What would life be like if we didn't have the ability to be creative? No matter what we do there's always the opportunity to create something or change it. Kids use imagination to get out of doing chores or explaining how they didn't do something they should have. As adults, we do pretty much the same thing but our methods become...creative. How we go about it is determined by the strength of our imagination.
I'm not one to follow rules, at least not any more than I can get away with. I'm always looking for a way to do something different, find a method whether it's writing or making afghans for raffles. Patterns and rules exist as guidelines to encourage imagination and creativity.
Creativity is about the greatest friend an author can have. While all fiction has some basis in fact, how those facts are used and interpreted can give a story a whole different slant. Take vampires for instance. Dracula was a really nasty character. Today, vampires live side-by-side with humans, get their meals from privately owned bloodbanks and many of them actually have a sense of humor...because a writer dared to be creative.
And what about myths and legends? More and more writers are looking at them with an eye to creating something entirely different. Some years ago I reviewed a book about the Sheriff of Nottingham and he was nothing like the character of legend. It was riveting and gave me a different perspective on the man.
There's a lot to be said for using your imagination to come up with something unique. Be wild, have fun and be creative. You never know what you might end up with.
2 comments:
Great point of view Marissa. Without creativity we not only wouldn't have the wonderful entertainment we do but we also wouldn't have the scientific advancements we have. As humans we would still be on the level of the other animals on our world, fire wouldn't have been discovered and on the other more advanced end - neither would the atomic bomb. Creativity is our salvation and too, can be our doom. It can also be what saves our minds in stressful situations - this is where our imagination show up - I always say - Imagination is the first step of escapism. Its been my axiom for years and will continue to be. There in is the creativity in life - we use it to escape. And thank God for it.
Great blog post Marissa!
Creativity and imagination are essential for a writer or any other creative person - craftsmen, artist, actors, etc. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in what SHOULD happen or what it expected that we shackle our imagination and creativity. This was a wonderful reminder to tap into it instead.
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