The creativity comes into play via how you approach your means of expressing your theme or idea. Humans have been telling each other stories since we developed a language beyond grunts. In order to keep our audiences listening we've learned how to embellish basic facts like "I killed a big Mastodon on the hunt" To a blow-by-blow account which could include having to fight off a sabre tooth tiger for the carcass, how closely you came to being gored, and any number of other exciting bits of colour that would be guaranteed to keep folk interested.
Not much has changed except an increase in the variety of ways that we have of embellishing a story. It shouldn't matter whether we are writing a story, a review, or anything else, the only thing that confines creativity is our willingness to allow a preconceived notion of how something is supposed to be dictate what we do.
There is creativity involved in finding different ways to approach a task. As long as you are able to complete the objective of communicating the relevant information anything you write becomes an artistic creation.
When you are in the situation I'm in, writing because I want to and publishing to the Internet, the freedom is there to reinvent structure as you go. The only thing limiting me is a lack of imagination on my part created by old prejudices and forgetting my purpose.
For me to tell myself that I'm not being creative because I'm not writing fiction or poetry is as ridiculous saying I'm not sleeping because I'm laying on a couch instead of a bed. Someday I may even grow up enough to believe that.
Article comments
1 - micki
I don't much like reviews or critiques.
My humble opinion is that it is boring, boring, boring to read what a paid-someone thinks of said work of art. Communication yes, but creativity? Get real!
Methinks the real payoff for the writing of essays and reviews is the use of an author's creativity and ideas. Who said that "The use of one's ideas/work is plagiarism, the use of more than one is called research"?
Yet, I guess someone has to write those things so we, the stupid consumers, will know what is good or bad. Some of us, however, do not judge a book by its cover....we actually peek inside the book for a preview/taste of the real thing!
If you spend too much time answering the call of that almighty dollar, will you ever have time for your own great works and ideas?
Food for thought: There are authors, there are teachers, there are critics. Perhaps you are only a critic.
Micki
2 - Snarkattack
I don't entirely agree with micki's comments in regards to reviewing being considered less creative.
What about the actual choice involved in review material? Is the act of choosing not creative to a degree? I personally think so.
As for answering the call of the mighty dollar, well, ironically, we sometimes need to in order to be able to do those fully creative things you mention like buy that insanely expensive early music instrument that no one else makes in your country and so forth, so you can play in concerts and do recordings of works that wouldn't see the light of day, for example.
A writer should, in my opinion, seek to write in as many forms as they can manage. Is this not a measure of one's skill as a writer, generally speaking, such versatility?
And should one not be able to review and critique work or output from their creative fields? If anything, I think this could stimulate their own creativity - new thoughts, new ways of looking at old things.
Just some musings from a hack and most likely very bad poet. I like reviews, and I like critiques, but only ones that really engage the reader, and make you want to find out more about said reviewed/critiqued work, or even revisit it. That's where their power lies.
3 - -E
Congrats, this article was picked for one of this week's Ed Picks. Keep up the good work.
4 - Aaron Fleming
Excellent piece! It's an area of regular pondering, just how to write a review interestingly and creatively, avoiding those pitfalls of banality. It's a battle everytime. I would say don't feel confined to particular structures and proceedures, if you want try something a little mad then go for it.