Shorter Responsive Essay

English 2010
Ceami Passey
March 15, 2016

Creative or Not Here I Come

When writing, people have different ways of how they come up with
what they want to say. Some write until they have completed what they
wanted to talk about, while others have a well thought out plan to how they
will finish their writing. Isaac Asimov and Ursula K. Le Guin are two such
writers who came up with their own ideas of how someone can write
creatively. When reading the two writers lists, one might believe that they
copied each other, but there are some differences to what each writer said.
Each gave a list of five ways to be a creative writer, and gave bonus
information to what they were saying. Asimov was more flamboyant in his
writing; he seemed to have a little more fun as he told his ideas to creativity.
Le Guin was more direct in her writing; she would tell a few stories, but she
mostly spoke of how to be creative in a very serious manner. Le Guins list
was always a pattern of something, such as: a pattern of images or pattern
of ideas. When Asimov wrote, his list had many adjectives to how a writer
should be, such as: intelligent and courageous.
The second idea of each writer had to do with how the words were put
together in a sentence. Asimov wrote, The creative person must be able to
combine bits with facility and recognize the combinations he has formed;
i.e., he must be intelligent. (Asimov, 1960), while Le Guin wrote, The
patterns of syntax and grammar; the ways the word and sentences connect
themselves together; the ways their connections interconnect to form the
larger units (paragraphs, sections, chapters); hence, the movement of the
work, its tempo, pace, gait, and shape in time. (Guin, 1987) In their own
way, each writer explained that a way someone is creative, is in the way that
they put their words together.
The third idea on their lists were slightly similar in that they both had
to do with what one saw, but Asimovs idea was based on what the writer
saw, while Le Guins idea had to do with what the reader would see. In
creative writing it is important that there be imagery because it helps
readers better understand what the writer is saying, and also it can make it
more entertaining for them. Another way to make creative writing
entertaining to the reader is to play with the readers emotions. Le Guin said
that a way to be creative in your writing was to place the words in a way that

it would make the reader feel emotional in a certain way, Asimov had
nothing to say about giving emotion to writing.
The writing technique between Asimov and Le Guin was differential, in
that Asimov was more laid back in his writing, while Le Guin had a set way of
how someone should write. There is no wrong or right to the way someone
writes creatively, you can see this by the two perspectives we have from
Asimov and Le Guin.
If someone is just beginning to write creatively, it would be a good idea
for them to follow the ideas of these two writers. Asimov and Le Guin have
been able to figure out exceptional ideas to how one should write creatively,
but depending on who reads their ideas they may not always agree with
what is being said. Both writers have the basic idea of how one should write
so that they can sound creative, but I believe there will never be a set way to
how it must be done.
There are so many styles of writing in the world, so that means there
are so many ways of being creative as well. A person should write to the
level they are comfortable at, and be content with what they have come up
with, whether they got their ideas from Asimov, Le Guin, or neither.

Works Cited
Asimov, I. (1960). Those Crazy Ideas. In L. Z. Bloom, E. M. White, & S. Borrowman,
Inquiry: Questioning, Reading, Writing; Second Edition (pp. 142-151). Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Guin, U. K. (1987). Where Do You Get Your Ideas From? In L. Z. Bloom, E. M. White, &
S. Borrowman, Inquiry: Questioning, Reading, Writing; Second Edition (pp.
318-325). Upper Saddle RIver, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.