Essays vs Creative Writing

Sunday has found us, yet again, with a cup of black caramel tea and an oncoming week of study. And with everything I study comes something to be learned.

That sounds like the most obvious statement in the world; I’m a student, of course I’m learning. But I don’t just mean the course work, I mean my thoughts regarding writing styles.

In my mind, essays and creative writing are completely different. I never thought of myself as being a fantastic essay writer and chose ‘English’ as my minor at university (my major is ‘Writing’) because a) I like books and b) knew I would benefit from dissecting them. Essay writing? That was part of the package, and a skill I wanted to have but wasn’t expecting to enjoy.

But after writing my first essay – yes, just the one so far – and on Wuthering Heights, no less – I can see myself enjoying them in the future. Well, maybe not enjoy, but I can see that there may be more to essays than I originally thought.

Essays always felt too academic, too formal, too factual. Whenever I wrote an essay in high school I had to actively delete personal statements (the kind that thrive on this blog).

After writing my Wuthering Heights essay and receiving feedback on it, I see now that essays don’t restrict your opinion; you just have to find the right sources that prove your opinion is legit.

And yes, they are more formal and I can’t write “YEAH BOI” in academic writing like I can on this blog, but that’s okay! I have this blog, my space to write “YEAH BOI” and now I have university, my space to research all the classics and argue about why Wuthering Heights is a terrible book. How good is that!

Essays don’t take away your thinking, you just have to articulate your opinion in a formal manner. But that’s only in the finished product! Throughout my draft, when I was initially writing down my main arguments, I didn’t bother to make it sound good. I wrote sentences like “Catherine is an emotional wreck of a woman”. (Actually, that line may have ended up in the submitted essay.)

The point is: essays and creative writing both have their place in the world. I’m thankful that I’m not forced into writing just one way, and that I have the opportunity to explore different writing styles and expand my comfort zone.

I’m not going to say I love writing essays, but I am looking forward to writing more and improving and learning. I get to write about literature; how can I complain when I’m living my dream?

Sarah xx

*Illustration from Home: The Elements of Decorating, Emma Blomfield (2017), Hardie Grant Books.