Popular Types of Creative Writing

What You Should Read and Write

What are the popular types of creative writing that you can write? Examples of creative writing are everywhere—in newspapers, magazine, or on the Web. Popular types of creative writing include poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. Here is a brief explanation of each:

Poetry

What is it? There are many different types of poetry, including traditional, modern, and contemporary poetry. Essentially, a poem is written in verse, based on line and stanzas. The poet uses literary devices, such as simile, metaphor, and imagery to write about a subject, with the intention of evoking an emotional response and communicating deep meaning to the reader.

Popular contemporary poets include Charles Simic, Billy Collins, and Kay Ryan. To find out more, visit www.poetryfoundation.org or www.poets.org .

Fiction

What is fiction? It is a fictional story. The story is about made up a setting, characters, plot, and conflict. A typical story begins with an exposition in which the inciting incident occurs, the setting is described, and the protagonist is introduced. The story includes a conflict that the protagonist must overcome. The story includes a climax or turning point. And the story includes resolution, where by the author ties up loose ends and answers any unanswered questions raised earlier in the story.

 There are several genres, including popular fiction and literary fiction. Genre fiction is a term for fictional works (novels and short stories) written with the intent of fitting into a specific literary genre in order to appeal to readers and fans already familiar with that genre. Examples include romance, mystery, and science fiction.

 Literary fiction is a term used to distinguish serious fiction or works that claim to have literary merit. It focuses more on writing style and character development than narrative and plot development. It is also associated with those criteria used to in defining eligibility for literary awards.

 You can write three types of fiction: a short story, novella, or novel.

The short story can be read in a single-sitting. It is shorter than a novel or novella. Most contemporary short stories are between 1,000 and 20, 000 words.

The novellais longer than a short story and shorter than a novel. According to “Creative Writing” by Culin Bulman, it is between 25,000 and 40,000 words in length. Examples: Truman Capote’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Joseph Conrad’s “The Heart of Darkness”, Ernest Hemingway’s “The Old Man and the Sea”, George Orwell’s “Animal Farm.”

 Unlike the short story or novella, most novels are 300 to 400 pages or 100,000 to 175,000 words. Some novels are longer. For instance, Don Quixote is 700 pages, and Ulysses is 783 pages.

Creative Nonfiction

Creative nonfiction is the most read type of creative writing. It is writing about real people and real events. It is writing that is based on good research and the tenants of reportage. It is writing that uses the elements of fiction, such as setting, plot, and characterization to tell a true story or write about a real person. It is writing that uses literary devices such as simile, metaphor, and imagery.

Popular types of creative nonfiction include the personal essay, memoir, essay, article, and biography.

Where to Read Creative Writing

Here is where you can read well-written articles that fall under the different genres of creative writing:

• The New Yorker magazine (www.newyorker.com )
• The Atlantic (www.theatlantic.com )
• Harper’s Magazine( www.harpers.org ) 
• Walrus (www.walrusmagazine.com )
• The Smithsonian (www.smithsonian.com)
• Reader’s Digest (www.readersdigest.com )
• Saturday Evening Post (www.saturdayeveningpost.com )
• The Ryerson Review of Journalism (www.rrj.ca )
• Mother Jones (www.motherjones.com )
• Adbusters (www.adbusters.org  )
• The Skeptic (www.seskeptic.com )

Next, I will define creative nonfiction, fiction, and short fiction in greater detail.

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