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Jeannette DiLouie

Oh, the Things You Can Learn From Creative Writing – Part II


Podcast Audio Link: Click here.

Podcast Transcript: Hi, genuine writers! This is Innovative Editing’s Jeannette DiLouie welcoming you to episode #24 of The Genuine Writer Podcast. We keep things short, sweet and to the point here so that you can learn what you need to learn and get back to writing already.

Today’s episode – which continues the conversation we began two weeks ago about some of the things you can learn from creative writing – is sponsored by the newly published Proving America, a novel about what it was like to be an American soldier during the disastrous War of 1812. Join Ashley Slasen on the battlefield as he sees what the British are really made of – and whether he has what it takes to take on the enemy… both when the guns are blazing and when they’ve stilled. I’ll make sure to include a link for Proving America in the description section so you can get a copy today.

In the meantime, let’s get back to talking about all the benefits of creative writing. Last month, we touched on how it helps you become an all-around better writer with an awesome vocabulary. Today, we’re going to talk about all the “stuff” you can learn from it.

Creative writing is really a great way to learn about any subject under the sun – if you’re willing to do it right. And by doing it right, I mean taking the time to research what you’re creative writing about.

Now, almost anyone can write a story based on their own imagination and understanding of the world. Whether it will be good or not is a whole other topic, but they can nonetheless write a story.

For that matter, almost anyone can write a story based on their own imagination, understanding of the world and careful research. But most people don’t go that route. They just presume they know everything already.

That’s really sad considering all of the things you can learn when you do creative writing the right way. And that’s true of every single genre out there, though I’ll start with an easy one here.

Maiden America, Designing America and Proving America:

  • The Boston Massacre was the Bostonian’s fault, not that of the British. In fact, there were several similar incidents that didn’t put America in a very flattering light even if we did have the bigger picture correct. While I remain about as patriotic an American as a person can possibly get, researching the Revolutionary War gave me some very eye-opening insights into the adage that there’s always two sides to every coin. Nobody’s perfect, and that shows in even the most noble of conflicts.

  • Speaking of two sides to every coin and nobody being perfect, it was also fascinating to read about so many liberty-loving slave owners who were willing to risk their own lives for freedom… while keeping other men and women captive. I think this goes to show you how blind we human beings can be to our own failings. Because we all have it in us. Oh, and speaking of slave owners, did you know that Thomas Jefferson legally and morally couldn’t free his slaves like George Washington did upon his death? The colony and then state of Virginia had laws on its books that actually prohibited slave owners from freeing their slaves without jumping through intense hoops that often consisted of leaving their slaves destitute and family-less. So Thomas Jefferson actually could be anti-slavery while still holding slaves. The whole thing was tragic.

  • George Washington employed female spies. Oh, and the women back then were not the shy, fainting damsels in distress we tend to think of them as today. Not to get political, but today’s feminists like to paint us a picture about how shy and dainty and incapable women were back then. Well, let me tell you – after reading the research stories I did to put together Maiden America and Designing America, those feminists could learn a lot from those female ancestors of ours.

  • Most Americans didn’t actually support the war, not really. They were either Tories or Quakers – although there actually were Quakers who fought for them – or what Thomas Paine so aptly called “sunshine patriots.”

  • God’s hand REALLY was involved in how the colonies became the States. America should have lost over and over and over again. The British weren’t being entirely arrogant when they assumed they would have us beat easy-peasy. But that didn’t happen thanks to what George Washington repeatedly called “divine providence.”

  • Not really last and not at all least is how the War of 1812 was a humiliating disaster for just about everyone involved, from the U.S., to the British, to the Native American tribes, to the Canadians. Nobody really came out looking good in that conflict, though everyone except for the Native American tribes like to claim victory in it.

The Politician’s Pawn, Moves and Countermoves and Amateurs Play Elsewhere:

  • The Navy SEALS program is intense!

  • Geographical locations in the U.S.

  • The fact that the Witness Protection Program is really difficult to learn more about

  • The real reasons why it seems like constructions workers are never actually working when you drive by them.

Not So Human, etc.:

  • Mythology

  • Scottish and British culture

  • Human biology.

As I’ve learned with other books and story manuscripts I’ve worked on, you can also grow your knowledge and wisdom banks about spiritual matters and their significance, scientific theories, the ins and outs of various controversies, and so much more. Creative writing – when done right – opens up so many doors to discover how amazing this great big world God created for us really is.

We’ll stop right there with every intention of picking up next week to keep delving into all the amazing benefits of creative writing. For now, thanks as always for tuning into The Genuine Writer Podcast. It’s wonderful to have you here, and I’ll catch you writers in another week. Until then, very happy writing!

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