Today, I’d like to share with you some reasons why I believe good creative writing is important. These reasons will be from the perspective of both writer and audience. I’ll begin by discussing how good writing benefits the writer.
Writing is long-lasting and can reach many people.
When our writing gets published, whether on the internet or in a book or magazine, it has the potential to reach so many people. It can reach people we would never have come in contact with, people we never dreamed would find it.
Writing lasts longer than the spoken word, so it is a very effective way to communicate. We could write something and have it read by people in a completely different time period than us. Because of this impact writing can have, we should all want our writing to be good.
If our writing is going to be read by people around the world, people in different generations, it should be quality writing that others want to read. We should strive for more than mediocre writing that only friends and family care about reading, because it was written by someone they know.
Instead, we should strive for quality writing that will effectively convey to others the truths of God’s Word and what He has taught us.
Good writing solidifies the content in the writer’s mind.
Some people learn best when they are teaching someone else. Writing is similar to this. When writers are clear and concise, they often get a better grasp on the subject they are writing about. It may already be a topic they are quite familiar with, but writing about it has a way of making it even more clear.
Now, not all kinds of writing will do this. Writing that is vague, uses complicated words, and does not clearly show the writer’s standpoint is not as apt to have an impact on either reader or writer.
It is often in the convincing that a writer’s stand on the subject is strengthened. So if the writer does not take a clear stand on whatever topic they are writing about, their writing is less likely to help them.
Here on the blog, I’ve seen this happen. I’ve loved reading for as long as I can remember, but since I’ve started regularly writing about reading, I have become even more passionate about it. If you write about music, your love of music will be strengthened. And this can also apply to almost any other writing topic.
Good writing holds the writer accountable.
This goes right along with the last point. Another benefit of writing well and clearly stating your opinion is that it gives you a certain amount of accountability.
When you’ve just convincingly written an article or maybe a book on why it is better to eat at home than go to a restaurant, you will probably think about what you wrote every time you eat at a restaurant, especially if it is the fourth time that week.
A while back I wrote a post about music practice tips. One of the tips I mentioned was having a set place to practice. So now, almost every time I sit on the bed to practice guitar, I remember what I wrote in that post, about the need for good posture and being in practice mode when in my music practice corner.
Very few of us want to be a hypocrite, so when we take a stand on something and share it with others, through good writing or some other means, we will be more likely to try to live up to the stand that we took.
Now, let’s move onto some ways that good writing benefits the readers.
Good writing is more pleasant to read.
I don’t know about you, but I would rather read a book that is well-written than one that isn’t. If I read a well-written book by a particular author, I am more likely to read something more by that author.
Of course there are more guidelines to set than just good writing, but that can be a big one for a lot of people. That is why editing a book takes hours and hours as scenes are re-written and improved and unnecessary words are removed.
When a scene is well-written, I can imagine it in my mind. When characters have a clearly stated and distinct tone of voice, I can almost hear them speaking.
I really get into the books that I read, so I appreciate a well-written story. It makes the reading experience more enjoyable. And most other avid readers would agree.
Spelling errors and grammatical errors are a distraction.
Sometimes spelling and grammatical mistakes are made on purpose as part of a writer’s style. That is okay as long as it isn’t overused, but unintentional mistakes can be very distracting. I know I still make them; everyone does. So I’m not trying to criticize those who make them.
There are some who struggle more than others with writing and spelling well. But if a writer does not have a good grasp of the English language (or whatever language they are writing in), it will be quite difficult to write well.
As an English teacher, I am always listening or watching for mistakes. I don’t do it on purpose; I just can’t help it after doing it so much with my students. So when I am reading and I come to a mistake, whether grammatical or spelling, it breaks my train of thoughts. That mistake just jumps off the page or the screen, and I start thinking about it and how it should be fixed, instead of focusing on what I have been reading.
I’m sure other English teachers can relate. So if for no other reason, good writing is important if you want an English teacher to be able to read what you have written, without getting distracted by mistakes:)
A compelling message is clearer when the writing is good.
For Christian writers, I believe our main purpose in writing is first, to please God and bring glory to Him, and second, to teach others through our writing. We can try to reach the lost or strengthen fellow believers.
A verse that comes to mind is I John 2:1. “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:” The apostle John had a clear purpose in his writing. And we should do the same.
When we have written well, whether it be a story or something non-fiction, the message will stand out better than if the writing is not good quality. Some people are turned off by poor writing and will not finish a book if they don’t like the style.
While we can’t please everyone with our writing, we should still do the best we can so that if people don’t like our writing it is not because of any lack of effort on our part.
Conclusion
Now that we’ve discussed the benefits of good creative writing, are you wondering what good writing is? Well, if so, be sure to subscribe for email notifications whenever a new blogpost comes out. In my next writing post, I will be sharing my thoughts on what good writing is. I hope you will return to read it!
So what are your thoughts on the benefits of good writing? Do you have any other benefits of good writing that you would like to add, either from a reader’s perspective or a writer’s perspective? I’d love to hear them!
