Fiction in the Field

Through a series of discussions with practitioners in fields beyond the Humanities, Creative Writing Unleashed explores how the elements of narrative are utilised by other disciplines, and then how their use of storytelling mechanics can spark new ways of approaching the writing, reading and teaching of fiction in and beyond the writing workshop. A personal voyage of discovery, the book revolves around interviews with specialists in such fields as archaeology, genetics, architecture, medicine, law and botanical science to consider how specific narrative techniques - narrative time, characterisation, the expression of structure, plotting, point of view and place - inform their work. Through a series of reflections, short fictions, practical exercises and prompts, these case studies then suggest new insights and methods for investigating key writing techniques, which in turn advocate for closer interactions between STEM, the humanities and arts practice. With creative arts subjects increasingly under pressure to justify their significance in contemporary work and life, Jacqueline Yallop makes a case for the re-evaluation of the importance of narrative craft in the world beyond personal enjoyment and student assignment.