difference between academic and creative writing

It's Lit Teaching

High School English and TPT Seller Resources

Creative Writing
Teachers Pay Teachers Tips
Shop My Teaching Resources!
Sell on TPT

Academic Vs. Creative Writing: What You Need to Know Before You Teach

In college and during your teacher training, you probably spent a lot of time discussing how to teach writing to students. Even if you didn’t discuss writing pedagogy, you know the basics of academic writing from having gone through academia yourself. You might feel unprepared, then, when you need students to do creative writing. How do you approach–and teach–academic vs. creative writing?

( Teaching Creative Writing for the first time? You may want to start with this post. )

difference between academic and creative writing

Teaching the Differences Between Writing Goals

Many of the differences between the two types of writing center on the goal, audience, and purpose of the writing. It’s important to understand these so that you can better communicate them to your students.

You don’t want students fabricating rich stories for their essays, and you also don’t want them to panic when asked to use their imaginations. Teaching both academic and creative writing is essential, then, for students to be able to respond to the variety of tasks life will throw their way.

While you might intuitively understand the difference, your students probably have not developed this awareness yet. Use this breakdown of the differences between academic and creative writing to help them know when to use each.

Academic Vs. Creative Writing Difference #1: Style

It’s important for students to have at least a basic understanding of style before walking them through the differences between academic and creative writing.

Academic writing uses a much more formal style of writing. Academic settings, like universities and schools, use it almost exclusively. For this reason, your students are probably already familiar with the basic expectations of academic writing.

Academic writing uses an objective, unbiased tone and focuses on presenting research and evidence to support an argument or claim. Academic writing is typically based on factual information and aims to inform and educate the reader about a particular topic.

Product cover for It's Lit Teaching Voice Workshop Mini-lesson with pictures from the lesson slideshow and worksheet

Creative writing, however, is more expressive and imaginative and aims to entertain its reader. It can take many forms, including fiction, poetry, and personal essays.

Creative writing uses emotive language. Creative writing is less concerned with presenting factual information and more focused on exploring themes and ideas through the use of storytelling and descriptive language.

Teaching students about style can help them see the differences between academic and creative writing for themselves. It will also help them maintain the correct style for the writing task at hand.

( Want a fun activity to start a discussion about style? Try this lesson on Literary Voice! )

Academic Vs. Creative Writing Difference #2: Intended Audience

Academic writing is typically aimed at a more specialized and educated audience. For students, the intended audience for most of their academic writing will be teachers, professors, and fellow students. If they pursue academics, they may one day write for peer-reviewed journals or share scholarly articles.

Because academic writing audiences tend to already be knowledgeable, the writing may be more technical and difficult for a general audience to understand.

Creative writing, meanwhile, is often aimed at a wider, more general audience. Your students should be able to list all kinds of examples of creative writing from children’s books to fiction novels to even the old classics they read in class.

Creative writing may be more accessible and engaging to a wider range of readers. (Although this isn’t necessarily true–just look at how our students struggle with Shakespeare today.) Creative writing uses more poetic and figurative language .

It’s important to discuss intended audiences with your students regardless of what kind of writing they’re doing. Their audiences should inform their choices of language, form, and style in all of their writing.

Academic Vs. Creative Writing Difference #3: Purpose and Goal

Academic writing is typically focused on presenting research and evidence to support a specific argument or claim. This means that academic writing may be more structured and follow a specific format.

Your students are probably very familiar with the good old five-paragraph essay. They may even have learned C-E-R or some other highly structured format for presenting claims, evidence, and logical reasoning .

Creative writing on the other hand is more focused on exploring ideas and emotions through storytelling and descriptive language. The intent of a poem can sometimes be as simple as to convey strings of beautifully sounding words.

Cover of It's Lit Teaching Product: Poem of the Week Bundle

While academic writing often feels formulaic, creative writing is more open-ended and creative in its approach. (This may actually frustrate some of your students!)

How many ways have you seen authors discuss love? There are poems, plays, stories, and more. Even if you just look at “love poems,” you can see there are countless ways to structure creative writing.

To demonstrate just how open-ended creative writing can be to students, it might be helpful to show them a variety of mentor texts. For example, you can compare E. E. Cummings’s abstract style with Shakespeare’s highly-structured sonnets.

These Poem of the Week activities are a great way to incorporate a variety of mentor texts and bring different opportunities into your classroom for poetry discussion.

If you’re teaching a Creative Writing class for the first time, it’s important to go into it with a firm understanding of how it varies from academic writing. This will help you to begin thinking about what lessons and skills you’ll need to focus on in your class.

Even more important, however, is making sure your students understand these differences for themselves. After all, once they leave school, no one is going to tell them whether to write a formal, five-paragraph essay or a villanelle to summarize their notes for the big meeting.

Students need to understand the characteristics of both–and learn when to use each–if they’re going to find success (and possibly fulfillment) in writing in their futures.

Need to teach a whole Creative Writing class and don’t know where to start? Make it easy on yourself with my done-for-you Creative Writing 9-Week Class !

Cover for It's Lit Teaching Product: Creative Writing: Complete 9-Week Class

Academic Writing vs. Creative Writing: Understanding the Key Differences

Both academic writing and creative writing are commonly used in many contexts and serve a variety of goals. While academic writing is widely utilised in educational environments, creative writing is frequently employed in literary and artistic contexts. The ability to write should be universal. No matter what their profession, educational background, or area of interest, everyone may utilise writing to express their ideas, thoughts, and feelings.

Writing can take many different forms, each with its own target audience, goal, and style. Writing for academic purposes and artistic purposes are frequently misunderstood. In this article the primary distinction between academic writing and creative writing will be discussed.

What is Academic Writing and its Features?

A style of writing called academic writing is utilised in academic environments including colleges, universities, and research institutions. Information, research findings, and ideas are communicated to a scholarly audience using this formal and objective writing style.

Academic writing can be distinguished from other types of writing by a variety of features. It is ordered, formal, objective, and precise. The vocabulary, tone, and writing style are appropriate for an academic setting. Extensive study, analytical thought, and analysis are also required for academic writing. It frequently is founded on facts, figures, and conclusions from research.

What is Creative Writing and its Features?

Writing that uses imagination and creativity to convey thoughts, feelings, and ideas is referred to as creative writing. It is a distinctive style of writing meant to enthral, motivate, and arouse the reader’s emotions.

There are several factors that distinguish creative writing from academic writing. Different types of tools are used in writing while the use of article rewriter in academic and creative writing is generally encouraged.

Key Differences Between Academic Writing and Creative Writing

At first glance, writing for academic and creative objectives may appear to be one and the same thing. Nonetheless, there are two different writing styles, and each has its own traits and goals. The main distinctions between academic writing and creative writing will be covered in this section.

The main distinction between academic writing and creative writing is the reason for the writing. In a formal and objective way, information, facts, and knowledge are communicated through academic writing. It is employed to investigate and examine a certain subject or problem and to give arguments supported by facts. Academic research and educational institutions both employ academic writing.

Writing creatively is a tool for expressing ideas, feelings, and thoughts in a unique and inventive way. It is employed to enlighten, uplift, and communicate with the reader. Plays, poems, novels, and short stories all involve creative writing.

Academic writing frequently has researchers, academics, and subject-matter specialists as its audience. A sizable component of the audience for creative writing is made up of readers of fiction, poetry, and other literary genres.

In academic settings, writing is formal, detached, and objective. Pronouns in the first person are generally avoided. The text is straightforward, clear, and basic. The third person is frequently used when the passive voice is being used.

Writing with creativity is informal, individualised, and subjective. First-person pronouns are commonly employed, and the writing style and personality of the author are evident. The writing is typically vibrant and evocative and places a significant emphasis on imagery, figurative language, and storytelling.

Accuracy and precision are stressed in formal language used in academic writing. The tone is neutral and objective, and the jargon is specialised and technical. Slang and contractions are not appropriate.

The language used in creative writing is looser and more casual, with a focus on creativity and flair. The vocabulary is varied, and the tone might be lighthearted, sentimental, or subjective. Slang and contractions are permissible, and the author is free to coin new words and employ turns of phrase.

An introduction, body, and conclusion are all clearly defined in academic writing. Background information and the paper’s goal are given in the introduction. The thesis is supported by the body’s arguments and supporting data, and the conclusion restates the thesis and summarises the key points.

The writer has more leeway to experiment with different structures when writing creatively because there is no set structure to follow. Flashbacks, non-linear tales, and other approaches can be used by the author to develop a distinctive framework.

Advantages of Academic Writing and Creative Writing

1.enhance communication skills.

Communication skills are improved by the use of clear, succinct language in academic writing. Individuals learn to properly and eloquently convey their ideas and thoughts through academic writing. In many professions where communication is key, like law, journalism, and teaching, this talent is essential.

2.Increases Analytical Abilities

The considerable study and data analysis necessary for academic writing aids in the development of analytical skills. This ability is essential in many fields, like business and finance, where data analysis and critical thinking are essential.

3.Builds Data Analysis Skills

Research and data analysis are crucial parts of academic writing since they call for in-depth subject knowledge. In many fields, notably scientific research, where the interpretation and analysis of data are critical, this talent is essential.

4.Helps in Expressing Emotions

People can convey their ideas and emotions in unique ways through writing. This talent is essential in many fields where creativity is needed to interest the audience, such as marketing and advertising.

5.Enhance Imagination

Because creative writing calls for imagination and creativity, it fosters the development of these skills. This skill is essential in a variety of professions where the ability to produce intriguing and appealing information is required, such as writing and entertainment.

For various reasons, it’s important to comprehend the difference between academic and creative writing. In the first place, it can aid writers in deciding which genre to use in a particular circumstance. In addition, it can aid authors in honing the abilities and methods required for every kind of writing. As a final benefit, it can assist authors in understanding the demands and expectations of various writing styles, which is helpful in both academic and professional contexts.

7 Best Websites for Educational Purposes
Guidelines and steps for writing a coursework | Tips for good writing
4 Writing Challenges College Students May Face and How to Overcome Them
What is Coursework? | Definition, Meaning & keypoints!
Tips for Writing a Good Essay and Getting a High Grade

About The Author

Creative Writing(ENG-207) Week#7:- Difference between Academic and Creative Writing

Week#7:- Difference between Academic and Creative Writing

Difference between Academic and Creative Writing

Creative writing is different from academic writing . Writing for websites is different from writing for newspaper columns. Journal entries are different from writing press releases on behalf of a brand. Writing purposes do vary. It's important that when undertaking any writing you have a firm grasp on this concept.

Let's look at the fundamental differences between academic and creative writing.

The Principal Difference

Style is the chief difference between academic and creative writing. Creative writing need not adhere to any specific style parameters. Academic writing is different. Academic writing needs to be structured and executed adhering to a series of guidelines. Indeed, so stringent are these guidelines that academic institutions include these guidelines as part of their curriculum.

Style Guidelines Outlined

These documents or manuals outline the rules and standards needed for the successful execution of any written exercise. A quick Google search and you'll find web pages dedicated to clearly communicating the guidelines of academic writing. However, many institutions have their own stylistic guidelines.

Common Style Guide Conventions vs. Informal Writing

Here is a look at some of the differences between informal writing and conventional, academic writing.

Contractions – generally speaking contractions are acceptable in academic writing, though overuse will dilute the integrity of the writing. Studying academic writing you'll see that the writer makes use of contractions to get points across.

Technical terminology –when writing for academic purposes it's important that you always bear the audience in mind. If you're writing for a niche market alone the audience will understand any jargon that may be lost on the layman. Take out technical terminology altogether if writing for a diverse audience.

Reference appropriately – good academic writing includes references for any information used to support your argument. These need to be referenced appropriately.

Colloquial expressions and clichés – creative writing, especially dialogue, will have expressions that are unique to that character. However, these should not be used in academic writing. For example, it's unwise to describe Noam Chomsky's contribution to linguistics as ‘awesome.'

These are just a few tips for anyone considering how to cater to their writing for academic or creative purposes. Follow these are you will give yourself the best possible chance of executing a well-crafted piece of work, no matter the purpose.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CREATIVE AND ACADEMIC WRITING

In personal, reflective, or creative writing, there are far fewer rules since it is.. well. personal and creative! In this kind of writing, one can tell a story, summarize their experiences, or express their opinions, ideas, or emotions. Their writing can be entirely fictional, requiring minimal factual evidence or support. However, writers may still want to include support for their assertions, especially if their personal writing is supposed to be persuasive or deliver an opinion. Writers may support their claims with personal experiences and information that they have heard, even if they aren’t entirely sure where from. Their evidence doesn’t have to include the page number of the specific text it is found in like academic writing does. This is simply because it is writing for the purpose of only the writer’s intentions. It doesn’t need to satisfy requirements or match the grading of a rubric. Academic or scholarly writing on the other hand is a little more standardized. One's writing must be much more organized and formatted, and the evidence used as support for their assertions must come from concrete sources. The sources should be properly cited both in text and in a works cited page. In academic writing, the writer needs to prove to the reader that what is being said is factual and correct. Ideas need to be explained, and any inferences or deductions based on textual evidence or data must include support. Contrary to creative writing, one cannot simply ponder about an idea and ask questions. In academic writing, questions must be answered.

Another difference between academic writing and creative or personal writing is the presence of pressure due to time restraints. In timed essays, ones writing situation may greatly change. There is no time to brainstorm or procrastinate, so being able to organize ideas quickly is essential. Also, far greater preparation before beginning the paper is required. The writer does not have the luxury of aimlessly searching through sources for evidence. The subject of the timed essay must be understood thoroughly, prior to the beginning of the timed writing.

Overall, creative writing allows for more personal expression whereas academic/scholarly writing aims to explore an idea, argument, or concept. Academic writing requires more factual evidence for support, and presents challenges such as the pressure of time. They each have their own purpose, and as a developing writer, I hope to improve my writing of both types.

Week#1:- Literature and major forms of literature
Week#2:- Drama and forms of drama
Week#3:- Poetry and kinds of poetry
Week#4:- Objective poetry and its kinds
Week#5:- Benefits of Creative Writing
Week#6:- Types of Writing and Writing Process
Week#8:- Elements of Short Stories
Week#9:- Novel and its types
Week#10:- Novel and its uses
Week#11:- Communication and its types
Week#12:- Communication's elements and benefits
Week#13:- The Barrier to effective communication
Week#14:- Essay and its types
Week#15:- Figures of speech
Week#16:- Poem: "Mending Wall"
Chapters 16
Department Business Administration

Our Process

Academic Writing Vs. Creative Writing: Understanding The Differences

Published by Oliver Smith at September 11th, 2023 , Revised On January 30, 2024

Writing is a vast and varied field, with numerous genres and sub-genres, each demanding a unique approach and mindset. Among the multitude of writing types, academic and creative writing stand out as polar opposites. These two forms of writing serve distinct purposes and possess characteristic styles and tones. This blog will discuss the differences between academic and creative writing.

What is Academic Writing

Academic writing is a formal style of writing. It is commonly used in universities and scholarly publications. Its characters mainly include evidence-based arguments, logical reasoning, and conciseness.

While some might see it as stuffy or rigid, it is crucial in academia for maintaining clarity and credibility. Let’s break down the features and purposes of academic writing:

Features of Academic Writing

The features of good academic writing include:

Evidence-Based

Academic writing relies on evidence, such as data, facts, logical reasoning, and expert testimonies. Unsupported claims are not acceptable.

Formal Tone

Casual or colloquial language is avoided. Instead, a serious and respectful tone is maintained.

Clear and Precise

It prioritises clarity and avoids ambiguity. Words and phrases are used in their exact meaning.

There is a clear organisation to the content, whether it is the standard introduction, body, and conclusion of an essay or the abstract, introduction, or other parts of a research paper.

Impersonal Tone

Personal beliefs, feelings, or opinions are typically kept out unless they are relevant to the discussion.

Any information, ideas, or data not original to the author must be cited. This gives credit to original authors and provides a trail for readers to verify information.

Purpose of Academic Writing

Academic writing mainly serves the following purposes.

Much of academic writing aims to inform the reader about a specific topic. This could be a review of existing literature, explaining a concept, or presenting new research findings.

In some cases, academic writing persuades the reader of a certain viewpoint. This is seen in argumentative essays and papers where the author presents and supports a thesis statement with evidence.

Academic writing can serve as a record of research findings, observations, or experiments. This is crucial for future researchers who might build upon that work.

Reflective essays or reports allow the writer to discuss their experiences, learning, or observations in a structured way.

Audience of Academic Writing

The primary audience of academic writing is the scholarly community, including professors, students, researchers, and experts in the field.

However, given the increasing accessibility of academic works, the public, policymakers, and other professionals are also counted in the category.

Types of Academic Writing

Here are the main types of academic writing.

Essays are short pieces of academic writing that convey the author’s perspective on a particular topic. The different types of essays include argumentative, descriptive, expository, and narrative.

Essays are meant to concisely explore and communicate ideas, arguments, or information. They often require critical thinking, analysis, and the ability to present a coherent argument.

Research Papers

Research papers are in-depth documents that present original research findings on a specific topic. They are often more extensive than essays and follow a structured format.

These papers also contribute new knowledge to a particular field, which helps demonstrate the author’s ability to conduct research, analyse data, and draw meaningful conclusions.

Theses and Dissertations

Theses and dissertations are comprehensive research projects. They are generally required to get a master’s or doctoral degree. They represent the completion of a student’s academic work.

Additionally, theses and dissertations involve in-depth research, critical analysis, and the presentation of original contributions to a specific academic discipline.

Reports are documents commonly used in scientific and technical fields to convey information about experiments, investigations, or research studies. They have a structured format, including methods, results, and conclusions.

Moreover, reports aim to provide detailed and objective information about experiments, allowing others to replicate the study or understand the findings accurately.

Reviews critically assess other works, such as books, articles, or literature. They summarise the main points of the work and provide an evaluation based on specific criteria.

Reviews help readers understand the content and quality of the work being reviewed. They assist in decision-making processes and contribute to scholarly discourse.

Case Studies

Case studies involve detailed analyses of specific cases, events, or situations. They often include real-life examples and explore the factors contributing to a particular outcome.

Furthermore, case studies are used to gain insights into complex phenomena, investigate cause-and-effect relationships, and provide context-rich information for research or educational purposes.

Abstracts are concise summaries of larger academic papers, typically appearing at the beginning of the document. They briefly overview the paper’s main objectives, methods, findings, and conclusions.

Abstracts serve as a quick reference for readers, allowing them to determine whether the full paper is relevant to their interests. They provide a snapshot of the paper’s content without requiring the reader to review it.

Academic Writing Process

What is academic writing
Difference between a heading and a title
Taboo words from around the world
When and how to use transition words
List of transition words and phrases
Verb tenses – rules & examples

What is Creative Writing

Creative writing is an art form that allows for self-expression and imagination. It breaks away from the more strict constraints of other forms of writing. It encompasses various written works and genres, each characterised by imaginative narratives, characters, and poetic use of language.

Conclusively, creative writing seeks to tell a story, evoke emotions, or paint a vivid picture in the reader’s mind.

Features of Creative Writing

An impeccable piece of creative writing has the following features.

Imaginative and Original

Central to creative writing is the use of imagination. It allows writers to invent characters, worlds, scenarios, and more.

It is a means of expressing personal feelings, emotions, and ideas.

Character Development

Characters in creative writing often undergo growth or transformation, revealing depths of human nature.

Poetic Use of Language

Words are chosen for their literal meaning, sound, rhythm, and emotional resonance.

Narrative Structure

Even though creative writing doesn’t always follow a strict structure, many pieces have a clear beginning, middle, and end.

Evokes Emotion

One of its goals is to make readers feel something—whether it is joy, sorrow, excitement, or fear.

Purpose of Creative Writing

Creative writing is usually done for

Entertainment

Many creative works aim to entertain, taking readers on journeys to far-off places or introducing them to intriguing characters.

Writers often use creative writing as a platform to express personal feelings, beliefs, or experiences.

It can be a medium to reflect on societal issues, human behaviour, or the world at large.

Some creative works, like allegories or satires, can be persuasive, conveying opinions on political or societal issues.

Audience of Creative Writing

While some creative works might target a specific audience, many are meant for anyone who appreciates storytelling, language artistry, or poetic expressions. From children to adults, the audience for creative writing is diverse.

Types of Creative Writing

The types of creative writing include

Fiction is fabricated and based on the author’s imagination. It is not factual, but it may be based on true events or situations.

Novels: Extended works of fiction that can range from about 50,000 words to several hundred thousand words.
Short Stories: Brief works of fiction, typically between 1,000 and 20,000 words.
Novellas: Longer than short stories but shorter than novels, often between 20,000 and 50,000 words.

Poetry uses meter, rhyme, and metaphor to express feelings, ideas, or tell stories. Its form and structure can vary widely.

Drama involves writing that is intended to be performed by actors on a stage, in a film, or on television.

Creative Non-Fiction

This genre uses narrative techniques commonly found in fiction to relay true, factual events or experiences.

Memoirs: A personal account of someone’s life or experiences.
Biographies: A detailed account of someone else’s life.
Personal Essays: Short, introspective pieces that reflect on life experiences.

Flash Fiction

These are very short stories, often characterised by brevity and succinctness. They still have a full narrative but in a much condensed form.

Screenwriting

This involves writing scripts specifically for visual mediums, like movies or TV shows. The script will often include scene directions, character actions, and dialogue.

Songwriting

The art of writing lyrics for music often encompasses a range of emotions, themes, and narratives.

Looking for experts? We are here to help! Topic Suggestions Confidentiality 100% Plagiarism Free Qualified Writers Low Prices Proofreading Order Now Dissertation Services

The Difference Between Academic Writing and Creative Writing

Academic writing and creative writing are two very different types of writing that serve distinct purposes and adopt unique characteristics. Let’s look at the primary differences between them:

Academic Writing: The primary purpose is to inform, explain, argue, or analyse. It is mainly used to present research findings, argues a point, or elaborate on a theory or idea. Examples include essays, research papers, and journals.

Creative Writing: The primary purpose is to entertain, evoke emotions, and express the author’s imaginative ideas. It may also inform or persuade, but stylistically and narratively. Examples include poetry, fiction (novels, short stories), plays, and scripts.

Style and Tone

Academic Writing: Typically adopts a formal tone and uses precise, unambiguous language. Jargon or technical terms relevant to the field may be used.

Creative Writing: Can vary in tone, from casual and conversational to highly formal. Figurative language, rhetorical devices, and a focus on narrative or poetic techniques often mark it.

Academic Writing: Follows a structured format that depends on the type of academic work. For instance, research papers might follow the IMRaD structure (Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion).

Creative Writing: More flexible in structure. While there might be conventional structures for certain genres (like the three-act structure in plays), creative writing often allows for more deviation and experimentation.

Evidence and Research

Academic Writing: Relies heavily on evidence, citations, and references. Proper sourcing and avoiding plagiarism are crucial.

Creative Writing: While it may be based on research (e.g., historical fiction), it does not always require citations or references, and it often relies on the author’s imagination.

Point of View

Academic Writing: Typically uses a third-person perspective, and first-person might be avoided depending on the discipline or assignment.

Creative Writing: Can employ first, second, or third-person perspectives. The choice depends on the nature of the story and the writer’s intention.

Objective vs. Subjective

Academic Writing: Strives for objectivity. Even when presenting an argument, the emphasis is on presenting evidence and logical reasoning.

Creative Writing: It is often more subjective, focusing on emotional truths, individual perspectives, and personal experiences.

Constraints

Academic Writing: Generally needs to adhere to specific guidelines formatting rules, and be clear and concise.

Creative Writing: Offers more freedom, allowing writers to play with language, structure, and content.

Academic Writing: Typically written for scholars, researchers, students, or professionals in the field.

Creative Writing: Aimed at a general audience, although some works might cater to niche readerships.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is creative writing part of academic writing.

Creative writing and academic writing serve different purposes. While academic writing prioritises evidence-based arguments, clarity, and objectivity, creative writing emphasises storytelling, character, and emotion. However, you can use elements of creative writing to enhance academic pieces and make them more engaging.

What is the difference between academic writing and creative writing?

Academic writing presents researched information and is mostly clear, properly structured, and objective. Creative writing emphasises storytelling, imagination, and emotional resonance. While academic writing seeks to inform or argue based on evidence, creative writing aims to entertain, provoke thought, or express personal insights. Both have unique styles, purposes, and conventions.

What are the characteristics of creative writing?

Creative writing emphasises imagination, originality, and expression. It prioritises storytelling, character development, emotional resonance, and vivid imagery. Unlike formal styles, creative writing allows for flexibility in structure and language, encouraging the exploration of diverse narratives and voices.

What is an example of academic writing?

“Recent research on climate change highlights its adverse effects on global sea levels. Using satellite data from 1990-2020, Smith et al. (2022) found a 3.2mm annual rise in sea levels. This upward trend, linked to melting polar ice caps, underscores the urgent need for sustainable environmental policies worldwide.”

5 Key Differences Between Academic Writing & Creative Writing

The world of writing is quite intricate. There are multiple categories in it. But if we are to, we will divide writing into two broad brackets – formal and informal. And this is the fundamental difference between academic and creative writing: the former is formal, and the latter is informal.

If you find it too difficult to comprehend the fine line between the two, you can opt for a paper writing service for your college assignments. Meanwhile, you can work on your writing skills.

If you are an aspiring writer, know that there is a great demand for both academic and creative writers out there. But when you undertake an assignment, you must be able to determine the style of writing it requires. To help you with it, we will walk you through the key differences between academic and creative writing.

How to Distinguish Between the Two Types of Writing

Academic writing is more factual and standardized than creative. You have to stay true to evidence and facts that you take from authentic resources. These kinds of assignments require you to provide references as proof of the argument you are putting forth. Academic content is largely covered by EssayService to aid students in their college assignments. And each educational institution might have its own rules and standards.

On the other hand, creative writing is personal and informal. There is no specific style guide or standardization. You can even voice your opinion and support it with some reference without being completely sure of its original source. Examples of creative writing include stories, personal experiences, ideas, opinions, poetry, and journals. Needless to say, adherence to grammar and spelling rules is a common requisite in both.

Now, let’s explore the key differences between the two types of writing in detail.

The style of writing is one clear difference between academic and creative articles. While creativity is not bound by any specific style or pattern, you have to stick to certain parameters in academic content. Academic writers should always abide by the standard structure. There are several guidelines designed for different types of papers. Institutions choose their preferred style from a variety of widely-used style guides.

On the other hand, creative writers enjoy a fair amount of freedom in terms of writing style. The writing of a story or a personal opinion does not need adherence to a particular tone. The writer can choose to shape the content any way they want.

The purpose of writing is another significant difference between the two. Academic content is written to prove a point or give your audience a well-backed perspective. Whether you are writing a school/college paper or preparing a piece of content for your client, the main aim of academic writing is to explain, discuss, and elaborate on a given topic. You back up your thoughts and beliefs with the latest statistics and valid data.

On the contrary, creative writing mainly focuses on the expression of one’s idea through the medium of suitable words. You need not present any facts or figures to support your content. You can go on to write content for scripts, plays, stories, prose, poetry, biographies, etc., with the sole aim to entertain or educate your target audience.

3. Time Limitations

In most cases, academic writers have to face time restrictions. There will be almost no room for brainstorming. Also, you cannot afford to procrastinate. You will have to prepare much ahead of writing and gather all the necessary data well in time.

Creative writers generally do not face time limitations. Even if they are writing for a production house or publishing company, they get ample time to create engaging, unique, and fresh content. And when the creative juices flow, the writers can curate amazing content within a very short period.

4. Language

While writing academic content, you should be mindful of the language. Depending on the type of assignment, you will have to decide upon the jargon. The usage of informal language or slang is strictly prohibited. You cannot use colloquial expressions, idioms, and contractions extensively in academic writing.

But in the case of creative content, the writers can decide upon the tonality. One can use casual or semi-formal language. Creative writers can experiment with the language as per the demand of the content and the target audience. There are no hard and fast linguistic rules to be followed by creative writers.

Academic writers should be aware of the formats for different types of papers. They must adhere to the formatting guidelines such as APA, MLA, Harvard, or Chicago. These guidelines also can vary depending on the subject and even the professor’s demands.

The format for creative assignments is not as stringent as it is for academic projects. If you wish to create the desired impact on your audience with your creative content, you should keep the preferred formats in mind.

Wrapping Up

At the school or college level, you should be able to curate both academic and creative write-ups based on your project requirements. However, specialization in any of these niches can take you to great heights in your career.

We hope that the mentioned points have made it all clearer for you. Now, keep practicing your craft and have faith in your abilities .

Naomi Kizhner

On NaomiKizhner.com, I want to share tips, tricks, and quotes that will hopefully inspire someone who might be struggling. Also, I wish to help others find their true passion in life and cut out any negativity.

How To Learn Exponents In An Engaging Way?

Understanding Ontario’s Online High School Accreditation

Things to Consider When Choosing High School in Everett WA

Academic Writing and Creative Writing

Speer Writing Center

More Alike Than You Might Think

W hen you think of academic writing, what comes to your mind? Thesis statements? Topic sentences? Boring? While most answers could be considered correct, I bet you didn’t jump to the thought of creative writing. But I am here to change your mind.

Few of us think of creative writing and academic writing as similar. However, the two are much more related than initially meets the eye. Academic writing involves entering a conversation and trying to convince the other side that you are correct through specific rhetoric and an intentional argument. You produce good academic writing by creatively coming up with a way to convince your reader that you are correct. This construction requires creativity because writing is a science and an art. Any art form is creative, and academic writing is no exception. Academic writing is creative writing. If I haven’t convinced you yet, let me give you some specific reasons why academic writing should be considered creative.

Academic writing allows us to enter into a greater conversation . It’s true that academic writing is not creative writing in the sense that we get to construct our own story as we please, but academic writing does allow us to construct our own argument and choose a rhetorical style to best demonstrate our point. We get to engage with something greater than ourselves when we write.
Any type of writing is an art form with each sentence being crafted for a specific purpose . Because there is no one way to write, it becomes a creative process of puzzling together your syntax and your argument. English is unique in the way that is does not have one equation to solve to get the correct answer. Rather, it’s a process of explaining something in the most beautiful way possible. Writing is something you craft; no matter what type of writing it is, it’s an art.
You are in complete control of what you say . Any time you have the freedom, the responsibility, to put original thoughts on a paper, it becomes a creative process. Good academic writing is not boring. It’s an opportunity to see your thoughts come to life. If you do it well, it’s something to take great pride in. It becomes a work of art that you created. It’s original to you, and that is something to be proud of.

One of Ouachita’s beloved English professors, Dr. Benjamin Utter, argues for this very concept by stating, “Make no mistake, my friends, academic writing can also be—indeed, must also be—creative writing!”

When we start to think of academic writing as a form of creative writing, the task changes from an obligation to an opportunity. We are now given the chance to completely control our input into a greater conversation in a style that is completely our own. Hopefully, I have changed the way you think about academic writing, and the next time you are given a paper to write, it’s met with just a little more excitement. Let me ask you again. What comes to mind when you think of academic writing?

Haylee Cannon is a junior English education major; in spring 2021, she is available for sessions 7-9 PM on Mondays.

REQUEST INFO

PLAN YOUR VISIT

SCHOLARSHIPS

PRIVACY STATEMENT

Ouachita Baptist University's website uses cookies to improve user experience, analyze site usage and aid in student recruitment. To learn more, read Ouachita's privacy policy .

I understand

How Academic Writing Differs from Other Forms of Writing

#scribendiinc

Written by Scribendi

Have you ever wondered how academic writing stacks up against different styles of writing? If you have, then you're in good company, as many curious minds have pondered that same distinction. Let's get to it!

Formal Language versus Informal Language

Academic writing should use formal language that minimizes the use of contractions and colloquialisms and avoids slang terminology whenever possible. Casual language should only be used for emphasis.

Further, academic writing generally does not employ first person pronouns like "I" or "we," but different styles of writing do offer varying degrees of flexibility when it comes to the use of language, with a diverse range of informal elements sanctioned among different styles of writing.

Check out the image below to further explore the differences between textspeak, informal language, and formal language!

Structure and Form

Style guides like the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) and the Chicago Manual of Style are quintessential resources for scholars engaging in academic writing, with different style guides used for different fields of academia. These style guides standardize how references should be presented and how a document should be formatted, considering things like the margins, headings, typeface, and a myriad of other elements; some guides even prescribe the kind of language to be used for various circumstances encountered most frequently within the field.

All forms of academic writing will employ a structure that should allow the information presented to flow logically from one section to the next, regardless of the segments or formatting details used according to different styles of writing. For example, a scientific research article will typically include sections for the abstract, introduction, methods, analysis, results, and conclusions, whereas a paper written for the humanities will use a drastically different framework that can vary between artistic disciplines.

Different styles of writing contain various essential structural elements. This means that some styles, such as creative writing, grant significantly more freedom to the author than other styles, such as the style used for writing engineering documents.

The tone used to communicate ideas will significantly affect how readers interpret those ideas. It's vital that different styles of writing adopt different tones appropriate for the respective target audiences.

It's especially crucial within academic writing to eliminate all personal biases, both explicit and implicit. Academic writing must display objectivity. It's often best that academic writing avoids rhetorical tactics, like sweeping generalizations and emotional arguments, as this will ensure the highest degree of objectivity expected from academic writing.

At its core, academic writing should be clear, succinct, and objective; the exact criteria for these qualities differ among different styles of writing, but without these elements, the credibility of academic writing is often shaky.

The tone, language, and formality of academic writing will all depend on the target audience . As such, the target audience is a crucial consideration for effective academic writing.

In an academic setting, your audience could comprise researchers, professors, and/or experts in the field, but a casual piece might target your family and friends. The way we speak to figures of authority is very different from how we speak to siblings or friends, and communicating with these different groups when writing is no different; the word choices used in academic writing should suit the audience just as much as a person's vocabulary and gestures might shift for face-to-face communication according to these different groups.

For example, when the public is the intended audience for a piece of academic writing, it's probably a good idea to use simple language to explain any tricky terms used in the document. You might even consider substituting the academic jargon for another phrase more easily understood by the masses. This is true for all different styles of writing. The audience needs to understand what has been written!

If you're uncertain whether a particular term might be appropriate for your audience, try consulting a friend who is unfamiliar with the topic. This should clearly indicate how easy it might be for the average person to understand the concept.

The following piece of advice applies to all different styles of writing: leave time to edit! Regardless of the document, your work should be entirely free from errors. Proofreading for things like grammatical mistakes and punctuation errors and editing for elements such as the word choices and sentence structures will ensure that the writing is cohesive and clear. Further revision will ensure that unsightly grammatical errors and embarrassing typos never appear before the unforgiving public eye.

Have a peek at the image below to review the key aspects of academic writing (you can even download the image for reference). Once these elements have been nailed, you will have officially become a master of academic writing.

Image source: AboutImages/elements.envato.com

Make Sure Your Academic Writing Follows Conventions

Hire an expert academic editor , or get a free sample, about the author.

Scribendi’s in-house editors work with writers from all over the globe to perfect their writing. They know that no piece of writing is complete without a professional edit, and they love to see a good piece of writing turn into a great one after the editing process. Scribendi’s in-house editors are unrivaled in both experience and education, having collectively edited millions of words and obtained nearly 20 degrees collectively. They love consuming caffeinated beverages, reading books of various genres, and relaxing in quiet, dimly lit spaces.

Have You Read?

"The Complete Beginner's Guide to Academic Writing"

Five Habits to Avoid in Your Academic Writing

How to Write a Thesis or Dissertation

The Ultimate Journal Article Submission Checklist

Upload your file(s) so we can calculate your word count, or enter your word count manually.

We will also recommend a service based on the file(s) you upload.

English is not my first language. I need English editing and proofreading so that I sound like a native speaker.

I need to have my journal article, dissertation, or term paper edited and proofread, or I need help with an admissions essay or proposal.

I have a novel, manuscript, play, or ebook. I need editing, copy editing, proofreading, a critique of my work, or a query package.

I need editing and proofreading for my white papers, reports, manuals, press releases, marketing materials, and other business documents.

I need to have my essay, project, assignment, or term paper edited and proofread.

I want to sound professional and to get hired. I have a resume, letter, email, or personal document that I need to have edited and proofread.

Prices include your personal % discount.

Prices include % sales tax ( ).

Have a language expert improve your writing

Run a free plagiarism check in 10 minutes, generate accurate citations for free.

Knowledge Base
Academic writing

What Is Academic Writing? | Dos and Don’ts for Students

Academic writing is a formal style of writing used in universities and scholarly publications. You’ll encounter it in journal articles and books on academic topics, and you’ll be expected to write your essays , research papers , and dissertation in academic style.

Academic writing follows the same writing process as other types of texts, but it has specific conventions in terms of content, structure and style.

Instantly correct all language mistakes in your text

Upload your document to correct all your mistakes in minutes

Types of academic writing, academic writing is…, academic writing is not…, useful tools for academic writing, academic writing checklist.

Academics mostly write texts intended for publication, such as journal articles, reports, books, and chapters in edited collections. For students, the most common types of academic writing assignments are listed below.

Different fields of study have different priorities in terms of the writing they produce. For example, in scientific writing it’s crucial to clearly and accurately report methods and results; in the humanities, the focus is on constructing convincing arguments through the use of textual evidence. However, most academic writing shares certain key principles intended to help convey information as effectively as possible.

Whether your goal is to pass your degree, apply to graduate school , or build an academic career, effective writing is an essential skill.

Check for common mistakes

Use the best grammar checker available to check for common mistakes in your text.

Fix mistakes for free

Formal and unbiased

Academic writing aims to convey information in an impartial way. The goal is to base arguments on the evidence under consideration, not the author’s preconceptions. All claims should be supported with relevant evidence, not just asserted.

To avoid bias, it’s important to represent the work of other researchers and the results of your own research fairly and accurately. This means clearly outlining your methodology and being honest about the limitations of your research.

The formal style used in academic writing ensures that research is presented consistently across different texts, so that studies can be objectively assessed and compared with other research.

Because of this, it’s important to strike the right tone with your language choices. Avoid informal language , including slang, contractions , clichés, and conversational phrases:

Also , a lot of the findings are a little unreliable.
Moreover , many of the findings are somewhat unreliable.

Clear and precise

It’s important to use clear and precise language to ensure that your reader knows exactly what you mean. This means being as specific as possible and avoiding vague language :

People have been interested in this thing for a long time .
Researchers have been interested in this phenomenon for at least 10 years .

Avoid hedging your claims with words like “perhaps,” as this can give the impression that you lack confidence in your arguments. Reflect on your word choice to ensure it accurately and directly conveys your meaning:

This could perhaps suggest that…
This suggests that…

Specialist language or jargon is common and often necessary in academic writing, which generally targets an audience of other academics in related fields.

However, jargon should be used to make your writing more concise and accurate, not to make it more complicated. A specialist term should be used when:

It conveys information more precisely than a comparable non-specialist term.
Your reader is likely to be familiar with the term.
The term is commonly used by other researchers in your field.

The best way to familiarize yourself with the kind of jargon used in your field is to read papers by other researchers and pay attention to their language.

Focused and well structured

An academic text is not just a collection of ideas about a topic—it needs to have a clear purpose. Start with a relevant research question or thesis statement , and use it to develop a focused argument. Only include information that is relevant to your overall purpose.

A coherent structure is crucial to organize your ideas. Pay attention to structure at three levels: the structure of the whole text, paragraph structure, and sentence structure.

Well sourced

Academic writing uses sources to support its claims. Sources are other texts (or media objects like photographs or films) that the author analyzes or uses as evidence. Many of your sources will be written by other academics; academic writing is collaborative and builds on previous research.

It’s important to consider which sources are credible and appropriate to use in academic writing. For example, citing Wikipedia is typically discouraged. Don’t rely on websites for information; instead, use academic databases and your university library to find credible sources.

You must always cite your sources in academic writing. This means acknowledging whenever you quote or paraphrase someone else’s work by including a citation in the text and a reference list at the end.

There are many different citation styles with different rules. The most common styles are APA , MLA , and Chicago . Make sure to consistently follow whatever style your institution requires. If you don’t cite correctly, you may get in trouble for plagiarism . A good plagiarism checker can help you catch any issues before it’s too late.

You can easily create accurate citations in APA or MLA style using our Citation Generators.

APA Citation Generator MLA Citation Generator

Correct and consistent

As well as following the rules of grammar, punctuation, and citation, it’s important to consistently apply stylistic conventions regarding:

How to write numbers
Introducing abbreviations
Using verb tenses in different sections
Capitalization of terms and headings
Spelling and punctuation differences between UK and US English

In some cases there are several acceptable approaches that you can choose between—the most important thing is to apply the same rules consistently and to carefully proofread your text before you submit. If you don’t feel confident in your own proofreading abilities, you can get help from Scribbr’s professional proofreading services or Grammar Checker .

Academic writing generally tries to avoid being too personal. Information about the author may come in at some points—for example in the acknowledgements or in a personal reflection—but for the most part the text should focus on the research itself.

Always avoid addressing the reader directly with the second-person pronoun “you.” Use the impersonal pronoun “one” or an alternate phrasing instead for generalizations:

As a teacher, you must treat your students fairly.
As a teacher, one must treat one’s students fairly.
Teachers must treat their students fairly.

The use of the first-person pronoun “I” used to be similarly discouraged in academic writing, but it is increasingly accepted in many fields. If you’re unsure whether to use the first person, pay attention to conventions in your field or ask your instructor.

When you refer to yourself, it should be for good reason. You can position yourself and describe what you did during the research, but avoid arbitrarily inserting your personal thoughts and feelings:

In my opinion…
I think that…
I like/dislike…
I conducted interviews with…
I argue that…
I hope to achieve…

Long-winded

Many students think their writing isn’t academic unless it’s over-complicated and long-winded. This isn’t a good approach—instead, aim to be as concise and direct as possible.

If a term can be cut or replaced with a more straightforward one without affecting your meaning, it should be. Avoid redundant phrasings in your text, and try replacing phrasal verbs with their one-word equivalents where possible:

Interest in this phenomenon carried on in the year 2018 .
Interest in this phenomenon continued in 2018 .

Repetition is a part of academic writing—for example, summarizing earlier information in the conclusion—but it’s important to avoid unnecessary repetition. Make sure that none of your sentences are repeating a point you’ve already made in different words.

Emotive and grandiose

An academic text is not the same thing as a literary, journalistic, or marketing text. Though you’re still trying to be persuasive, a lot of techniques from these styles are not appropriate in an academic context. Specifically, you should avoid appeals to emotion and inflated claims.

Though you may be writing about a topic that’s sensitive or important to you, the point of academic writing is to clearly communicate ideas, information, and arguments, not to inspire an emotional response. Avoid using emotive or subjective language :

This horrible tragedy was obviously one of the worst catastrophes in construction history.
The injury and mortality rates of this accident were among the highest in construction history.

Students are sometimes tempted to make the case for their topic with exaggerated , unsupported claims and flowery language. Stick to specific, grounded arguments that you can support with evidence, and don’t overstate your point:

Charles Dickens is the greatest writer of the Victorian period, and his influence on all subsequent literature is enormous.
Charles Dickens is one of the best-known writers of the Victorian period and has had a significant influence on the development of the English novel.

There are a a lot of writing tools that will make your writing process faster and easier. We’ll highlight three of them below.

Paraphrasing tool

AI writing tools like ChatGPT and a paraphrasing tool can help you rewrite text so that your ideas are clearer, you don’t repeat yourself, and your writing has a consistent tone.

They can also help you write more clearly about sources without having to quote them directly. Be warned, though: it’s still crucial to give credit to all sources in the right way to prevent plagiarism .

Grammar checker

Writing tools that scan your text for punctuation, spelling, and grammar mistakes. When it detects a mistake the grammar checke r will give instant feedback and suggest corrections. Helping you write clearly and avoid common mistakes .

You can use a summarizer if you want to condense text into its most important and useful ideas. With a summarizer tool, you can make it easier to understand complicated sources. You can also use the tool to make your research question clearer and summarize your main argument.

Here's why students love Scribbr's proofreading services

Discover proofreading & editing

Use the checklist below to assess whether you have followed the rules of effective academic writing.

Checklist: Academic writing

I avoid informal terms and contractions .

I avoid second-person pronouns (“you”).

I avoid emotive or exaggerated language.

I avoid redundant words and phrases.

I avoid unnecessary jargon and define terms where needed.

I present information as precisely and accurately as possible.

I use appropriate transitions to show the connections between my ideas.

My text is logically organized using paragraphs .

Each paragraph is focused on a single idea, expressed in a clear topic sentence .

Every part of the text relates to my central thesis or research question .

I support my claims with evidence.

I use the appropriate verb tenses in each section.

I consistently use either UK or US English .

I format numbers consistently.

I cite my sources using a consistent citation style .

Your text follows the most important rules of academic style. Make sure it's perfect with the help of a Scribbr editor!

Is this article helpful?

Other students also liked.

Taboo words in academic writing
How to write more concisely
Transition Words & Phrases | List & Examples

Unlimited Academic AI-Proofreading

✔ Document error-free in 5minutes ✔ Unlimited document corrections ✔ Specialized in correcting academic texts

APPLY NOW REQUEST INFO

Apply Today

Ready to apply to Penn LPS Online? Apply Now

Learn more about Penn LPS Online

Request More Information

The difference between academic and professional writing: a helpful guide

Photo of a woman taking an online writing course

Whether you’re a current or prospective student at Penn LPS Online, you’ve likely written your fair share of academic papers and business emails. But you’re not alone if you still have questions about the differences and similarities between academic and professional writing. This overview contains a summary of everything you need to know about the intricacies of these critical forms of writing.

What is the difference between academic and professional writing?

One of the key differences between academic writing and business writing is the goal of each endeavor. Because the readers are often students, professors, or scholars in academic writing, the goal is to present and analyze information on a specific subject and increase understanding. With professional writing, the goal is generally to communicate information or influence the opinions of managers, coworkers, clients, or job prospects. While academic writing is strictly formal, it’s common to use the first-person point of view in many standard business communications. Lastly, academic writing requires adherence to strict formatting and source requirements, but there is generally more flexibility in this area when it comes to professional documents.

Read on to dive deeper into the ins and outs of academic and professional writing.

Academic writing

The hallmarks of academic writing include the use of the third-person point of view, a logical flow, an emphasis on facts and ideas, and an authoritative, formal tone. This writing style is objective, avoids casual language and slang, offers insightful analysis, and includes citations for research backed by reliable sources such as scientific studies or journal articles. While students and professors routinely use academic writing, scientists also use it to describe their research findings, as do literary critics. There are four distinct types of this formal writing style: descriptive, analytical, persuasive, and critical.

Descriptive writing

Descriptive writing is one of the most simple and ubiquitous types of scholarly writing. You can see examples of this writing style in essays, research papers, or lab reports for several fields of study. The primary goal of descriptive writing is to use precise language to summarize and describe information, such as the result of an experiment or a section of prose.

Analytical writing

An example of analytical writing is an academic paper that compares two or more complex ideas or theories. Although a part of analytical writing is descriptive, it requires going a step further to reorganize and deconstruct facts into categories, groups, types, or relationships that provide context. As such, to author a successful analytical essay, you need to start with a strong outline.

Persuasive writing

Persuasive writing takes analytical writing to the next level. Not only must you structure a coherent, fact-based argument, but you must also include your own point of view. This could be a recommendation, interpretation of findings, or an evaluation of someone else’s work, but the claims you make need to be credible and backed by evidence.

Critical writing

This formal style is commonly used in research, advanced undergraduate, or postgraduate writing. It includes the tenets of persuasive writing with the supplement of at least one other point of view (in addition to your own) on a topic or issue. For example, if you’re writing a thesis, you may explain a researcher’s analysis from a journal article, critique the merits of their argument, and provide your own alternative explanation.

Professional writing

Professional writing refers to any written communication that takes place in an organizational context. A primary objective of professional or business writing is to effectively educate, instruct, or persuade an audience via emails, newsletters, memos, press releases, project proposals, business plans, executive summaries, letters, and resumés. As is the case with all writing styles, proper grammar usage—including syntax, spelling, and parts of speech—is essential in professional writing, as are the three points below.

Clarity and concision

One of the main requirements for successful professional writing is to use clear, precise language so that your message is easily understood. It’s also important to avoid clichés and hyperbole and stick to simple, concise statements that efficiently share concrete information. Not only will this save you time, but it will also benefit the reader’s comprehension and enjoyment.

Active and purposeful

Whether you’re creating a quick email or preparing an in-depth report, every piece of business writing should start with a well-defined objective or purpose. To keep your communication to the point, you should use an active voice, choose strong action verbs, and avoid qualifiers or passive phrases such as “I think.”

Personal tone

Although professional writing should have a courteous tone, the level of formality does not need to be equal to that used in an academic setting. Documents such as business plans should have a formal structure, but with emails or online chats with colleagues, a friendly, polite tone and positive phrasing can go a long way.

The overlap between academic and professional writing

Although there are distinct differences, there are also many similarities between academic and professional writing. Both writing styles require that you use proper grammar and punctuation, clear and precise language, and a serious tone, along with well-developed ideas with clear objectives. Whether you’re writing for business or academic purposes, it’s also important to avoid exaggeration, emotionally charged expressions, and jargon, as they dilute the effectiveness of your communication. In everything from research papers and essays to memos and fundraising letters, it’s essential to ensure that the information you convey is both accurate and relevant. And you should always have a clearly defined goal for academic or business writing, such as to describe, inform, analyze, or persuade.

If you’re somewhat of a writing novice and looking to improve your skills, then consider PROW 1030: Introduction to Academic Reading, Writing, and Research and PROW 1000: Fundamentals of Professional Writing at Penn LPS Online. The former is designed to expand your abilities and build your confidence as you learn how to plan and execute a well-structured argument, write with logical coherence, and polish your work to ensure readability. The latter provides an introduction to critically analyzing any writing situation and creating purposeful messaging to address it. With targeted exercises to improve grammar, mechanics, and precision, you’ll work to enhance the quality and effectiveness of your writing practice.

If you want to expand and refine your existing repertoire, look to PROW 3030: Advanced Academic Writing and PROW 3010: The Power of Storytelling . The former focuses on improving your ability to translate readings, research, and findings into meaningful academic content. This includes employing time management and reading strategies and enhancing your understanding of the nuances of academic genres and writing styles. The latter explores storytelling as a means of conveying complex and memorable information. Learn how to use narrative studies as a research tool for gathering data and a rhetorical strategy for generating emotional appeal, action, and brand identity.

Explore the professional writing certificate at Penn LPS Online

The 4-course Certificate in Professional Writing at Penn LPS Online offers practical applications that provide an accelerated understanding of the art of effective business communication—and tips to help you become a master of grammar, concision, and clarity. As mentioned above, whether you’re looking to learn the fundamentals or you’re already a seasoned writer, these Ivy League writing courses will help you take your skills to the next level. Discover innovative findings in the field, receive extensive coaching and feedback, and learn how to incorporate your personal or corporate brand story into every piece of communication.

The Certificate in Professional Writing prepares you to:

Analyze different audiences, scenarios, and contexts to better shape your messaging
Develop effective rhetorical strategies and skills to persuade personal, professional, and social audiences
Learn how use complex multimedia texts that incorporate language, image, and sound to produce a coherent, engaging message
Grow your empathic and analytical skills to integrate and build upon other viewpoints
Explore how to engage the senses to successfully convey information through social media
Understand how to use effective visualization to make complex material more accessible

Ready to get started? If you have yet to do so, apply to Penn LPS Online today and enroll in the Certificate in Professional Writing . Or view our course guide to see what’s available in any upcoming term.

Technical vs. Academic, Creative, Business, and Literary Writing: What Is the Difference?

Technical writing is all about the content that focuses on providing detailed and clear information on the product or service. It contains a factual and straightforward message. Technical writers convert complex technical information into useful and easy-to-understand language. You should know that there are different types of technical writing , for example, online tutorials , instruction manuals, API documentation, and so on.

The main idea of all types of technical writing is to help the end-user understand any technical aspect of the product or service.

In addition to technical writing, there are many types of other writings, such as creative, business, and literary writing. All of them have distinctive features. Let’s compare these writings to technical writing and see what they have in common and what makes them different.

Technical Writing vs. Academic Writing

Some people might think these two types of writing are similar. The truth is that these are two completely different categories. It may seem that academic writing should be more complicated since it is focused on some specific and narrow discipline. Indeed, this type of writing may describe very complex concepts and provide specialized knowledge.

Technical writing is intended to describe technical information. It may vary depending on the specifics of a particular industry.

Academic writing is aimed to present a certain point of view on a particular subject. Academic papers show results of research and demonstrate someone’s knowledge. In turn, technical writing explains something to readers and informs them. Technical papers often explain how to use a particular product or service. Technical documents can also describe procedures used by the manufacturer to perform certain tasks. What technical and academic writing have in common is that both types may contain jargon.

Academic and technical writing target different audiences. Academic papers are usually intended for fellow scholars. However, there are also academic pieces of writing intended for a broad audience. Technical writing is intended for people who use a product or service.

Technical Writing vs. Creative Writing

Creative writing is a piece of writing for entertainment and education. It focuses on imaginative and symbolic content, and creative papers are published to entertain, provoke, inspire the user. Technical writing, on the other hand, is not done to amuse its reader. It is used to inform someone. Some technical articles are sometimes made to trigger the reader to take action.

There is no such specific reader who prefers creative papers. Anyone can read the creative paper if they want to, and it gives readers a theme, message, moral, or lesson which is helpful in their real lives or provides temporary entertainment to the reader.

Creative writing has many genres and subgenres. If you want to write creatively, you should have talent. Of course, talent alone is not enough - practice is everything here.

It doesn’t mean that creativity can’t be used in technical writing. Technical articles contain so many facts and data that they can bore and overwhelm readers. This is where creativity in technical writing might come in handy. A tech writer should be creative to encourage their readers to continue reading the document.

Technical Writing vs. Business Writing

Business writing is just about any kind of writing people do at work, if we are not talking about journalism or creative writing. Business writing includes reports, emails, proposals, white papers, minutes, business cases, letters, copywriting, bids, and tenders.

However, many reports, bids, and proposals contain technical data and specifications. So business writers may find themselves editing technical content, and technical writers may be called upon to write persuasive documents for a non-technical audience.

The main objective for both these writings is to inform, be useful, build something or operate the equipment.

The language needs to be clear, concise, and accurate. Wordiness, repetition, and unfamiliar words that the audience may not understand do not belong in either business or technical writing.

Of course, you can use technical jargon in documents where the audience has the same technical background. But too much jargon tends to be a huge problem. So, if in doubt, avoid jargon or explain it.

Some business documents need to be persuasive, whereas technical documents tend to be neutral and objective.

However, there are differences in the content, language, and style of technical and business writing. More on technical writing in business is in our article What Value Technical Writers Bring to Business?

Technical Writing vs. Literary Writing

The main difference between technical writing and literary writing is that literary language is used in literary work while technical writing is used in writing for a particular field. Literary writing is used in fiction. Examples of literary writing include poems, novels, short stories, dramas, etc. The language used in literary writing is creative, imaginative and uses literary techniques like hyperbole, personification, similes, metaphors, etc.

Technical writing is the style of writing that is mostly observed in non-fiction. The language used in technical writing is direct, factual, and straightforward.

Literary writing appeals to emotions. Technical writing appeals to the mind.

Technical writing is aimed at people who have knowledge about a particular subject area. Literary writing is written for general readers.

Every writing style is important in its own way. They are used by writers depending on the subject matter, purpose, language, and target audience. Below is the table that summarizes what you found out about the types of writing mentioned in this article:

It doesn’t matter what you write: essays, business materials, fiction, letters, or just notes in your journal, your writing will be at its best if you stay focused on your purpose and target audience.

Good luck with your technical writing! ClickHelp Team Author, host and deliver documentation across platforms and devices

Give it a Try!

Mind if we email you once a month?

Soft Skills

11 minute read

Business Writing vs. Academic Writing: What’s the Difference?

Kat Boogaard

Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Pocket Email

Regardless of particular style or format, written information has the same goal: to present information to an audience in a clear way.

So, that must mean good writing is good writing, right?

Not exactly. When you compare business writing to academic writing, for example, there are actually some significant differences that you should be aware of.

Familiarizing yourself with what separates these two distinct writing styles will help you write in a way that’s the most effective for your intended purpose and audience.

Think about it this way: You wouldn’t give a technical manual to a child and call it a children’s book. The same holds true for business and academic writing—there are key differences in style and structure.

So, what exactly makes business writing different from academic writing? Well, roll up your sleeves, because we’re diving into some of those key differentiators below.

What is business writing?

There’s a lot of writing that happens in the business world. But, if you think this means you need to be a skilled author capable of stringing together eloquent prose and flowery language, think again.

As this fact sheet from the University of Oregon explains, business writing is transactional. It describes what actions need to be taken to solve problems, achieve company goals, and so on.

From reports to emails to press releases, business writing comes in many shapes and sizes. The recipients of business writing also run the gamut—from board members to colleagues to customers to shareholders.

Because of that, there are tons of smaller details that separate business writing from academic writing. But, the overarching one you should remember is the purpose: Business writing is intended to direct action.

Want to learn even more about business writing? Check out our business writing course !

What is academic writing?

So, what about academic writing? Take a minute to think about the various writing projects—like research papers and book reports—that you needed to complete during your schooling. You’ll quickly realize that the intention of academic writing is far different from business writing.

Rather than educating and informing others, the goal of academic writing is for students to educate themselves. They write to learn as well as to showcase what they’ve learned—and often earn a grade for doing so.

Some academic writing is then utilized to inform others (like a thesis, research paper, or dissertation). However, the original purpose of that writing work was to have the author learn something through the writing process.

In most cases, students write these academic pieces for one particular audience member: their professor or instructor.

Business writing vs. academic writing: how they differ

Obviously, the purposes behind business writing and academic writing are quite different. But what about those other details that we mentioned earlier?

Let’s dig into the numerous other differences that come up when you compare business writing to academic writing.

1. Tone and style

While both styles of writing can be somewhat formal from time to time, academic writing is typically much more so and is written from a third person perspective . Students often receive a grade on their academic writing, so you can bet there isn’t slang or jargon of any type.

However, because business writing is more oriented toward action, it leans less on long sentences and a complex vocabulary and instead focuses on short and clear sentences (and frequently, bullet points)—making it seem far less rigid and formal than academic writing.

With business writing, the audience needs to be able to extrapolate the meaning of the text and the resulting action steps without needing to wade through complicated sentences and lengthy paragraphs.

Tone and style of academic writing:

Formal, with longer sentences and well-developed paragraphs. Here’s an example:

According to recent research, audiences are far more responsive to advertising messages that portray models and actors within their own demographic. With this reasoning, one can assume that organizations should employ a diverse range of actors and models to appear in their advertising campaigns to ensure that these commercial messages resonate with a large percentage of viewers.

Tone and style of business writing:

Emphasis on keeping things short, clear, and as actionable as possible. Here’s an example:

Research shows that audiences connect more with advertising messages that showcase people in their own demographic. We should explore talent firms with diverse pools of models and actors.

2. Document structure

Reflect on most of the writing you did during your education, and this common essay format will probably pop into your head: introduction, body, conclusion. That was the tried and true formula you leaned on to complete most of your academic writing.

However, business writing has far more flexibility—mostly because there are so many different types and styles of business writing.

This means that writing in a business setting offers far more wiggle room to structure the writing to the appropriate purpose and audience. It doesn’t always stick to a specific approach the way most academic writing does.

Structure of academic writing:

Introduction, body of the written work, and a conclusion.

Structure of Business Writing:

Varies greatly depending on what you’re writing. An email will be structured much differently than a performance review, for example.

3. Audience

We touched on this briefly already, but the intended audience is another major component that separates business and academic writing.

With academic writing, students write for one crucial audience member: their instructor, who will be dishing out a grade on that written assignment. Occasionally other people will review that written work, but it’s almost always someone else who works within academia.

Business writing, in contrast, can be read and reviewed by a huge array of people—from colleagues to customers to board members to shareholders to competitors to regulatory agencies.

The list goes on and on. This is partly because the aim is to keep business writing simple and straightforward. When you aren’t sure whose eyeballs will eventually land on it, it’s best to make things explicitly clear, so that all parties can comprehend it.

Audience of academic writing:

Audience of business writing:

Almost anybody!

4. Document design

This is another area where academic writing is far more rigid than business writing—mostly because the design of these written works is often dictated by the instructor. You remember the good ol’ days of 12-point Times New Roman font, double spacing, and appropriately-sized margins, right?

Again, with business writing, authors have far more flexibility to design their work in a way that’s most suitable to their purpose and intended audience.

Perhaps that’s a highly-visual business report with lots of graphs and charts to illustrate a point. Or, maybe it’s a one-page document with headings, subheadings, and bullet points to allow for easy skimming and scanning.

The design of business writing comes in many shapes and sizes, while academic writing typically falls into a standardized mold.

Design of academic writing:

Highly standardized with requirements for text style, font size, spacing, and margins.

Design of business writing:

Flexible, depending on the purpose of the document and the audience.

5. Writing process

If you’d ask me what my writing process looked like for any academic papers, I’d tell you this: It was many late nights spent bleary-eyed alone in front of my computer, with a mug of lukewarm coffee by my side.

Sound familiar? Much of the academic writing process takes place totally alone. The assignment is dished out by the professor, and the student is tasked with cranking out that document by the deadline in order to earn an individual grade.

Things don’t work that way in the business world, where writing is a far more collaborative process. When working on business writing, you’ll likely lean on the insights and expertise of numerous different people both inside and outside your organization to pull together something that makes sense.

Additionally, the process of writing an academic paper typically involved plenty of solo research. But, in a business environment, you usually tackle writing with far more existing context and background information received through meetings, previous projects, and other efforts. Most of the time, you aren’t approaching that subject totally cold.

Process for academic writing:

Research and writing is done mostly solo.

Process for Business Writing:

A collaborative effort, with plenty of groundwork already laid for the author.

6. Citations and sources

Sigh, citations. I remember cringing every time I needed to put together that detailed resources page for my academic papers. You remember the ones, right? They included everything from the authors' names, to the published date, to the volume number. The thought alone still sends a chill down my spine.

With academic writing, students are required to cite their sources using a highly standardized format—often MLA or APA style .

However, the rules for citing sources are far more lax with business writing and can often vary greatly depending on your company’s norms and regulations for quoting various sources.

Citations and sources for academic writing:

Highly standardized and regulated.

Citations and Sources for Business Writing:

Can vary based on the rules set by the individual company.

7. Legal considerations

While students who produce academic writing absolutely need to avoid plagiarism of any kind, it’s not often that their written work will be used in any sort of court cases, legal proceedings, or anything of the sort.

But, in a business setting? People should be aware that the written work they produce is likely now the property of their employer and thus could be used as evidence in this manner if the need arises—whether it’s something like a wrongful termination lawsuit or even an audit.

For that reason, ensuring accuracy is crucial whenever you’re writing, but particularly when you’re producing a document for your organization.

Legal considerations for academic writing:

Avoiding plagiarism is the top legal concern.

Legal Considerations for business writing:

Operate with the assumption that whatever you write could come back in a variety of legal matters. I won’t say it’s common, but it’s always better to play it safe!

Over to you

As we’ve highlighted here, there are plenty of differences between academic writing and business writing. In fact, this isn’t even all of them—we’ve barely scratched the surface.

You can dig into even more elements that separate these two styles with this fact sheet from the University of Oregon . It does a great job of breaking things down in an easily digestible way, and we used it as a resource for many of the differences we outlined here.

If you’re eager to learn even more about business writing in particular and how you can level up your own game at work? Make sure to check out our business writing course to dive into the nitty-gritty of how to be a top-notch writer in a business setting.

Gain the soft skills you need to succeed

Start learning for free with GoSkills courses

Loved this? Subscribe, and join 442,128 others.

Get our latest content before everyone else. Unsubscribe whenever.

Kat is a writer specializing in career, self-development, and productivity topics. When she escapes her computer, she enjoys reading, hiking, golfing, and dishing out tips for prospective freelancers on her website.

Recommended

How to Hire the Right Candidate for the Right Job

When using the right strategies, hiring the right job candidate can be seamless and effective.

7 Essential Skills To Help Startups Meet New Challenges

Startups and SMEs face specific challenges that threaten their survival. Make sure your business' growth doesn't lead to its downfall with these 7 tips.

The Future of Sales Careers: How Training, Methods, and Software are Changing

The nature of sales has evolved due to automation, specialization, and changing consumer expectations. This guide explores how such changes are reshaping sales careers.

Home » Education » Difference Between Academic Writing and General Writing

Difference Between Academic Writing and General Writing

Main difference – academic writing vs general writing.

Writing is an action that we all engage in our day to day lives. There are different styles of writing such as literary writing, technical writing , creative writing , academic writing, etc. Academic writing is the style of writing we use in academic disciplines, which requires a special set of skills. The main difference between academic writing and general writing is that academic writing is very formal, objective and concise in comparison to other styles of writing.

This article looks at,

1. What is Academic Writing? – Features, Choice of Language, and Use

2. What is General Writing? – Features, Choice of Language, and Use

3. What is the difference between Academic Writing and General Writing?

Difference Between Academic Writing and General Writing - Academic vs General Writing Comparison

What is Academic Writing

Academic writing is the style of writing we use in the field of academics. Research projects, term papers, conference papers, essays, abstracts, reports, etc. in various disciplines are written in this style. The main difference between academic writing and other styles of writings is that it is more formal and structured. Academic writing also has its own set of rules and structures. The target audience or the readers of academic writing is the scholars of the same discipline.

Academic writing is generally objective, concise and impersonal. It is also more complex than general writing and may consist of technical jargon. Precision is also another very important factor in academic writing. Punctuation and grammar should be strictly followed. Contractions (don’t, can’t, etc.), slang or informal words, clichés, unnecessary filler words such as really, very, etc. should also be avoided in academic writing.

Referencing and citations is another major difference in academic writing. In academic writing, the writer is expected to support his argument by citing evidence by other sources. However, this evidence from other sources always has to be properly attributed according to an accepted style guide such as APA, MLA , Chicago and Harvard referencing .

Difference Between Academic Writing and General Writing

What is General Writing

Writing for non-academic and no-technical purposes can be described as general writing. This is the style of writing we use in our day to day life. Diary and journal entries, letters, emails, newspaper articles, advertisements, posters, etc. are all written in a general writing style. Although general writing also requires correct spelling and grammar, it is not as strict as academic writing. In addition, there are no restrictions on the use of slang, contractions, clichés and other words. General writing can be informal, formal or semi-formal, but it’d be simpler and easier to understand than academic writing. There is also no need to use strict referencing and citation in general writing.

Main Difference - Academic Writing vs General Writing

Academic Writing is used in research projects, conference papers, essays, abstracts, reports, etc.

General Writing is used in letters, emails, newspaper articles, diary and journal entries, etc.

Academic Writing uses formal, objective, concise language.

General Writing uses informal, semi-formal language.

Academic Writing does not use slang.

General Writing can use slang.

Contractions

Academic Writing does not use contractions.

General Writing can use contractions.

Referencing and citations

Academic Writing always uses referencing and citations.

General Writing does not usually use referencing and citations.

Image Courtesy: Pixbay

About the Author: Hasa

Hasanthi is a seasoned content writer and editor with over 8 years of experience. Armed with a BA degree in English and a knack for digital marketing, she explores her passions for literature, history, culture, and food through her engaging and informative writing.

The an Essay vs Creative Writing: Difference and Comparison

Creative writing is free writing that goes outside the bounds of other forms of literature and shows imagination and invention.

A formal essay is a piece of writing that presents the ideas of the author or proposes an argument, expresses an emotion or initiates a debate.

Key Takeaways An essay is a structured piece of writing that presents an argument or analysis of a topic, while creative writing focuses on imaginative storytelling and explores emotions and experiences. Essays follow a specific format, such as an introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion, while creative writing has more flexibility in its structure and style. The purpose of an essay is to inform, persuade, or educate the reader, while the purpose of creative writing is to entertain or evoke emotions.

Types of essays

Essays can be descriptive, persuasive, narrative or expository, and each type has certain structuring requirements. The main reason for these requirements is to make the material clear to the reader.

The introduction gives readers a glimpse into what topic the essay will discuss. The body fleshes out the topic and offers mounting evidence in the form of specifics to support the arguments of the writer.

Types of Creative writing

There are many different types of creative writing, from poems and haikus to short stories and memoirs. Creative writing may include first, second and third-person accounts.

Some stories are historical and use real characters from history, but the authors have the freedom to invent and do not have to stick to the facts.

As long as the writer uses imagery to create an environment or a mood and makes a person feel a certain way, it can be classified as creative writing.

Essay writing help from professionals

Students getting an education at college find that time constraints prevent them from doing their best work when writing an essay. Using the reliable essay writing service from EduBirdie can help them to cope.

The purpose makes the difference

Creative writing does not need to adhere to any specific format whereas the structure and execution of a formal essay have to be done according to a number of stringent guidelines.

Formal essays are written to inform readers, whereas creative writing aims to entertain, inspire, and evoke emotions.

A transition to academic writing can be difficult

It can be difficult for students to transition from writing high school essays to writing more formal academic essays. They may be unused to all the requirements for writing academic essays and struggle with many aspects.

It can be tricky to switch between academic writing and creative writing. Students used to creative writing may end up writing an academic essay more informally using colloquialisms and more.

Those who enjoy researching a specific topic and imparting their knowledge to others may gravitate towards formal essay writing whereas those who enjoy telling a story and entertaining people may prefer creative writing.

Professional essay writing online

The essay writing service from Uk .EduBirdie can help students at college with a thesis or dissertation. Professional writers are pre-vetted and understand what’s required when doing academic writing.

Writing academic essays

When writing an academic essay, it is necessary to follow standard citation practices. Students can use any reliable source as long as they cite it properly.

The language used in an academic essay can sometimes be niche jargon because the readers are well-versed in the topic.

Academic essays have a specific goal, and this will dictate the type of essay. It has to be precise, concise and accurate.

When students begin to understand exactly what’s required, it gives them a chance to distinguish themselves and gain excellent grades.

Last Updated : 05 July, 2023

I’ve put so much effort writing this blog post to provide value to you. It’ll be very helpful for me, if you consider sharing it on social media or with your friends/family. SHARING IS ♥️

Emma Smith holds an MA degree in English from Irvine Valley College. She has been a Journalist since 2002, writing articles on the English language, Sports, and Law. Read more about me on her bio page .

Share this post!

23 thoughts on “the an essay vs creative writing: difference and comparison”.

The ability to adapt to different writing styles and purposes is a crucial skill for aspiring writers. Mastering the nuances between formal essays and creative writing can significantly enhance a writer’s communicative prowess.

Well said, Sophie69. The versatility to transition between different writing styles and understand their distinct purposes is a hallmark of an accomplished writer. Recognizing the unique features of each writing form is indispensable.

The use of niche jargon in academic essays, as well as their precise and concise nature, indeed sets them apart from the more expressive and narrative-driven nature of creative writing. This analytical versus expressive dichotomy should be recognized by aspiring writers.

Absolutely, Udavies. It’s essential for students to understand the distinctions between academic and creative writing, as each serves distinctly different purposes and requires differing writing styles.

The transition from creative writing to academic essays can be challenging, particularly in adjusting to the formal tone, precise language, and stringent requirements of academic writing. Professional essay writing services can provide essential support in navigating this transition.

I agree, Mjackson. The ability to recognize the differences in audience, language, and purpose between creative and academic writing is essential for students to effectively adapt their writing style. Professional services can provide valuable assistance in this regard.

Indeed, Mjackson. The guidance and expertise offered by professional writing services can aid students in developing their academic writing skills while understanding the nuances of formal writing. Transitioning between writing styles requires a keen understanding of their unique features.

The distinction between the level of flexibility in structure and style for creative writing compared to the stringent format of essays is significant. This further reinforces the importance of understanding the purpose of each writing form in order to effectively communicate ideas.

Well articulated, Tracy26. The varying purposes of creative writing and formal essays necessitate distinct approaches to expression, and understanding these differences is pivotal for aspiring writers.

Indeed, Tracy26. The purpose of communication plays a fundamental role in determining the appropriate writing style. Being aware of the form and function of different writing styles is essential in academia.

The requirement to cite sources and use niche jargon in academic essays demonstrates the precision and accuracy expected in formal writing. This stands in contrast to the expressive and imaginative nature of creative writing, highlighting the importance of understanding these distinctions.

One key difference between essay writing and creative writing that was not mentioned is that essay writing requires more formal tone and use of evidence to support arguments while creative writing can be more expressive and imaginative, and does not require verifiable facts.

This is an important distinction, Vbell. Creative writing involves a more subjective perspective, and the expression of emotions and ideas does not need to be backed up with external evidence.

I agree with your point, Vbell. The difference in the tone and evidentiary requirements is significant when comparing these two forms of writing. The freedom of expression in creative writing is certainly a notable contrast to formal essay writing.

The differentiation between academic and creative writing is not only in the format but also extends to the intended audience and the language used. Recognizing these distinctions can guide writers in adopting appropriate writing styles based on their objectives.

You’ve made an important point, Vanessa51. The audience and language considerations are critical factors that influence the choice of writing style. Writers must be mindful of these differences for effective communication.

I completely agree, Vanessa51. The need to adapt writing styles based on the intended audience and purpose is essential for writers to effectively convey their messages. Understanding these differences is foundational for aspiring writers.

The transition from high school essays to more formal academic essays is indeed challenging, as students need to become accustomed to the stringent formatting and citations required. It’s interesting to note that formal essays are focused on informing, while creative writing is about entertaining and evoking emotions.

Well said, Sienna39. The shift from creative to academic writing can be difficult, yet understanding the differences in purpose and structure between these two types of writing is crucial for student success.

The shift from creative to academic writing can be challenging, given the differing requirements and purposes of each writing style. Seeking help from professional essay writing services can ease this transition for students navigating the complexities of formal writing.

Absolutely, Kdavies. The guidance and assistance provided by professional writing services can be invaluable for students seeking to strengthen their formal writing skills. Understanding the nuances between creative and academic writing is paramount for their success.

Professional essay writing services can significantly help students with their academic writing, especially when faced with time constraints. Understanding the divergences in purpose and structure between formal essays and creative writing is crucial for those pursuing higher education.

You’re absolutely right, Hollie. Embracing the differences in writing styles and purposes is crucial for effective communication. Additionally, the availability of professional writing services can provide vital assistance to students.

Legal & Academic Writing

Legal Writing

Writing is foundational to the practice of law. Everything that takes place in a courtroom, for example, begins with writing. Every agreement, non-disclosure, and contract between business partners rests on writing. In today’s world, legal firms work more and more with international clients, as well as with other international firms. Being prepared for these types of cases not only ensures you will achieve bigger and better deals, but it will also certainly build up your reputation for being an experienced and diverse firm in the industry. Written advocacy skills are just crucial, and effective legal communication is also critical in a broader context, to the wellbeing of society, the judicial system, and the legal profession.

Legal writing means the production of any form of material used in the legal industry and involves the analysis of fact patterns and presentation of arguments in documents such as legal memoranda and briefs. In many legal settings, specialised forms of written communication are required. Any legal document must be concise, clear, and conform to the objective standards that have evolved in the legal profession.

There are generally two broad categories of legal writing: 1) legal analysis, being two-fold: a) predictive analysis and b) persuasive analysis, and there is 2) legal drafting.

1) a) Predictive legal analysis The most common type of predictive legal analysis is the legal memorandum which may include the client letter or legal opinion. The legal memorandum predicts the outcome of a legal question by analysing the authorities governing the question and the relevant facts that gave rise to the legal question. It explains and applies the authorities in predicting an outcome, and it ends with advice and recommendations. It is formally organised and written. 1) b) Persuasive legal analysis The persuasive document, a motion or a brief, attempts to persuade a deciding authority to favourably decide the dispute for the author’s client. Motions and briefs are usually submitted to the court, but also to arbitrators, mediators, and others. An additional persuasive letter may attempt to persuade the dispute’s opposing party. Persuasive writing is the most rhetorically stylised. It is framed as an argument, where the author advocates in favour of a legal position and does not have to present any neutral analysis. 2) Legal drafting Legal drafting creates binding legal text. It includes enacted law like statutes, rule and regulations, also legal instruments such as contracts and personal legal documents like wills and trusts. Legal drafting generally is written without a stylised voice.

In legal writing, there are four distinguishing features: Authority: Legal writing places heavy reliance on authority. In most legal writing, the writer must back up assertions and statements with citations of authority. This is done according to a unique, complicated citation system, unlike that used in any other genre of writing. Precedent: Legal writing values precedent, as distinct from authority. Precedent means the way things have been done before. For example, when a contract must be prepared, often a similar previous contract is used as a template for the new occasion. Vocabulary: Legal writing extensively uses technical terminology which can be categorised namely by specialised words and phrases unique to law (e.g., novation), by ordinary words having different meanings in law (e.g., party [a principal in a lawsuit], execute [to sign to effect]), by archaic vocabulary employing many old words and phrases that were formerly quotidian language, but today exist mostly or only in law (e.g., herein, hereto, hereby, whereby [as pronominal adverbs]), and by loan words and phrases from other languages, namely Latin (e.g., mens rea, prima facie, sub judice). Formality: These features tend to make legal writing rather formal. It may take the form of long sentences, complex constructions, archaic and hyper-formal vocabulary, and a focus on content over the needs of the reader. Some of this formality in legal writing is necessary and desirable, given the importance of most legal documents and the seriousness of the circumstances in which legal documents are used typically, however, certainly not all formality in legal writing is justified. You may have come across the term ‘legalese’. It was first used in 1914 for legal writing that is very difficult for laymen to read and understand, the implication being that this “abstruseness” is deliberate, trying to exclude the legally untrained and to justify high professional fees. Legalese is characterised by long sentences, many modifying clauses, complex vocabulary, high abstraction, and insensitivity to the layman’s need to understand the document’s gist. Legalese arises most commonly in legal drafting, yet it may appear in both types of legal analysis – the three categories being described above – as well. The so-called Plain Language Movement in legal writing is an organised effort to avoid complex language and terminology in legal documents in order to make legal writing more understandable and accessible. The trend in many universities and law schools today is to teach legal writing in a way that acknowledges the technical complexity inherent in law and the justified formality which complexity often requires, but with an emphasis on clarity, simplicity, and directness. For us as writers, it is crucial to get the balance right and in setting the level of formality in any legal document to assess and take into account the needs and expectations of the specific audience. After all, the goal is to create ultimately effective and successful texts.

Words failing you when you need them most? Legal writing, in fact, requires much more than linguistic knowledge. Expert understanding of the subject matter is needed, in addition to the relevant laws and the legal process in the jurisdiction(s) involved. No reason to worry! Here is the specialist division of AVALON Legal where a team of professional and experienced legal writers reliably produces thoughtful, accurate, and detailed written legal materials in our languages to support your cause.

Typical legal writing tasks in our daily practice include:

• Contracts • Memorandums • Briefs • Terms and conditions • Confidentiality agreements • Policies • Statutes • Company formation • Licensing and franchising agreements • Patents • Law-related website content • Legal correspondence • Expert opinions • Affidavits • Wills and deeds • Features and articles

We have streamlined our processes, so you get expert writing of your legal content fast and affordably.

Academic Writing

Writing is a skill that is required in many contexts throughout life. However, academic writing, or also called scholarly writing, is quite different from personal writing because it follows its own set of rules and practices within the academic world. A simple definition of academic writing is hard to come by because it refers to writing done for several reasons. Also, academic writing is used in many different forms. A very broad definition could include any writing assignment given in an academic setting.

By its particular style, in academic writing ideas are usually organised in a formal order and supported by evidence. Each subject discipline has its specific writing conventions, vocabulary, and types of discourse, however, there are some general characteristics of academic writing that are relevant across all disciplines: Academic writing is planned and focused: It answers the question and demonstrates an understanding of the subject. Academic writing is structured: It is coherent, written in a logical order, and brings together related points and material. Academic writing is evidenced: It demonstrates knowledge of the subject area, supports opinions and arguments with evidence from academic literature, and is referenced accurately. Academic writing is formal: Impersonal and dispassionate by tone and style, it uses appropriate language and tenses, and it is clear, concise and balanced. Academic writing also adheres to traditional conventions of punctuation, grammar, and spelling. It is aimed at a critical and informed audience, based on closely investigated knowledge, and intended to reinforce or challenge concepts or arguments.

The four main types of academic writing are descriptive, analytical, persuasive, and critical. Each of these types of writing has specific language features and purposes. In many academic texts, one needs to use more than one type. Descriptive is the simplest type of academic writing. Its purpose is to provide facts or information. An example would be a summary of an article or a report of the results of an experiment. Most academic writing is also analytical. Analytical writing includes descriptive writing, but it also re-organises the facts and information described into categories, groups, parts, types, or relationships, for example, when comparing two theories. Besides that, most academic writing requires to go at least one step further than analytical writing, to persuasive writing. Persuasive writing has all the features of analytical writing (that is, information plus re-organising the information), with the addition of your own point of view. Most essays, for instance, are persuasive, and there is a persuasive element in at least the discussion and conclusion of a research article. Critical writing is common for research, postgraduate and advanced undergraduate writing. It has all the features of persuasive writing, with the added feature of at least one other point of view to be considered. For example, when explaining a researcher’s interpretation or argument, the merits of the argument are then evaluated or an own alternative interpretation is given. Examples include the critique of a journal article or a literature review that identifies the strengths and weaknesses of existing research. Critical writing requires our strongest writing skills as we need to thoroughly understand the topic and the issues. An essay structure and paragraph structure needs to be developed that allows to analyse different interpretations and develop your argument, supported by evidence.

With each academic writing task we have to respect the most common disposition standard in the academic world, which is the ’IMRAD’ method, stating that an academic document should consist of sections in the following order: Introduction (problem motivation and statement, objective, own contributions, background materials, overview), Method (assumptions, question, system model, simulation model, performance measures), Result (empirical results, charts, plots), and Discussion (analysis, conclusions).

Typical academic document types are:

• Research papers and research articles • Conference papers • Journal articles • Essays • Books and book reports • Literature reviews • Dissertation and thesis assistance • Abstracts • Explications • Whitepapers

Different disciplines also have different styles and structures of writing. For example, some disciplines, such as in the humanities, expect longer paragraphs, which include topic sentences to show how your argument is structured. Other disciplines, for example in the sciences, expect short paragraphs, with no topic sentences, which are denser in factual information. We will establish these specific styles and structures for your discipline and take them into account.

Deductive reasoning and an analytical approach are important in all academic writing. As true academics ourselves, we love the challenge from intellectual work and will with comprehensive research and the necessary planning and forethought achieve a well-organised, substantiated, authoritative and coherent paper for you.

Kindly be aware that any of our service descriptions here are just a general outline. Upon genuine further interest on your part, we will be happy to provide you with more detailed information and work out a specific proposal tailored to your needs.

IMAGES

Technical vs. Creative Writing: Which Style Is the Best to Reach Your
Academic Vs. Creative Writing: What You Need to Know Before You Teach
Technical vs. Academic, Creative, Business, and Literary Writing: What
Essay Writing and Academic Writing: Similarities and Differences
Academic Vs. Creative Writing: What You Need to Know Before You Teach
Difference Between Academic Writing and General Writing

VIDEO

Reading and Time: A dialectic between academic expectation and academic frustration
Creative & Academic Writing تخلیقی او تعلیمی خط کی فرق #creativewriting #academicwriting
Learning vs Academic Performance
Writing Tips: Academic vs Creative Writing
IELTS academic VS IELTS General
English Professional. TP1

COMMENTS

Creative Writing vs Academic Writing
The main difference between creative writing vs academic writing is that writers are free to express themselves however they want when writing creatively, while academic writing provides a set of constraints the writer must stay within.. Differences between creative writing vs academic writing. You'll find that in the comparison of creative writing vs academic writing, creative writing is ...
Academic Vs. Creative Writing: What You Need to Know Before You Teach
Creative Writing Difference #1: Style. It's important for students to have at least a basic understanding of style before walking them through the differences between academic and creative writing. Academic writing uses a much more formal style of writing. Academic settings, like universities and schools, use it almost exclusively.
Academic Writing vs. Creative Writing: Understanding the Key Differences
The main distinction between academic writing and creative writing is the reason for the writing. In a formal and objective way, information, facts, and knowledge are communicated through academic writing. It is employed to investigate and examine a certain subject or problem and to give arguments supported by facts.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CREATIVE AND ACADEMIC WRITING
Another difference between academic writing and creative or personal writing is the presence of pressure due to time restraints. In timed essays, ones writing situation may greatly change. There is no time to brainstorm or procrastinate, so being able to organize ideas quickly is essential.
Academic Writing vs. Creative Writing
Academic writing and creative writing are two distinct forms of writing with differing purposes, styles, and characteristics. Discover the key differences.
Academic Writing Vs. Creative Writing: Understanding The Differences
The Difference Between Academic Writing and Creative Writing. Academic writing and creative writing are two very different types of writing that serve distinct purposes and adopt unique characteristics. Let's look at the primary differences between them: Purpose. Academic Writing: The primary purpose is to inform, explain, argue, or analyse ...
5 Key Differences Between Academic Writing & Creative Writing
Now, let's explore the key differences between the two types of writing in detail. 1. Style. The style of writing is one clear difference between academic and creative articles. While creativity is not bound by any specific style or pattern, you have to stick to certain parameters in academic content. Academic writers should always abide by ...
Academic Writing vs. Creative Writing
Academic writing must be taught, but rarely is; creative writing is optional, but is almost always the focus of writing curricula.Creative writing focuses on story-telling and recounting personal experiences. Its students author fiction and poetry—using style, voice, and technique to make their writing entertaining, smart, and packed with ...
Creative Writing Vs. Technical Writing Vs. Academic Writing
Creative writing: Unleash your imagination through storytelling, poetry, or personal essays. With this style, you have the freedom to express yourself without limitations. Technical writing: Simplify complex concepts and procedures by crafting clear and concise manuals, reports, or user guides.
Key Differences between Academic and Creative Writing
The primary difference between academic writing and creative writing is the reason for writing. In a formal style, the information, facts, and knowledge are explained appropriately through academic writing. This writing mainly focuses on investigating and examining a specific subject or problem and gives arguments to support their statements.
Creative Writing: Not That Different from Academic Writing?
A big difference between academic and creative writing, however, is the degree of implicit to explicit explanations. In other words, you have to explicitly spell everything out in academic papers, which are more straightforward in nature. In creative fiction, you want to show rather than tell. So, if you want to be specific by providing an ...
Academic Writing and Creative Writing
Academic writing involves entering a conversation and trying to convince the other side that you are correct through specific rhetoric and an intentional argument. You produce good academic writing by creatively coming up with a way to convince your reader that you are correct. This construction requires creativity because writing is a science ...
Reflections from a Young Writer: Academic vs. Creative Writing
The difference is, people are less likely to harshly critique creative writing than they are academic writing. Outside of academia, poetry that is based on personal perceptions of the world does not lend itself to formal criticism. My creative writing communities value the act of sharing over the need for critique, which is in direct contrast ...
How Academic Writing Differs from Other Forms of Writing
Academic writing must display objectivity. It's often best that academic writing avoids rhetorical tactics, like sweeping generalizations and emotional arguments, as this will ensure the highest degree of objectivity expected from academic writing. At its core, academic writing should be clear, succinct, and objective; the exact criteria for ...
What Is Academic Writing?
Academic writing is a formal style of writing used in universities and scholarly publications. You'll encounter it in journal articles and books on academic topics, and you'll be expected to write your essays, research papers, and dissertation in academic style. Academic writing follows the same writing process as other types of texts, but ...
The difference between academic and professional writing: a helpful
One of the key differences between academic writing and business writing is the goal of each endeavor. Because the readers are often students, professors, or scholars in academic writing, the goal is to present and analyze information on a specific subject and increase understanding. With professional writing, the goal is generally to ...
Technical vs. Academic, Creative, Business, and Literary Writing: What
The main difference between technical writing and literary writing is that literary language is used in literary work while technical writing is used in writing for a particular field. Literary writing is used in fiction. Examples of literary writing include poems, novels, short stories, dramas, etc. The language used in literary writing is ...
Basic Differences Between Essay Writing and Creative Writing
Writing is an art. You have to be aware of the intent to impress your readers with your writing. There are many forms of writing but the most basic ones are academic and creative. When you are…
Business Writing vs. Academic Writing: What's the Difference?
Let's dig into the numerous other differences that come up when you compare business writing to academic writing. 1. Tone and style. While both styles of writing can be somewhat formal from time to time, academic writing is typically much more so and is written from a third person perspective.
Difference Between Academic Writing and General Writing
Main Difference - Academic Writing vs General Writing. Writing is an action that we all engage in our day to day lives. There are different styles of writing such as literary writing, technical writing, creative writing, academic writing, etc. Academic writing is the style of writing we use in academic disciplines, which requires a special set of skills.
Academic vs Business Writing Styles: How to Choose and Adapt
The main differences between academic and business writing styles can be seen in the audience, purpose, format, and language. Academic writing style is intended for a specialized and informed ...
The an Essay vs Creative Writing: Difference and Comparison
The purpose makes the difference Creative writing does not need to adhere to any specific format whereas the structure and execution of a formal essay have to be done according to a number of stringent guidelines. ... It can be tricky to switch between academic writing and creative writing. Students used to creative writing may end up writing ...
Legal & Academic Writing
Legal Writing Writing is foundational to the practice of law. Everything that takes place in a courtroom, for example, begins with writing. Every agreement, non-disclosure, and contract between business partners rests on writing. In today's world, legal firms work more and more with international clients, as well as with other international firms. Being prepared for these types…

It's Lit Teaching

Academic Vs. Creative Writing: What You Need to Know Before You Teach

Teaching the Differences Between Writing Goals

Academic Vs. Creative Writing Difference #1: Style

Academic Vs. Creative Writing Difference #2: Intended Audience

Academic Vs. Creative Writing Difference #3: Purpose and Goal

Academic Writing vs. Creative Writing: Understanding the Key Differences

What is Academic Writing and its Features?

What is Creative Writing and its Features?

Key Differences Between Academic Writing and Creative Writing

Advantages of Academic Writing and Creative Writing

2.Increases Analytical Abilities

3.Builds Data Analysis Skills

4.Helps in Expressing Emotions

5.Enhance Imagination

About The Author

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

Creative Writing(ENG-207) Week#7:- Difference between Academic and Creative Writing

The Principal Difference

Style Guidelines Outlined

Common Style Guide Conventions vs. Informal Writing

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CREATIVE AND ACADEMIC WRITING

Academic Writing Vs. Creative Writing: Understanding The Differences

What is Academic Writing

Features of Academic Writing

Evidence-Based

Formal Tone

Clear and Precise

Impersonal Tone

Purpose of Academic Writing

Audience of Academic Writing

Types of Academic Writing

Research Papers

Theses and Dissertations

Case Studies

What is Creative Writing

Features of Creative Writing

Imaginative and Original

Character Development

Poetic Use of Language

Narrative Structure

Evokes Emotion

Purpose of Creative Writing

Entertainment

Audience of Creative Writing

Types of Creative Writing

Creative Non-Fiction

Flash Fiction

Screenwriting

Songwriting

Looking for experts? We are here to help! Topic Suggestions Confidentiality 100% Plagiarism Free Qualified Writers Low Prices Proofreading Order Now Dissertation Services

The Difference Between Academic Writing and Creative Writing

Style and Tone

Evidence and Research

Point of View

Objective vs. Subjective

Constraints

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between academic writing and creative writing?

What are the characteristics of creative writing?

What is an example of academic writing?

5 Key Differences Between Academic Writing & Creative Writing

How to Distinguish Between the Two Types of Writing

3. Time Limitations

4. Language

Wrapping Up

Naomi Kizhner

You Might Also Like

How To Learn Exponents In An Engaging Way?

Understanding Ontario’s Online High School Accreditation

Things to Consider When Choosing High School in Everett WA

Academic Writing and Creative Writing

How Academic Writing Differs from Other Forms of Writing

Formal Language versus Informal Language

Structure and Form

Make Sure Your Academic Writing Follows Conventions

Related Posts

Five Habits to Avoid in Your Academic Writing

How to Write a Thesis or Dissertation

The Ultimate Journal Article Submission Checklist

You May Also Like These