The Bloomsbury Introduction to Creative Writing

  • Textbook
The Bloomsbury Introduction to Creative Writing cover

The Bloomsbury Introduction to Creative Writing

  • Textbook
Quantity
Available on Feb 21 2026
$39.55

Available for purchase via Bloomsbury etextbooks on publication date

This title is available for exam copy requests

Description

Covering all of the major genres of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, dramatic writing and writing for digital media, this 3rd edition of the book is a practical, complete, introductory manual for students of creative writing. The Bloomsbury Introduction to Creative Writing now features:

- an updated and expanded chapter on writing for digital media that explores the role of AI
- new sections and exercises for editing and revising across the genres and hybrid forms
- a new chapter on intersectionality and writing alongside interviews with practitioners from a host of backgrounds and experiences
- an updated and fully expanded glossary of key terms

Through a structured series of practical writing exercises – perfect for the classroom, the writer's workshop or as a starting point for a portfolio of work – the book builds the student writer from the first explorations of voice and the relationship between writing and knowledge, through to mastery of a wide range of genres and forms. With practical guidance on writing scholarly critiques of your own work, The Bloomsbury Introduction to Creative Writing is an essential guide for any introductory creative writing course and a practical companion for more advanced writers.

Table of Contents

Contents
Acknowledgments

Introduction: The Knowing Writer
On writing
On knowing
Tips on attacking the practical exercises

1 . Writing and Knowledge
The writers' block myth
The reading writer
Knowing
Your writer self
Emotion as material

2. Writing the Self
Memoir and autobiography
Reflective writing
Human interest features
Personal essays, and “Why I Write”

3. Poetics and Poetry Composition
Poetic movements: An abridged whirlwind history
Poetry as “language distilled”
Sound devices
Poetry and orality
Form and meaning
Finding your poem
Editing poems

4. Fiction Conventions
Fiction and creativity: The anecdote, the muse, and the visionary
Often forgotten forms of fiction
Ideas and themes
Narrative structure
Narrative structure toolbox
Plot and conflict
Characterization
Setting: Time, place, and context
Finding your voice
Genre fiction
Editing fiction

5. Screenwriting
Screenwriting as literary form
The slug line
Action
Dialogue
Characterization
Theme and narrative
Screenwriting technical toolbox
Editing screenplays

6. Writing for Performance
Performance as hybrid art
One-act plays
Monologue and soliloquy
Spoken word
Editing performance writing

7. Writing for Digital Media
The dark side of content
Video scripts for social media
Writing for video games
Writing for virtual reality
Online media toolbox
Personal publishing
Artificial intelligence

8. Critique and Exegesis
Critique
Referencing scholarly texts
Referencing creative texts
Analyzing your creative work
Conclusions
Critique writing toolbox
Exegesis
Exegesis research methods
Identifying your exegetical thesis
Hermeneutics and close reading as primary research
Exegesis planning and structure
Linking creative and scholarly writing

9. Writing, Culture, and Intersectionality
Writing your own identities
Writing cultures and identities not your own
Appropriation
Responsible practices
Diversity in the Writing Workshop
Some Dos and Don'ts

Glossary of Terms
Works Cited
Index

Product details

Bloomsbury Academic Test
Published Feb 21 2026
Format Ebook (PDF)
Edition 3rd
Extent 272
ISBN 9781350467149
Imprint Bloomsbury Academic
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Author

Tara Mokhtari

Tara Mokhtari is an Assistant Professor of Communi…

Related Titles

Environment: Staging