As a student, it can be challenging to complete your studies successfully with all the assignments you need to do and the coursework you need to learn. What’s even more stressful is your final exam which will determine whether you graduate or not. Hence, it is crucial that you prepare for the exam properly. Here are a couple of tips to help you pass your creative writing graduation exam.
Why Should You Prepare for Your Exam?
As mentioned above, your final exam will determine whether you graduate or not which is the biggest reason why you need to prepare for it thoroughly. While creative writing is definitely different from subjects such as astrophysics or economics, you still need to study for the exam to prepare for it well and pass it successfully.
Which Skills Will Be Tested?
A creative writing exam usually requires the student to write a short story from a prompt or an essay on a specific topic, may be even with the help of custom software development services to clarify all the necessary details of the chosen topic. You will likely need to have prior knowledge of the said topic (e.g. a book that was studied in class), but you will also need to showcase other skills through your writing.
Obviously, you will need to demonstrate your knowledge of grammar and punctuation rules as well as your extensive vocabulary. Your essay will need to be well-structured and cohesive which will show the examiner that you are able to plan and structure your writing. Lastly, you will need to show that you have a good imagination and are able to approach the subject matter from an interesting perspective.
So, how do you do all of this? Here are some tips to help you out:
#1 Activate Your Imagination from the Start
Once you sit down and see your exam prompt or topic, activate your imagination immediately. You can’t start writing right away, but you do need to think through what you will be writing. Because you will likely have a time limit, it’s best that you let your imagination run wild as soon as possible. While you are pondering your answer, write down all the ideas that come to mind. You will then have a list you can look through and choose what you want to use for your essay (or story).
#2 Plan Out What You Want to Write
Now that you have a list of ideas, you will need to choose which ones you want to use and how you will use them. It is not the marketing text selling anything. But, in other words, you need to plan out what you want to write by creating an outline for your essay or story. Keep in mind that everything you write needs to be cohesive and should progress in a logical way. You shouldn’t jump from one point to another one with no sense of direction.
#3 Focus on One Main Point But Have Subpoints
This is precisely why it’s best to choose a single main point that you will focus on. You still need to have subpoints that you will be exploring in your writing, but to give your essay or story a sense of direction, you need to focus on one thing instead of trying to explore everything at once. If you aren’t sure how to do this, you can check writing samples from the best online writing services and see how they structure their essays. You can also hire a writer to create an essay or story for you to use as an example for your own writing.
#4 Use Dialogue If You Are Writing a Story
In case your exam requires you to write a story using a specific prompt, it’s definitely a great idea to use dialogue in your writing. Of course, there have been notorious short story writers who didn’t use much dialogue (Jack London comes to mind), but those were professionals and you are just a student. Good dialogue can help you flesh out your characters, so don’t be afraid to add a little bit of it to your writing.
#5 Try to Show Instead of Telling
You’ve probably heard this one a million times before, but it really is that important. Show instead of telling your audience (i.e. your examiner) what they need to know. In your essay, don’t try to explain the plot of the book you are writing about. In a short story, don’t say what is happening but rather show it.
#6 Be Descriptive But Don’t Go Overboard
To be able to show, you need to be descriptive in your writing. Use a range of senses and utilize adjectives. That being said, be careful not to go overboard with your descriptions. There’s a balance you need to find between the descriptive and other parts of your writing. As you practice before the exam, you can use the best free plagiarism checker for students to check your work. You might find that you are unintentionally using certain phrases that were used by writers and academics before you.
#7 Use Literary Devices Carefully
Speaking of your wording, you need to use literary devices carefully and correctly. Similes, metaphors, epithets, etc. are all great, but if you word them incorrectly or apply them inappropriately, it will look like you don’t actually know how to use them. To avoid such situations, learn about different literary devices beforehand while studying for your exam.
#8 Substitute Adverbs with Alternatives
One mistake many writers make is using adverbs all the time. Adverbs make your language too complicated and clunky which is why you need to look for alternatives when you want to use an adverb (e.g. use verbs, adjectives, or nothing at all). On the other hand, you can still have an adverb here or there – just be sure to use them sparingly.
#9 Stick to One Style of Writing
While jumping from one point to another can already be jarring, using several writing styles within your essay or story is equally bad. You need to stick to a single style throughout your writing no matter what. If you don’t know anything about the types of styles that exist, you can request and paper on this matter from the custom writing reviews site Trust My Paper where professional writers can explain the topic to you.
#10 Dare to Be Different and Experimental
Speaking of your style and your writing as a whole, don’t be afraid to be different and experimental. You can add even 70’s graphic design collection samples for your article if you have opportunity to do it and to make your work more vivid. Approach the topic from a unique perspective, bring up unusual ideas about it, etc. It will make you stand out and might even give you a few extra points for originality and creativity.
#11 Add More Details Where Necessary
Once you have completed your essay or story, read it over and add more details where necessary. You will notice that some points you mentioned are not explained well while others are only mentioned briefly. Make sure that you add any additional details that will cover your points enough.
#12 Check Your Work Before Submitting It
Last but not least, read your writing again and check that everything is right before you submit it. There should be no linguistic mistakes as well as no statements that are false. Your work should be cohesive and logically structured. If everything looks good, you can go ahead and submit it.
Wrapping Up
To sum up, passing your graduation exam in creative writing might seem difficult at first, but it’s definitely possible to accomplish successfully. Use the tips in this article to help you practice your creative writing skills beforehand and come prepared for the graduation exam.
