight of fancy at some point; while the technical writing world doesn’t have much use for “pie in the sky” ideas, a creative writer can really let their freak flag fly.

creative writer

What do They Do?

That being said, let’s take a look at some of the varieties of this type of writing:

As you can see, there are innumerable worlds and possible ideas to play with. It’s a type of artistic expression that is not so hamstrung by commercial expectations. Sure, you can hope to be on the best-seller list and dethrone Stephen King. But, in the end, writing is the friends we made along the way its own reward.

And heck, you can go as crazy or as safe as you want. You can be a trend-chaser, a trend-setter, or an absolute madwoman with no method to her madness. Being a creative writer allows you to be a true individual, a state of mind where imagination reigns supreme. It’s only after you’ve unlocked your imagination that you can either use your writing as a commercial venture or do it strictly for your own gratification. If you’re lucky, you’ll even get to do both!

To Be a Creative Writer, Develop Your Style

Writing, incredibly, is much like martial arts. Yeah, don’t look at me funny, this isn’t about to turn into some badly dubbed extravaganza with quick zooms and crazy stunts.

What I mean is that being a creative writer requires study. It takes being attentive, an avid reader, and really, really practice your craft, to polish it like obsidian. There’s nothing wrong with emulating the greats or creating your own riffs on established works. After all, style isn’t something that’s built in a day, and it can’t be done without a solid foundation. Ah, there’s where that Miyagi-Do wisdom starts to shine through, right?

But don’t worry, I’m not going to tell you to practice your crane kick or anything. My prescriptions are much more simple and actually quite pleasurable!

  • Read, Read, and then Read Some More

A great writer is a voracious consumer of text. Or, in other words, an avid reader with an endless hunger for more. More styles, more words, more ideas, more loquacious turns of phrase. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and no great writer worth 0.0000002 Dogecoin ever got off the ground by just picking up a pen and being Charles Bukowski. Not without ever reading from many dusty old tomes and falling in love with the words within, they didn’t.

So, if you want to write, you need to read. Consider it your training montage before the main event. And, much like sports movies with endless sequels, the journey is never really over. Meaning, you’ll always be jolting your creativity to life by reading other people’s work. The downside is that you’ll definitely be spending half of your life cursing under your breath and thinking “how can they write like that?” while you nurse your third cup of coffee.

The upside is that you’ll get to be big on coffee. Trust me.

 

  • Don’t Ever Stop Writing

This is a mostly bipartite process. Meaning, you’ll read, yes, but you also need to write with a passion. Don’t just discard your ideas, or toss them in the unfinished pile; flesh them out, give them a new lease on life, attempt to take things where you would want them to be. Being a creative writer is about taking control of the process, it’s a place where you can be unfettered and work to your heart’s delight.

But, there’s always going to be a big gap between your actual abilities and your true potential. And this is a place where the martial arts analogy comes into play handily. You’re never going to really know what you’re capable of until you get plenty of pages under your belt. And, even more so, how are you going to know what you’re actually good at, the genres where you excel? And hey, you don’t have to be a Swiss Army Knife type of writer; you can be great at writing characters, but plot not so much, or maybe you excel at both, or none.

The point is to shorten the gap between your maximum and your current capabilities. And the only way to do that is by writing your caboose off.

  • Kick Self-Doubt

Now, this is not me telling you that you should hi-five yourself and only write first drafts. No, no, this is not about being an overnight genius. But I know comparisons are necessary, especially when you’re reading a lot. The thing is, excessive comparison can be harmful.

And it’s Steven Furtick, a songwriter, who shared this wisdom on Twitter, of all places:

So, you’ll need to develop confidence to become a creative writer. Confidence that you’ve got something that’s worth saying and putting out into the world. But remember, no one is great on their first try. That’s simply not how we build talent.

Remember that when you’re struggling with recrimination and negative thoughts. They are not the way, and they only hinder your progress.

creative writer

How Does a Creative Writer Get in the Game?

Well, if you’re already well along the way, I’d just recommend joining us at Bunny Studio. We take writers of all kinds, and we’re always looking for a great, creative writer to either help our clients or work on fun new projects. Whatever floats your boat and suits your talents.

Become a Bunny Studio writer here! 

But, most of you reading this article will have to work your way from the bottom. If you’re interested in writing for yourself (and that’s the basis for any passionate writer), you probably won’t even need to read this part.

But, if you’re looking to get better and hopefully gain some clients who can benefit from your creativity, here’s what you’ll need:

  • To polish your abilities until people are willing to pay for them.
  • Then, you’ll have to accrue experience and work with different types of clients. This will help you stretch your writing muscles and increase your skills.
  • Only after you’ve gained enough reviews and experience will you be able to start working with the big boys and gals. Meaning: freelancing platforms, publishing houses, big clients who are looking for actual creatives for their campaigns, or specialized design and writing studios.

It may look like it’s a lot to get from point A to point B, yeah. But, if you’ve been writing as an amateur for years and keep your nose to the grindstone, you may find that it could take you far less time than you think.

One thing’s for sure: there’s always plenty of demand for a creative writer, and not nearly enough offer. Whatever industry you decide to ply your trade on, they’ll need you like water in the sweltering Sahara desert.

Where Do You Find Great Writers for Hire?

Easy. That may be the easiest part to do in this whole article. At Bunny Studio, we’ve assembled a curated, vetted list of writers who have to pass stringent tests in order to be a part of our roster. And when we say stringent, we mean that only the top 2% ever make it on.

So, if you’re looking for the perfect creative writer with their own style and flair, plus the best QA in the business, quick turnaround times, and a money-back guarantee, you definitely want to click on the button below.