Like Creative Writing?
Here are some options at NHS
By Patrick McDonald, Staff Writer
December 20, 2021
Creative Writing Club and the elective class, Creative Writing and Playbuilding are both beneficial options for aspiring young writers here at NHS.
Mr. Quinn teaches Creative Writing and Playbuilding and hopes that his class provides an opportunity for students that they don’t always get.
“Students rarely have an opportunity to apply their writing skills creatively," he said.
Mr. Quinn believes that students need to have a safe space to write and be creative. By taking his class he tries to give students this space and reward people for being creative.
In the class, students get to explore all the different genres of writing. He provides instruction and guides students on how to write in all the different genres and embraces what they feel passionate about.
Mr. Mainuli and Mr. Brierley co-advise the Creative Writing Club.
“Writing creatively is hard, especially since it involves being vulnerable and putting your emotions onto the page," Mr. Mainuli said.
Mr. Mainuli is very passionate about giving people the resources they need to embrace their creativity and have fun writing. He has a Google Classroom that he allows students to post their stories or other forms of creative writing so that they can have a safe space to share the things they are working on and receive constructive criticism.
“I think that the main incentive for coming to Creative Writing Club is to become part of our small but growing community of creatives who all share an interest and love for writing," Mr. Brierley said.
Mr. Brierley loves to see what people can come up with and is always very supportive of anything that the people that attend the club write.
“We don't necessarily teach anything. We do a lot of exercises for writing. I don't feel like I want to tell anyone how to write, but I see a lot of power in being able to help them get words onto the page. If we read a short story I will teach some of the elements of writing happening in that story. We've used stories, poems, and songs to inspire the way we use our words and tell our own stories," Mr. Mainuli said.
Mr. Mainuli and Mr. Brierley, are very passionate about making sure that teens that have a passion for writing can have a space where they can get creative and have guidance when they need it.
Some people could learn a lot from this club through the activities and exercises that they do in the club but no one is forced to do the activities and if they want to just write and have a safe space to do it that is perfectly fine with them.
“Most days are designated just for writing. However, we do occasionally provide prompts or lessons on what makes a good story or poem or whatever" Mr. Brierley said.
Whether you take the class or join the club, creative writing can teach students more than just how to write.
“I am not sure that I teach something that you could answer on a test or reflect on and trace your experience with facts. I provide an opportunity for students to write in a genre and in a style that they enjoy. I give students flexible frameworks and at times prompts that get them writing. I hope I teach about the importance of an individual's style and that words give us a window into the imagination of each student," Mr. Quinn said.