4 Types of Writing

There are four main types of writing:

expository, persuasive, narrative, and descriptive.

Expository – Writing in which author’s purpose is to inform or explain the subject to

the reader.

Persuasive – Writing that states the opinion of the writer and attempts to influence
the reader.

Narrative – Writing in which the author tells a story. The story could be fact or fiction.

Descriptive – A type of expository writing that uses the five senses to paint a picture
for the reader. This writing incorporates imagery and specific details.

Differentiate imaginative writings from other writings:

Imaginative writing is also known as creative writing. Creative writing is writing that
expresses the writer's thoughts and feelings in a poetic way.

Here are some forms of imaginative writing:

 Poems

 Diary entries

 Short stories

 Autobiography

 Letters to others, etc.

Speaking of technical writing, devices, a software or some other piece of tech are
always accompanied by some sort of instruction. These instructions provide the end-
users help on how to perform a particular task, deal with a problem, use the product
safely, etc. All kinds of documents help people interact with technology and solve
problems are examples of technical writing.
Examples of Technical Writing:
 Instructions and procedures are documents that help either developers or
end users operate or configure a device or program.[11]:226 Examples of
instructional documents include user manuals and troubleshooting guides for
computer programs, computer hardware, household products, medical
equipment, mechanical products and automobiles.

 Proposals. Most projects begin with a proposal—a document that describes

the purpose of a project, the tasks that will be performed in the project, the
methods used to complete the project, and finally the cost of the
project.[11]:191 Proposals cover a wide range of subjects. For example, a
technical writer may author a proposal that outlines how much it will cost to
install a new computer system, a marketing professional may write a proposal
with the product offerings and a teacher may write a proposal that outlines
how a new biology class will be structured.

 Emails, letters, and memoranda are some of the most frequently written
documents in a business.[11]:117 Letters and emails can be constructed with a
variety of goals—some are usually aimed at simply communicating
information while others are designed to persuade the recipient to accomplish
a certain task. While letters are usually written to people outside of a
company, memoranda (memos) are documents written to other employees
within the business.[11]:118

 Press releases. When a company wants to publicly reveal a new product or

service, they will have a technical writer author a press release, a document
that describes the product's functions and value to the public.[14]

 Specifications are design outlines that describe the structure, parts,

packaging, and delivery of an object or process in enough detail that another
party can reconstruct it.[15] For example, a technical writer might diagram and
write the specifications for a smartphone or bicycle so that a manufacturer can
produce the object.

Examples of Creative Writing:

1. Novel Writing

A novel is probably the most popular example of creative writing out there. When you
think “creative writing" an image of Stephen Kingtyping madly at his computer is
probably the first thing that pops into your head. And that’s okay. Given that novels
have been a popular form of entertainment for centuries, it’s not surprising. Typically
what distinguishes a novel from other forms of writing is that novels are usually
works of fiction that are longer in length and follow a set of characters and plot
structure.

2. Short Stories

When it comes to examples of imaginative writing, not unlike its longer counterpart,
the novel, short stories also follow a set plot and typically feature one character or a
selection of characters. However, the thing to keep in mind about short stories is that
they typically resolve in fewer than 50 pages.

3. Flash Fiction

If you’re up for a real challenge, try your hand at some flash fiction. This type is
similar to a short story or novel in the sense that it follows some form of a plot.
However, flash fiction usually resolves within a few hundred words or less. There are
a few kinds of flash fiction that exist: the six word story, the 50 word story, and the
hundred word story. Additionally, flash fiction also has another faction known as
sudden fiction, which usually tells a full story in about 750 words.

4. Poetry

As an example of imaginative writing, the incredible thing about poetryis that there
are so many kinds. From narrative to lyrical and even language poetry there’s so
many different ways you can express yourself through a poem. You might be
especially interested in pursuing poetry if you enjoy word play or experimenting with
the musicality behind words.

5. Rap

Although rap is somewhat of a subcategory of poetry, it’s one of the few forms of
poetry that can often get over looked in academic classes. However, it’s probably
one of the more contemporary types of poetry available while still sticking to many of
the classical rules (or tools) of poetry, including rhyme. Also, it’s one of the areas
where the best writers are really produced. The reason for that is because rap forces
writers to think on their feet in a way that many other genres don’t.
4 Types of Writing

There are four main types of writing:

expository, persuasive, narrative, and descriptive.

Expository – Writing in which author’s purpose is to inform or explain the subject to

the reader.

Persuasive – Writing that states the opinion of the writer and attempts to influence
the reader.

Narrative – Writing in which the author tells a story. The story could be fact or fiction.

Descriptive – A type of expository writing that uses the five senses to paint a picture
for the reader. This writing incorporates imagery and specific details.

Differentiate imaginative writings from other writings:

Imaginative writing is also known as creative writing. Creative writing is writing that
expresses the writer's thoughts and feelings in a poetic way.

Here are some forms of imaginative writing:

 Poems

 Diary entries

 Short stories

 Autobiography

 Letters to others, etc.

Speaking of technical writing, devices, a software or some other piece of tech are
always accompanied by some sort of instruction. These instructions provide the end-
users help on how to perform a particular task, deal with a problem, use the product
safely, etc. All kinds of documents help people interact with technology and solve
problems are examples of technical writing.
Examples of Creative Writing:
1. Plays

Playwriting is another great writing style to experiment with, especially if you enjoy
the idea of seeing your work come to life. Typically, playwriting involves developing a
script that both clearly sets the setting, plot, and characters while also minimizing the
amount of description used. One of the key elements of a play is that it’s a
collaboration of minds, even though they often don’t work together at the same time.
Yet the final product, the performance, is always the end result of work done by the
playwright as well as the director, actors and even set designers.

2. Scripts (T.V./Movies)

Like traditional plays, movie or T.V. scripts are often the result of collaboration
between a team of people including the cast and crew. However, the big difference is
that when you’re writing a T.V. or movie script, you’re often working together with the
director and the actors as part of the production team.

3. Memoir

Not a fiction writer? No problem! You probably have a unique story worth sharing: it’s
called your life. Here’s the deal when it comes to memoirs: the biggest thing to
remember is that not everything in your life is considered readership-worthy. In fact,
most things probably aren’t. But, most likely, there is a unique angle or perspective
that you can take when examining your life.

4. Non-Fiction Narratives

Of course, a memoir is just a subsection of a category known as the non-fiction

narrative. But not all non-fiction narratives are memoirs. Take for example author
Tim Hernandez, who wrote the book Mañana means Heaven. Hernandez writes in a
style that is inherently descriptive and interesting, despite the fact that the book’s
narrative is mostly based on research and interviews.

5. Songs/Lyrics

Another sector of poetry, songs and lyrics are also a great place where you can
express your thoughts and emotions not only through words, but also through music.
Whether you’re writing a love ballad or a hymn, there are lots of reasons to enjoy
working in this genre. While a lot of this genre is relatively unrestrictive in terms of
what you can create, it’s a really good idea to get familiar with the basics of song
writing. Especially in an era where so much of the music we hear is impacted by
technology, the more you know about the art of song writing, the freer you will be to
experiment.
Examples of Technical Writing:
 Technical reports are written to provide readers with information,
instructions, and analysis on tasks.[11]:141–143 Reports come in many forms. For
example, a technical writer might evaluate a building that is for sale and
produce a trip report that highlights his or her findings and whether or not he
or she believes the building should be purchased. Another writer who works
for a non-profit company may publish an evaluation report that shows the
findings of the company's research into air pollution.

 Case study is a published report about a person, group, or situation that has
been studied over time; also : a situation in real life that can be looked at or
studied to learn about something.[16] For example, an individual's challenging
situation at his or her workplace and how he or she resolved it is a case study.

 White papers are documents that are written for experts in a field and
typically describe a solution to a technological or business challenge or
problem.[11]:644 Examples of white papers include a piece that details how to
make a business stand out in the market or a piece explaining how to prevent
cyber-attacks on businesses.

 Websites. The advent of hypertext has changed the way documents are
read, organized, and accessed. Technical writers of today are often
responsible for authoring pages on websites like "About Us" pages or product
pages and are expected to be proficient in web development tools.[17]:484–504

 Datasheets are the document that summarize the features, key

specifications, technical characteristics, application circuits and some other
important information about the product, machine, equipment, software,
application, system in brief.

 API guides are written for the developer community and are used to explain
the application programming interfaces.

 Help systems are online help centres that provide users with technical
information about products and services. They provide content as web pages
that are viewed in a browser. The content may be created in help centre
software, such as Zendesk, or in help authoring tools or component content
management systems that can create a help centre as an HTML output.