University
Creative Types QUIZ
Are you interested in being told a quick story by prize-winning fantasy author A J Dalton? If not, skip the paragraph below and go straight to the quiz.
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“While writing various fantasy and science fiction novels in my youth, I also worked as a corporate Innovation and Creativity Manager, sharing with teams of colleagues a methodology for coming up with new product ideas. It was a strange life... but I began to see that my creative and critical work were perhaps two sides of the same coin. I began to recognise what type of creative I was, and what situations and activities best helped me channel my creativity. That also meant I could stop wasting time on situations and activities that were only ever going to be dead ends for me. And I became so much more productive as a writer, and no longer suffered ‘writer’s block’! I was cured… and much happier about myself.”
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Complete the self-diagnostic quiz below in order to find out what sort of creative/thinker you are.
For the sake of reference and comparison, the three types of creative diagnosed by the Quiz are as follows...
TYPE A. You are a DELIBERATE thinker.
You work hard at your writing, planning, polishing and finessing as necessary.
Strengths: you hardly ever struggle for ideas. You do not tend to suffer from writer’s block. You are happy to redraft your work, and nearly always meet your deadlines. You are very self-motivated and have good confidence.
Weaknesses: you can be a bit of a perfectionist and are rarely entirely satisfied with your work. You put pressure on yourself and are hard on yourself. You risk taking all the enjoyment out of writing.
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TYPE B. You are a TWO-SPEED thinker.
You are able to sustain a consistent output, even though you sometimes find it hard work.
Strengths: you tend to have a few big ideas that you work on. You might sometimes have writer’s block on a plot detail or two, but nothing too insurmountable. You are receptive to input and feedback, and are prepared to use it to improve your writing. You like to have the support of others.
Weaknesses: as much as you enjoy writing, sometimes it is a bit of a chore, particularly when you’re not feeling inspired. You have ups and downs when writing, but usually have the personal wherewithal to see it through. You’re not always confident about the quality of what you have produced.
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TYPE C. You are a CREATIVE thinker.
Strengths: your writing is very individual and creative. Your mind is more often than not teeming with ideas. When you are inspired, you can produce quite significant output. You particularly enjoy feedback that recognises what you are trying to achieve.
Weaknesses: you do experience ‘down’ periods, when you don’t feel very inspired. Your output drops off significantly during these times. Deadlines become a challenge. At other times, you have so many ideas that you find it hard to stick with just one and see it all the way through. Finally, there is the risk of being quite demoralised by feedback that doesn’t understand your work in the same way that you do.
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How do you feel about the comments above?
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It’s important to appreciate that none of the types of creative or thinker above is better suited to creative writing than another. Each type has its own strengths and weaknesses.
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At the same time, it’s important for a writer to be aware of their particular strengths and weaknesses. If you don’t know your own strengths, then you won’t be sure that you’re playing to them. And if you don’t know your weaknesses… well! Another advantage of knowing your strengths and weaknesses: if you can find someone who is a different type to you, then they might well be able to help you in particular areas where you struggle.
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At the end of the day, it is YOU who has to deliver successful writing. If you’re struggling to write that novel or successfully resolve that piece of writing you’ve been working on, then perhaps, just perhaps, it’s YOU that you need to work on before you can work successfully on the writing.
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Quick task
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Find someone who is a different type of thinker to yourself and see what advice they might give on your weakness(es).
Then read the page on this site titled Creative Teaching and Learning.