The Practice of Creative Writings: A Guide for Students

by Heather Sellers

When it comes to writing, The Practice of Creative Writing has a simple you can do this, and it’s worthwhile to try. Designed for all students in the introductory course, The Practice of Creative Writing teaches students how to harness their imaginations to focus and create stories. Heather Sellers, who writes in multiple genres herself, has developed an approach that focuses on the elements and strategies that produce good writing in any Images; Energy; Tension; Pattern; Insight; and Revision. She provides opportunities to be playful and to experiment at the same time that she teaches students the importance of discipline and craft. 　


In addition to writing strategies and process, The Practice of Creative Writing teaches students how to read like writers, featuring ample and diverse readings in every genre. As a result, students come away with more sophisticated reading skills and exposure to a wide range of innovative and new literature. This new edition features a wealth of new readings, as well as coverage of revisions, short forms, and new genres, such as lists and monologues.

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction, School, Read For School, Textbooks, Crafts, Reference

782 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 27, 2007

About the author

Heather Sellers has a PhD in English/Creative Writing from Florida State University. She’s a professor of English at Hope College in Holland, Michigan, where she teaches poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction writing courses. She won an NEA grant for fiction and her first book of fiction, Georgia Under Water, was part of the Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers program.

Reviews

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great investment (about 100$) for beginners who are serious about learning to write. My writing changed a lot as I read it because I started to understand the craft. Creative writing is describing the moving pictures in your mind, and letting that movie become the platform for your story. I was impacted by understanding showing versus telling. Sellers discusses the principles of writing, the building blocks. This is definitely worth the investment. I didn't find a lot of the writing selections quite in my tastes, but there were a couple good poems and stories I liked. One story was "White Angel," by Cunningham. One of the poems I liked was "What Every Soldier Should Know," by Turner.

I highly recommend this book for new creative writers. I'm keeping it on my bookshelf for reference.

[Penelope · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's almost embarrassing how much I enjoyed this textbook. I don't normally add textbooks to my reading goal, but I read this whole thing...so why not? I have a minor in writing so this was actually very useful; there were lots of short stories and poems involved, so I got tons of different insights and tips for creative writing. TBH, I can't believe I'm saying this, but if you want to have a bunch of practice prompts and improve your skills if you're just starting creative writing, would recommend it.

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a required textbook for my creative writing class, and I really enjoyed it. For one, it doesn't read like a dry textbook or how-to book. I actually looked forward to reading from it! Sellers keeps her writing interesting and engaging. Her explanations were clear, simple, and direct. I didn't enjoy all of the reading examples she provided at the end of the chapters, but I'm excited to use her exercises some more. This is a great resource for beginning writers.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's not easy to create an introductory creative writing text that covers both poetry and prose (and even bits of literary nonfiction and drama), but Heather Sellers has done just that. I do have quibbles -- for example, her tone, which doesn't address students like the thoughtful adults that they are. But after plowing through twenty possibilities, this was the text I chose for my Intro to Creative Writing class.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm using this book to teach in the fall. I think it really is the best creative writing textbook that I've read though I wish it was organized by genre rather than all genres together. The readings and examples are fabulous. Some of the exercises are a bit tedious but I'm learning from this book. I think the chapter on images in particularly helpful.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent resource for creative writing students. Each chapter outlines a specific writing strategy -- each of which builds on the one before. It's filled with activities, writing projects, and professional examples for reading. Probably the best text for a Creative Writing class.

[Anna T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read 4th edition. May not be able to write a full review at this time, but suffice it to say that this book reignited my desire to write more so than I ever imagined, and made me feel like I could actually write something worth reading.

[Summerlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I did not read this book for any kind of writing class, it took just about a full school year for me to finish it.

I will reiterate that point as I discuss what I liked and disliked about this book. I did not read it for a class, which is very much the intention of this book. It is a textbook on creative writing meant for a college class. I picked it up at a thrift store along with a couple other writing books a long time ago and I thought it would be a quick read before the end of 2024. Obviously, I finished it in 2025 so that did not happen. I also did not do all the readings or exercises in the book. For the most part, I read just the informational texts and did not do anything else. I did try to read some of the selections, and there were some that were phenomenal. There were also some that were so uninteresting, that even though they were good examples of whatever Sellers was talking about, I couldn't be bothered to read them or finish reading them.

That was my biggest gripe with this book. I have read other writing books before. I have some that I realize I should just reread at this point. Books about creative writing can be interesting and fun to read. This book was not. It was quite grueling at points and did not sell me on the concept of creative writing in general. It took something that can literally be anything and made it feel corporate and harsh. I think some of that is that I am a perfectionist in my writing. It's hard enough for me to do any writing because I know it will be bad the first time. And the second time. And the third time. But add in all these things I should be doing and thinking about, it gets very overwhelming. But this was meant to be done in a class, with assignments focusing on one aspect at a time. Not read by a random person with no formal creative writing education.

I did enjoy the last couple of chapters that were a little more "practical" (though much of this book is very grounded in practice and not lofty ideas of what creativity is, which I can appreciate). There are some good resources included in the book that are still relevant to this day. The checklists and sets of questions are very good. The information in this book is good for the most part, I just didn't like the presentation of the book and the selections and prompts weren't interesting enough to make me want to engage in them.

[Alodie · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's not just about writing. It's also about becoming the kind of reader, editor and bookfan that contributes to a community of writers. Tons of practical ways to beat Writer's block and get started, as well. I like how she starts off the course by having you come up with 100's of ideas. She has interesting ways of framing a story, and every one of us has many stories within. Her lists and questions bring these out.

[Kristin Boldon · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really solid guide to writing with a panoply of excellent examples of form and style. I liked it better than Burroway's Imaginative Writing as a handbook to multiple genres.

[Amanda Lane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is maybe the most practical advice for writers I have ever come across.

[Shanea Kirk · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am so glad I'm done with this book-for annoying and useful reasons!
The good-I loved how many exercises were in it throughout each chapter, not just at the end of one or in a separate section, but after a concept was discussed there was a way to apply it. I had a blast doing different techniques I don't usually enjoy or even think about using. Also, the readings at the end of each chapter made me laugh and cry. It felt like a little reward to all the work in the beginning of each chapter. A whole collection of short stories by many different kinds of writers at the end of every academic section is a large reason I pressed on with this book.
The bad-it's long! The exercises do make it take longer, but more than that there are a lot of repetitive moments. That helps with the integration of habit, of course, but it's obvious the writer has an affinity for poetry. Since I'm not a poet myself I couldn't continue with the same passion towards the end of the book.
All in all, very useful and will be references often.

[Katie 🐝 · Rating 4 out of 5]

80% of content was required reading for class, and I haven't finished the rest. This text is perfect for creative writing classes to motivate new and developing writers. It has an upbeat and positive tone, creative prompts, and relevant, sometimes humorous content. The featured examples from other authors are often interesting and good models. The writing is clear and easy to understand, and each chapter has a good focus with helpful tips and explanations. I may use this in my own future teaching.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fabulous textbook. I've read several "how to write" books and this was the first time I actually understood HOW to implement the principles so many of these books preach. I'll be keeping this on my shelf for future reference.

[Anna Snader · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a better writer because of this book and I will keep it forever. Thanks Heather!

[Wesley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this as a mentor text for my first creative writing class. Although there are a lot of great sample pieces in the book, the instructional text was contradictory in many places. We are told to use imagery, to write what we see and then told to only write what we know, to let go of fanciful images and ephemeral ideas. We are told to use colorful words to enhance the story and then told to avoid the thesaurus and use simple one-syllable words. There was a lot of comparing apples to oranges. A sample bit of text was compared to a scene from The Sopranos. There are jabs at literary and academic writing, many "never do this" with no alternatives offered. I ended up abandoning this book for Stephen King's On Writing. The ideas presented here about creative writing might fit well for children books and memoirs, which is what Sellers writes, but it doesn't fit well with genre or literary writing.

[Brook Bhagat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! I use it as a textbook, but it's helped me as a writer, too. Sellers' approach is fresh and unique, using pillars like Imagery, Energy, Tension, and Pattern in an ocean of the old criteria standards of plot, setting, character, etc. Those are good, but this gives students a new framework that stems from the truth that every story, every poem starts with an image.

[Clay Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent guide. This was an assigned textbook for a class. Dense with practical, circumspectual information on the craft, while being very approachable and easy to read. Reading this also felt like a small initiation into being "a writer," as someone who has just been throwing spaghetti at the wall for a long time. (More of the noodles are sticking now!!!!)

[Kassie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely recommend this book as a reference tool for anyone interested in creating a writing routine or simply in need of prompts. A lot of great techniques and suggestions interwoven throughout this book.

[Brittany Walker · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought I knew what was nessesary to get started writing a book, but this guide opened my eyes to things that I didn't know about and made me think more deeply into the writing process.

[Dejanira Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

*for College*

[Edie Walls · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such an excellent text book for an excellent class!

[rae . *. ⋆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

read this for class and decided to keep it cuz it’s good

[Valerie Cotnoir · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this for my Creative Writing class this semester. It was easy to read, funny and there were lots of great examples from different short stories and poems. This textbook actually taught me some new things I didn't know about my craft, but also encouraged and validated my pursuit of writing fiction! Definitely recommend to those new at writing and wanted to learn more about how to get started!

[Jade C. Jamison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have taught (and studied) creative writing with a lot of books. I loved this book the first time I taught from it and continue loving it because it isn't your run-of-the-mill creative writing textbook. So many of them focus on the same thing (and those topics aren't bad, but they're done to death), topics like plot, characters, setting, etc. Sellers focuses on elements that are usually glossed over in other texts, and that is what I appreciate about her book.

[Karyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This textbook rocks. Intro to CW textbooks are a tough lot: either too much like lit texts, or too loosey-goosey find-your-soul. Sellers's text manages to balance the loosey-goosey with practical, straightforward exercises and advice. She even makes a great argument for why CW is an essential course for any college student. I learned from this textbook, and my students loved it, too.

[Elizabeth O · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did come out with some decent material from the writing prompts in this book, but it doesn't compare well to others I've tried. Sellers tries to turn her opinions and silly ideas into facts and it didn't sit well with me. I thought the examples of poetry and short stories were well chosen, but that's about the only thing I liked.

[Megan]

I have a request for anyone out there willing to help. I was supposed to receive this book last week, but shipping has been delayed twice. I need to know the titles of the poems on page 57 (Collins), 95 (addonizio), and 141 (Hoagland) so I can read the poems for my online class. Thanks you so much.

[Tabitha Vohn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is great for my uses. It has a lot of beginner's creative writing activities that will be accessible to high school students, while striving to teach them a bit of craft as well. Moreover, it provides guidelines for helping them to evaluate literature from a writer's perspective. I love it! There's enough info for an entire course, so I'm condensing it into an end of the year unit.

[isabel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genuinely a helpful book for creative writing. Offers exercises, examples, and contains down-to-Earth writing. My professor required this book for my creative writing class for good reason, it's really helpful for students who are wanting to learn how to write stories. Will definitely re-read and consult it when I'm writing my own stuff!