If you’re like me, you learned about poetry in elementary school literature class, or you might’ve even taken a creative writing class in high school. As an English major, most of the classes have been about technical writing, and I realized that I missed writing creatively. Sure, I journaled, but I wanted to create something that came from my mind, was not prompted by a professor, and had the potential to be published. Late last Spring, I sat in a coffee shop with some of my friends and worked on planning out my class schedule for my final two semesters. And as I reflected on my classes I’d taken in college up to my junior year and looked at the classes I had left, I realized I wanted more. I wanted to get more out of them. I wanted to enjoy them fully.
I’ve taken classes in college that have taught me more about the real world and have given me knowledge that will extend past the classroom than some of my other classes combined. I didn’t want to settle for mediocre classes my senior year. I knew I would miss learning every day as my full-time job when I graduated, and I wanted to get back into creating things, not memorizing, not studying for exams but using my own thoughts and ideas to write things that hadn’t been written before.
So I changed my minor to creative writing and played with my schedule to see if I could complete it in my two final semesters. When it came time to schedule classes, I registered for three creative writing classes. I was elated.
Halfway through the semester, I’m delighted. My professors take a genuine interest in my work, and my peers are great at listening to what I write and giving honest feedback and critiquing politely. In creative writing courses, even if you despise or don’t understand someone’s piece during a workshop, you have to figure out the best way to phrase your opinions to get your thoughts across but let them know that there are things they did well. This has real world application.
I have business majors and science majors in my class who are taking a creative writing class or two (or have a creative writing minor to accompany their major) because of the unique way of thinking that is learned in these courses. I think that, much like I had to take three science courses and learned a couple things that have stuck with me from them, students of any major would learn something from creative writing. Creative writing isn’t a blow-off course of study. It’s difficult because you won’t always be overflowing with ideas of what to write, and the words might not come easily. The process of learning to think creatively in any regard is important in my mind. Take classes where you’ll gain a valuable skill, like Photoshop, coding, graphic design or writing. Take classes that make you excited to learn and show up. Take classes where the things you create are tangible, and be proud of what you make. Show your family and friends what you've learned to do and how you've grown as a creator.
