If you’re confused about the difference between essay writing and creative writing, you’re certainly not alone!
It can be hard to understand how two genres that seem so similar could actually be quite different at their core. Let’s take a look at how essay writing and creative writing differ, and why they’re both important to your education and career.
Key Differences Between An Essay And A Creative Writing
Essays focus on facts, figures, statistics, opinions and logical arguments. This doesn’t mean that essays are all dry as dust (writing), but an essay should always be backed up by reliable references to support its claims. Creative writing, on the other hand, focuses more on painting a picture with words; it may or may not include reference material. In both cases, you should strive for objectivity.
- The form
An essay is often a short piece of writing, usually consisting of a single paragraph. If you are asked to write a good essay for college, for example, then there’s not too much room for creativity – it’s probably going to be only two or three paragraphs long. The same applies if you need to write an essay on how something works or why you think something should be done – there will probably not be much time or scope for creative input here.
- Purpose
Essays can have a variety of purposes, from argumentation or persuasion to analysis or narrative description. Creative writing, on the other hand, usually aims for entertainment or artistic value. Many writers blur the lines between genres by attempting combinations of essay styles with novelistic qualities (such as Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol), but these efforts are often frowned upon by academia. The differences between essay and creative writing will likely be more evident in style than purpose, although essays may well encourage more critical thinking than works of fiction.
- Idea development
Both types of writing rely on great ideas, but writers who are paid to write essays like do my essay for me cheap and do it at a great price often need to follow a specific structure that doesn’t leave much room for freestyle. However, essay writer who specializes in creating other kinds of content has much more freedom when it comes to their topic development. Think about all your favorite nonfiction authors—there’s a reason you can pick up most of their books at random and be reasonably certain you’ll enjoy them.
- Structure
An essay follows a basic structure that usually includes an introduction, body paragraphs (with supporting details), and a conclusion. This can make it easier to organize your thoughts into a coherent essay. In contrast, creative writing might follow different rules depending on what type of piece you’re working on. For example, fiction writers on platforms like en.samedayessay.com often create plot summaries for every chapter. Short stories tend to include an introductory paragraph followed by more descriptive prose; whereas novels are written in longer chapters with more time to develop characters and plotlines.
- Length
Essays tend to be longer than most other types of essays. Many students who have not attained the essay writer status are used to writing essays that are five or six pages long. In college, though, you’ll likely be expected to write longer papers – sometimes double or triple-spaced with footnotes – in addition to shorter essays. Longer essays may require you to spend more time researching your topic.
- Audience
A writer creates a text for a particular audience. The reader of a letter, for example, is different from the audience of a newspaper advertisement. With essays, you should consider your reader’s needs and make sure to write clearly; with creative writing, there may be more freedom to explore different ideas. Avoid being overly technical or using too much jargon with an essay.
- Style
In a typical essay, you stick to one point with no deviation. An essay typically tries to show that some idea or notion is true. To do so, you’ll use facts, figures, dates and quotes from experts to support your claim. With that said, there are variations of essays depending on what type of assignment it is. If you’re trying to write an expository essay, for example, you might have to explain how something works in order for someone else (the reader) to understand what it does. Other types of essays include argumentative essays and persuasive essays—both require strong supporting evidence.
In contrast to essays, which focus on giving explanations and arguments, creative writing is less structured than essays; they provide descriptions and narratives that can stand alone instead of needing further explanation or elaboration as most essays do.
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