11+ Creative Writing: The Ultimate Guide
Creative writing can be really fun – you can explore something you really want to and write about something that means a lot to you. Although, we know it can be a little bit worrying about some students that don’t enjoy writing as much or don’t feel confident in their writing skills.
If your child is preparing for secondary school entrance exams, you may have heard conflicting information about whether there will be a creative writing task. Preparing for your 11+ creative writing exam doesn’t have to be a worry. We help you with 11+ creative writing tips and examples to prepare you for the exam!
So, ahead of your 11+ exams, we want to help you prepare with these creative writing tips and strategies.
How is creative writing tested?
The 11+ creative writing exam is usually 30-45 minutes and could involve the continuation of a storyline that you’ll be provided with. Alternatively, you might be asked to write a short piece of your own in response to a visual stimulus – this could be describing a character or writing something from their perspective, like a diary entry. This will examine your ability to plan, create and then write in a structured manner.
Here are some examples of creative writing topics you might be asked to write about in the exam:
Animals.
Typically, describe your pet or your favourite animal or an animal you are frightened of. Be prepared to be use literary devices like personification or exaggeration or even simple similes to bring your description to life.Emotions and feelings.
Stories often include a requirement to describe an emotion like fear, or joy, or what it feels like to be lost or alone. They could easily ask you to describe enjoyment through a title like My brilliant day. Sometimes the titles may overtly lead you in a very clear direction.
Activities you enjoy doing.
This is the chance to describe the activity itself like a hobby you love (whatever you like, from mountaineering to gardening and everything in between) plus how it makes you feel. Again, your development of description banks should have helped you.The natural world.
An example of this is imagining you are on a desert island. Could be hills or mountains, rivers or streams or lightning or the rain or the feeling of sunshine or how a meadow looks or a field of wheat. Children who cover the natural world in their description’s of development work always find it useful.The built environment.
Think houses or offices blocks or cottages or castles. Roads and bridges, churches and sheds. Developing some thoughts about how to describe the built environment is always useful.
What do examiners look for in creative writing?
Successfully passing your creative writing 11+ exam is a lot less daunting if you know what the examiners are looking for in your creative writing. Unlike other subjects, it’s difficult to prepare exact answers for creative writing. Here are some specific things that examiners are looking for:
A well planned piece of writing.
Never just start writing. Planning will help you to organise your thoughts and this will give your writing structure. Use a planning technique that works well for you, e.g. flow-chart, mind map, diagram, chart.
Strong creativity and good imagination.
Some people are naturally creative with words, story-lines etc. and find this skill easy. However, your imagination can be greatly improved by reading a variety of books. See this suggested reading book list.
A fluent writing style.
Your writing style is unique to you. It should demonstrate ‘joined-up thinking’ and an ability to write in an entertaining manner that creates such an interest for the reader that they want to continue reading.
Good and correct use of punctuation.
The correct use of punctuation is required to make your writing clear and avoid confusion. Apart from the standard simple forms of punctuation you will already be familiar with, it is best to also demonstrate your knowledge and correct use of some of the less commonly used punctuation marks e.g. ellipses(…), brackets( ), colons(:), semi-colons(;), hyphens(–) and apostrophes(‘).
Good use of English grammar.
Speaking and writing use different accepted forms of grammar. It is therefore important that you do not write as you may speak or as you communicate in a text message. Your writing should use the word groups i.e. nouns, verbs, pronouns, adverbs, adjectives, connectives, prepositions and articles correctly and in the right order within your sentences.
Spelling.
Some people are naturally good at spelling and others need to work at learning them. You will probably have been taught some spelling rules in English lessons, revise these and practise them, however some awkward or irregular words just have to be learnt. Reading a lot will improve your spelling ability, as well playing some word games.
Exciting vocabulary.
An extensive and interesting vocabulary takes years to develop. Keeping a word list of new words is useful and this can be added to when reading books, watching TV or out and about. When you are practising your writing skills, use a thesaurus to improve and extend your vocabulary and make an effort to include lots of interesting adjectives and adverbs. Check these out for examples.
Structure.
It is important to demonstrate that your writing has structure in the form of clearly demarcated paragraphs that organised by characters, topic and time. Ensure that you have a good opening paragraph, if this is not supplied, to draw the reader in and then a suitable closing paragraph to conclude your writing.
The best way you can prepare for your creative writing exam is to practice everything we’ve mentioned above. Set yourself some small creative writing tasks, practice your spelling and get some help from your teachers, they want to see you do your best!
Creative writing exercises are all about creativity! There is no right or wrong approach. Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed about your 11+ creative writing task, we’re here to help you do your best. If you’re really worried about your 11 plus creative writing exam, that’s okay.
Check out our blog post about “How To Write An Essay (For Any Subject)” for more tips!
OR, take our Udemy Course on writing a killer essay!
Work with an 11 Plus Creative Writing tutor
We can help you work on your story planning and structure, grammar, writing fluency and vocabulary.