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hello! I need some help on some creative writing. I find it really difficult to just write about something random.

thank you

One piece of advice would be not make it something random. Think of something you really like, or something interesting that happened to you in the past, or a place you want to go. Take it from there and allow your imagination to flow.

Don't be afraid to pick subject matter that you are passionate about, no matter what it is. It will be much easier to write if it's something you really care about.

I like the previous post's idea.  The idea of personalizing the topic will allow it to be random to the outsider, but truly meaningful for you.  In addition to this, if you are able to effectively communicate your opinions on it, the reader will be able to relate to it, resulting in identification and empathy.  This transforms something random into something meaningful.  This is where great writing lives.

I have always believed that the best creative writing pieces arise from the drama in our own lives.  Ruptured bonds with a loved one, broken promises that were professed but then mislaid, and the idea that within our own daily lives transpire events that mean and represent something worthwhile of writing.  I am reminded of a scene from the film "Adaptation," where the main character goes to a writing workshop and asks a similar question to what you are asking about what should be written. The teacher expounds in a very strong and passionate manner (I might be taking some liberties, but I think the basic idea is present):  "Real life is drama- write about real life!  Someone lives, someone dies, someone loves, someone hates.  Someone breaks another's heart, someone saves another- that is drama and that is what you should write about."

Indeed, when you are trying to figure out what to write about, think about communicating something, anything, that represented meaning to you.

Poets and authors often write about things from their own life; they, too, find it hard to be random.

Starting with a person sometimes help. Is there someone in your life that makes you have strong emotions? Love? Anger? Disappointment? Safety?

Start by writing phrases--don't even worry if they don't make entire sentences or if they don't make sense!

Then, RE-WRITE, RE-WRITE, RE-WRITE!! Good writing comes in the editing process.

Here's the rule I live by: YOU CAN'T FIX A BLANK PAGE!

Write SOMETHING, and then you can work on crafting it into a poem!

Good Luck!

In reply to #2: Im liking what your saying...which inspired the others which have replied. But the thing is i dont find much going on in my my life right now... or i havent realised... but i will try to figure this one out.

I have written something, it is more about a depressed emotion so it doesnt really have anything to do with my life as it is it is quite happy, but i dont know how to progress it into a story. Or do you think it is enough writng about an emotion?

excuse my mistakes ^^^ lol

One thing that might help you that helps my students is if I present them with a photograph.  It doesn't have to be a personal photo or even of a picture of people, but it seems that a visual like that helps someone to start thinking.  If you have to write creatively on a regular basis, vary the subjects of the photo to keep your writing fresh.

I like to select episodes from my life, or from things my friends have told me, and then use that as a springboard for developing a creative piece. Sometimes real life is stranger than fiction; if you take a look at things that have happened to you this week, I’ll bet you can find something that would make a good creative writing assignment.

In reply to #5: Personally I find it hard to write a story about "just" an emotion. Poetry is better suited for that, I think.

The key is to figure out how to take that emotion, and make it into a story. One helpful exercise is to make yourself a character first. You are not writing about you, it's about someone else, but you use your real emotions you have felt in the past (even if you are happy, you know what it's like to be sad) to give the character life.

So, let's say you're writing about a girl. She's depressed. Why? Make it something interesting, for example someone close to her has gone away. Who was the person who left her? Why did they go away? What happened? Were they in trouble? Did the character try to help them? What happened? Use small details from your real life to describe the people and setting to make the story seem believable.

Explore all the ideas that could make someone depressed, and then figure out why, and then what they could do about it. Could they go somewhere else? Where? Could they get into an adventure while in the new place? Take it anywhere you can imagine, but keep the emotion and the details real.

Once you get some of this on paper, you've done a lot of the work. The next step is to fashion it into a story with a beginning, middle, and end.

I have recently had the same issue with some of my classes. After attending a training over the summer, I have been introduced to many ideas.  One that I would like to share with you is what is called a "Paper Bag" speech/essay.  It originally was taught to me to use as an oral presentation, but have adapted it to work for my creative writing pieces.  During the first week of school, I give my students a plain white paper lunch bag.  They are asked to first decorate the outside of the bag; there are five sides to the bag, so each side has a theme (likes/dislikes/hobbies, three qualities I possess, a career focus, someone I admire, and a hope/goal/dream).  Students are then asked to bring in three symbols that portray values in their lives.  We set up in small groups and each person removes their symbols and explains them to the group (rubric and outline is needed).  However, after that initial speech to get to know each other during the first week.  I keep the bags and when creative writing arises, I ask students to bring in another symbol from home and use that as a platform for their writing.  I am sure to make them aware that simply describing the object and what it means to them is not our final objective, using the symbol to build a create a story is our final objective.  It is a lot of fun to see what students bring in and the stories they create from something so simple.  Hope that this can be useful :)