Trobles with creative writing

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Hey gang,

an Issue is coming up where in class we're suppose to do a journal topic basically an essay consisting of the main idea (topic) and three supporting ideas which gives the reasons why I would or would not support an idea that it related to the topic at hand then I have to come up with a conclusion.

My issue is I can not create an essay I can not visualize what it is I want to write and by the time I even get a rough idea of what it is I want to write it is time for the class to present their topics

I've only had maybe one topic that was mediocre however it seams that I have writers block.

and I'm left asking my self....

Why is it I can't come up with a fu.kin idea?
Am I taking the questions to literal or are they speaking in generalities?
Why do they want MY thoughts in a subject I don't know about why can't I stay neutral?
What does writing an inane essay have to do with where I want to go in life?
I can't quit but how can I go forward if I'm stuck in neutral?
Losing faith, Losing hope

Other people in this class gets it...



Why can't I?

Autistic people do not have emotions as deeply as people not on the autism spectrum.

Read that, think about it for a couple of minutes, and then write something to support it or refute it.

the thing is I can't support it nor refute it I have not met others whom are on the spectrum I see my self in one way and NT's see me in another way

Joel:

All you have to do is read what's written in the Haven. It then becomes obvious that the above statement is false.

Also: think and write about your OWN emotions.

Emotions are overrated discuss the hot topics like;

Is Brendan Fraiser better than Forest Whittaker?
Is life really an illusion?
Duckbill Platypuses, just what are they?
Why beards are awesome?
Will we ever clone an army of Andre the Giant to act as intergalactic soldiers? Or should we?

Theres many more questions that need some serious consideration, but I'm too busy thinking about how to not eat all the cake in the kitchen.

Aperta Verbum
http://apertaverbum.weebly.com/

Or, discuss how best to appease a woman when you ate all the cake she was saving.

Aperta Verbum
http://apertaverbum.weebly.com/

How about Did Start Trek have more of a cultural impact than Star Wars?

Seriously though - I think you are overthinking the project.

It isn't about your actual opinions or ideas, but about the process of writing. Asking you to choose a topic is a way to allow you to write about something that you find interesting, rather than assigning you something you have to research extensively. (this is an NT thing)

This isn't the New York Times or CNN - so don't worry about why they want your opinion - again it is just a way to get you to write something you find interesting and hopefully are passionate about.

I find it hard to believe that you are not interested in anything - you must have some interest (vaccum cleaners, anime, trains???) I would suggest taking that as a topic and asking a question about it, then supporting the answer to that question.

Here is an example I hope you find helpful:

Topic: Anime
Question: Do people who attend anime conventions have more fun if the dress up (CosPlay)?
Opinion: Yes
Why: 1. The costume makes their favorite anime obvious to other attendees and allows them to find others with shared interests.
2. The costume allows them to have something to talk about with others, i.e. i like your costume where did you get the wig?
3. A costume allows them to be that character instead of themselves for the duration and that can be a lot of fun.

I hope you find this helpful.

Dawn

I love creative writing. When I was in high school, I used to do journals like those and I liked them.

here's the thing my instructor would give the class a topic to write about this week it was
"Good habits improve our physical, emotional, and/or financial health. Select one of your good habits and write an essay persuading readers to make that habit a part of their lives."

here's the thing I can't visualize any good habits let alone something that I need to stretch out to 7 paragraphs let alone preach to everybody in the class how my way is right and how they need to conform to my idea and when I do get a trace of an idea of what I want to draft up it's time to change focus to something else.


Last week it was

"Many people feel that the use of surveillance cameras in public

places such as parking lots is a good idea that can help ensure our

safety. Others worry that too many cameras violate our right to

privacy and give law enforcement officials too much power. In

your opinion, should we install more surveillance cameras in public

places? Why or why not? Support your position with specific

reasons and examples."


The only thing I came up with before it was time to change focus was the stereotypical line in a post 9/11 word terrorism is a real concern. which again I wasn't happy about because I feel like I'm just copping a political talking head

Perhaps if I could vocalize it and somebody writes down what I say then I can go back and edit to what the instructor want's

But again I have to visualize the topic in order to go write into depth

In NYC, they catch many muggers with security cameras who would have gotten away without them.

Creative writing is pretty rough, but the one that throws up mile-high writer's blocks is writing about myself.

Evaluations, college application essays, personal statements, whatever. Hate, hate, hate them.

what helps me is to always carry a pen and a scrap of paper (well, a mobile and Gdocs, same difference). as soon as i get a flash of inspiration, i write it down, so that when i sit down to write, i got a set of ideas and musings which only need ordering and refining.
once you got a skeleton like that, the rest is meat which comes a lot easier

I've struggled with a very similar problem for most of my life. Up until I was about 11 (I'm 15 now) I couldn't really write anything. The teacher would ask to write a paragraph about x, and to provide "details", but I had no idea what I could say about x that wasn't blatantly obvious at the outset.

Then, starting in the sixth grade, I started to get a little better. I still struggle with essay writing, but I'm much better than before, and I've found that I really enjoy writing short stories.

For me, what worked was changing my mindset. I had to stop filtering everything I thought up and preventing it from going to the page.

It seems like you have a similar problem. You "weren't happy" with anything you came up with because you thought it was just stealing someone else's thoughts. Additionally, you mention that just talking about your ideas would be much easier. The problem is that you scrutinize any potential ideas you have that none of them ever get on paper. Which means that you'd probably make a fantastic editor, and that you'll probably be able to write awesome essays once you get over the writer's block.

So I suggest you try this: convince yourself that what you write right now doesn't matter, and that you can always change it later. In fact, it doesn't really matter at all. Teachers prefer any written work at all to nothing. Additionally, once you get something on the page, it will be much easier to go back and improve it, rather than trying to go from a brainstorm to final draft entirely in your head.

Imagine you're talking into the page. Or better yet, get a tape recorder or any device with a microphone (laptop, smartphone, etc.) and just vocalize. You can replay the recordings and write down what you say later, or use it as a platform for finishing the essay.

Whether you're pretending to talk while typing or actually talking, make sure you're saying something. It doesn't matter if it's "the sky is blue therefore this is the best essay ever" or "goddammit I don't know what to write"--trust me, once you get something on the page it gets easier.

That's what worked for me, anyway. It may or may not work for you, but it's worth a try.

tl;dr: stop filtering. Pretending your talking into the page (or record your voice). Just get some words down in whatever way you can.

Perhaps it would be best if you took several courses in grammar and spelling.
Then you could start learning about creative writing.

A lot of your problem is the ol' Executive Function issue. I love creative writing, but if I'm tasked with creating an outline, my mind goes utterly blank. I cannot create on demand, only by inspiration and my feeling is - If I have to explain it all to you ahead of time, then what's the point in writing it all out? I've already told you the whole story.

Unfortunately, I have no solution to the problem.

I'm not sure if I'll be any help, but I will say that I relate to your issue.

I'm a writer myself. Not to toot my own horn here, but people say that what I write is quite descriptive and articulate. But the problem for me is that gosh-darn writers' block. And it's not that I don't have any ideas, if anything it's probably the opposite problem in which I can't choose which one I like best! I have writers' block more often than not.

I find that I have barely any motivation to do jack diddly squat when it comes to my priorities, whether I'm lazy or preoccupied with other things, or executive functioning as it's called. Even the things I would like to accomplish seem daunting.

I find that having a specific prompt laid out for me gives me motivation to write. Coming up with my own prompt for my own writing is often what gets me stuck, as it's often too vague or too narrow to work with.

My only advice for your current issue is to understand what they're asking. A main idea? That's something that's broad and more general, and goes in the introduction. And as for the three supporting ideas, they can and should be aspects of the main idea that are relevant. Those would go in the body of the paper. And the conclusion would be a summary of what you just argued. Try and end the paper by relating your argument to a broader, more significant point to really wow them.

Sorry if it seems like I'm not helping all too much, but that's what I got. Out of my own personal experience writing essays, I grew up with a good foundation in my elementary school career as far as what comprises a cohesive paper, so maybe I'm a little biased. But if I can share with you my experience, then I think you'll be better for it.

Let me know how it works out.