CREATIVE WRITING
(IMAGINATIVE
COMPOSITION)
Imaginative
compositions are creative accounts of an experience or event. They can be based
on real experience or they can be purely imaginative. They should be vivid,
interesting and should capture the interest of the reader. These compositions
should be as creative as possible and have a clear plot. (Vikiru et al,2007). It
is done primarily for pleasure that is to be enjoyed, and to educate. Creative
compositions are especially used for writing literary works like poems, plays,
short stories and novels.
1.
WRITING POEMS.
A
good poem should be meaningful although you may need t exaggerate some things
to create stronger images and emotional response.
Before
composing a poem, first decide whether you want to write a traditional or
modern poem. This will largely determine how you should treat other elements
like rhyme, rhythm, meter, structure of stanzas etc.
ü Then divide it into stanzas. The words in a poem are carefully chosen so
as to achieve language economy. Very few words present much information. The
words are also carefully arranged in lines (verses) that they can rhyme, show
alliteration, assonance or rhythm.
ü Poets make use of figurative/imaginative language. To achieve this
effect they make extensive use of figures of speech like imagery, symbolism,
personification, metaphors, similes etc.
ü Another feature used in poetry is inversion.
This involves the change of the normal and usual word order. In normal order
the subject comes first but in inversion the verb comes first. E.g. after all the animals, came the tortoise.
Or I
hate you said I, then kill me said she.
ü Poets have what we call poetic licence. This is the freedom/permission to break/violate certain grammatical
rules to achieve a poetic effect. The normal structure in English sentences is
SVO or SVA but look at the following verse, “Forward they go” instead of “They
go forward” in “Sunrise.
EXAMPLE
Samwitason the artist,
The son of Christ
The real Adventist
The pure revolutionist
I’ve been chosen,
To represent Mara region,
When my sermon you listen,
Your heart is shaken
Exercise
Compose a poem about
any topic of your interest.
2.
WRITING SHORT STORIES
This
is a story usually about imaginative characters and events that is short enough
to be read from the beginning to the end without stopping. It is also a brief
work of fiction that can generally be read in one sitting. It usually focuses
on one or two main characters that face a single problem or conflict. A short
story is like an essay, recounting series of related events. It has a theme(s)
and characters through whom the writer communicates the themes in the story. E.g. The voter by C. Achebe, Ajaiyi and the
Witchdoctor by A. Tutuola, Mabala the Farmer by R. Mabala. Etc The story
should be clear and interesting and the language should make use of figures of
speech to make it more colourful.
To write a good story you need to;
ü Know what you intend to write about
ü Have an outline –plan what you want to write about.
ü Use the correct language and appropriate style.
ü Make events vivid to give a real life picture of the story.
ü Avoid unconvincing events, details and characters.
Exercise
Write a short story
on one of the following
1) Some day all this will change
2) Know how to say no.
3.
WRITING NOVELS
A
novel is a work of fiction that is
longer and more complex than a short story. Or it is a fictional prose usually
consisting of more than fifty thousand words. In novels, setting, plot
characters and theme are fully developed in great details. Like a short story
the novel has four main elements, setting, plot characters and theme. Novels are
written in almost the same way we write narrative compositions. The difference
is that novels are usually long with detailed information and they sometimes
use narration, description, exposition, argumentation, poetry (songs) and
dialogue. A person who writes novels is called a novelist E.g. Passed like a shadow by B. Mapalala. The
Interview, by P. Ngugi, etc.
4.
WRITING A PLAY/DRAMA
A
play is a creative piece of writing in which the speaker is identified and the
exact words are spoken. To write a play you use a dramatic technique which
includes the following elements;
Ø Dialogue. Plays use the dialogue technique in which the names of the speakers are
written on the left followed by a colon (:) before the actual words spoken are
written. Dialogue means the words that the characters speak in a play. It is a
conversation between characters. It is the dialogue that reveals the
character’s qualities, personality traits, and reactions to other characters.
Ø Soliloquy/monologue. This is a speech made by a character when he/she is alone on stage. Or
it is a speech in which a character alone on stage, expresses her thoughts and
feelings aloud for the benefit of the audience, often in a revealing way.
Ø Aside. This is a direct address of the audience by a character. The other
characters do not hear what is being said.
Ø Stage direction. These are the instructions/notes included in a play/drama which
describe how the work is to be performed or staged. They indicate areas of the
stage in which actors sit, stand, move, speak, exit, enter, and so on,
lighting, music, sound effect, costumes, emotional state, etc.
Ø Acts and scenes. Plays are divided into acts and scenes. An Act is a major unit/part of action in a drama or play. A Scene is a smaller section or a
subdivision of one act. So a scene is a section presenting events that occur in
one place at one time.
These
are typed in italics and enclosed in the parentheses or brackets
Other things to consider when writing a play:
v Costume. The clothes worn by actors in a play or film/movie or worn by somebody
to make them look like somebody or something else. E.g. a student, a housemaid,
a judge, etc.
v Props. Small objects/items used by
actors, during the performance of a play or in a film/movie. E.g. guns, fly
whisks, pots, walking sticks etc
v Audience. Is a group of people sitting in a room, auditorium or in the theatre
listening to and watching a performance.
v Theatre. This is a special building or an outdoor area where plays/movies/films
and other entertainments are performed.
v Theme: the main idea you want to communicate to the audience.
v Plot. Series of events that you are going to include.
v Setting: where and when the events are taking place. If you use a village
setting for instance even the costume you recommend will be one that is suitable
for village life. Then they will be required to change according to the
occasion and time of the day.
|
Mbarga: [clapping
his hands] This is incredible!.. heee yeeaah!
Abessolo:
What is it?
Mbarga:
[disgustedly,
sitting down] Don’t even ask me, Abessolo! Young people who dare to eat a
viper – Belinga and Owono, it was without the permission of the elders of
this village! [Abessolo is about to
exclaim but Mbarga leans forward as to let him know he hasn’t heard the worst
bit yet] A real viper, big fat ... a viper. [He pauses] And all they left for us was three quarters of the
meat.
Abessolo:
[raising his hands to his head in
despair] Hee yeeeaah! Only three quarters of the meat.
Mezoe:
Three quarters!
[three of them begin
cursing the younger generation. Meanwhile Atangana who has discovered the
theft of Juliette’s dowry money, appears on the doorstep of the main house.
He makes frantic gestures at Oyono to try and take Ndi away. Ndi has come for
a refund of his money, which has now been stolen]
Oyono: come along Ndi I
have saved a whole calabash of palm wine for you in my uncle Ondua’s house
down the road. [he leads the way] Real palm wine not at all like the milk I
once drank in your house in Awae! [ they
go away, and Atangana joins the others on the stage]
Atangana: [trying to keep his voice down]
Everything lost! Lost! They have left nothing...nothing!
Abessolo: [echoing Atangana] nothing except three
quarters!
Atangana: [surprised] What
do you mean they left three quarters? I tell you they took everything!
Mezoe: [jumping
up] What? They’ve now taken everything?
Atangana: Everything!
Mezoe : [longing
for action]Ah Mbarga! What did I tell you? We must put both of them flat
on the floor and give them a sound spanking.
Atangana: [eagerly, with rising hopes] So you
know who did it?
Mbarga: have you ever seen the headman of Mvoutesi
paralysed by any situation?
Atangana: [moving towards
Mbarga] Who are they?
Abessolo: [scornfully] who
else could they be, except the children you raise today, Belinga and Owono?
Atangana: [shocked] These
two good-for-nothing? How could they...
|
Exercise
Write a short play of
your interest.
5.
WRITING AUTOBIOGRAPHIES
Autobiography.
This is an account of someone’s life and experiences written by
himself/herself. The person may choose to tell about an important event from
his/her life or tell the whole life story up to the time when it is written.
Forms of autobiography are; personal narratives, journals, memoirs, diaries,
letters etc. Autobiographies are almost always written in the first person I.
In
an autobiography we expect to find;
The
author’s background – parentage and childhood, experiences in schools – when
growing up, jobs done, fulfilled and unfulfilled expectations, adulthood and
the current situation.
Example;
“Gifted Hands” by Ben Carson and “The Narrative of Frederick Douglas: An
American Slave. Written by himself.
Exercise
Write your own
autobiography from when you stated form one up to now.
6.
WRITING BIOGRAPHIES
Biography. This is a story
of someone’s life and experiences written by another person. In biographies the
author may choose to interview the biographical subject and also gather
information from other sources through research. The subjects of Biographies
are often famous people. E.g. Lincoln: A Photo biography. A biographer is one who
writes, composes or produces a biography.
When
writing a biography; select the person you are interested in, research on the
person, research on the historical period in which the person lived. Be sure of
your facts (ensure that they can be verified by other sources)
Exercise
Write the biography of the person you are
interested in.
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