My Top 5 Tips for HSC Creative Writing

For many students creative writing is the most daunting part of the English curriculum. It requires vulnerability, imagination, and a mastery of language that goes far beyond simple essay structure. But excellent writing isn’t about waiting for a sudden strike of genius – it is a craft, and like every craft, you can hone it. Here are the five essential tips that have revolutionised the way I approach writing:

1. Jot it down!

   
   

I've met countless talented writers who are terrified of the blank page. Thoughts rush in, crowding our minds in an articulatory bottleneck that never quite seems to reach the pen.

The solution? You must give yourself permission to write terribly. 

If we don’t jot down that first, clumsy thought we will never uncover the brilliant lines hiding beneath it. The first draft is the necessary preamble that says, "It is okay to write whatever comes to mind; it is okay to be the master of your own pen, in other words, it is okay to be the ugly part of yourself. As Jodi Picoult put it:

You can always edit a bad page. You can’t edit a blank page.

Good creative writing is, in reality, rewriting. Unless you are a literary Mozart, brilliance requires drafting and redrafting until the shape of your story finally emerges. Do not wait for the perfect idea; work with what you have and mold it into something unique.

2. Paint me a picture

Once you have your core idea jotted down, it is time to build the world. A common trap for young authors is simply stating what is happening – the classic "tell, don't show" mistake. Instead, treat your story like a film. The camera angles, the lighting, and the sensory details are the tools you use to immerse your reader. However, you must engage the senses strategically. What kind of light graces your character’s hair? Does the air smell like damp earth or sharp eucalyptus? What sounds are echoing from the treeline? 

As always, balance is key. Too much imagery can smother the narrative and leave no room for the reader's imagination, which is the other ingredient you always need to take into consideration. Aim for two or three piercing, specific details per scene. Give the reader just enough to feel the atmosphere, allowing them to fill in the gaps with their own mind, life story, and emotions.

3. It's slashing time!

Your core idea has found its world and its arch, and you have a first draft ready, great! Now we arrive at the most crucial and sometimes painstaking part of the process: the edit. This is where you appease the gods of Occam’s Razor, trusting that the simplest, most direct route to an emotion or an insight is the best.

The golden rule here is ruthless avarice: if you can say the same thing in fewer words, cut the excess.

Imagine your vocabulary as fertilizer in a garden. Some words nourish one flower; others are so potent they bloom three at once. Why use three weak words when one strong, evocative verb will do?

For instance, why write “She walked very quickly and angrily towards the heavy wooden door”, when you can write “She stormed towards the oak door.”? Isn’t it funny how being parsimonious with words makes your text much stronger?

Moreover, every technique, every adjective, and every metaphor must serve the story, not simply act as an exercise in style. Slash your words until only the most essential, powerful sentences remain. As you slash, you may very well find new ideas bubbling up, or core ideas revealing new perspectives.

4. Check the rubric

   
   

This step manifests the harsh reality of High School English. At this stage, you have an originally crafted, tightly edited story. You might have experimented with second-person perspective or a highly unconventional genre. That is wonderful, but before you submit it, you must check the rubric.

Put simply, your teacher will assess you based on a strict grid of criteria. As soul-crushing as it sounds, if your text does not hit those specific markers, even Shakespeare would be marked down.

Ask yourself: does my story match against the assessment notification? If it aligns, fantastic. If not, I strongly advise this to create two versions: one that strictly satisfies the school’s objectives, and one that remains true to your artistic vision, which you can share with your friends, family, in online in forums and blogs, as well as sending it to competitions and publications (DO check their publishing requirements though!). School requires metrics, but your art does not. 

5. The moment of truth

   
   

A truly great story should leave the reader somewhat transformed. It should reveal an inner truth about a character, the world, or the reader themselves. This is the mesmerising paradox of fiction: it brings insight based entirely on lies.

As you approach your final draft, ask yourself: What is the truth I am trying to uncover? It doesn't have to be a grand moral lesson, it can simply be a feeling, like profound isolation in a crowded school hallway, or the quiet comfort of a shared glance during recess. What makes this truth worth reading is that it comes from your unique voice. This is exactly why AI-generated stories will always feel hollow: they are not born from a real human history, shaped by genuine nature and nurture.

And finally, as the great Flannery O’Connor reminds us, let yourself feel the story’s feelings:

No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader.

Good luck!