This document summarizes a creative writing workshop for science students. It introduces the objectives of familiarizing students with creative science writing prizes and prompts. It defines the creative process and discusses assessing creativity. It provides instructions for an exercise where students write short stories based on science fiction illustrations. The goal is to motivate students to participate in science writing competitions.

1. Creative Writing Workshop for
Science Students
Elena González Ed. D.
April 10, 2014
CADI 108

2. Objectives of the Presentation
Become familiar with
a. Bill Manhire
b. the Royal Society of New Zealand Manhire Prize for
Creative Science Writing
Comment on the writing prompt and first prize story for the 2007
Manhire Prize
Define the creative process and the characteristics of a creative
person
Become familiarized with the Creativity Assessment Scale of Silvia et
al.
Select a provocative prompt and write a creative text
Be motivated to participate in the RISE Creative Writing Competition

3. Creative Science Writing Prompt:
Two Frogs in a Vat
By Bill Manhire
http://wewantedtobewriters.com/our-authors/bill-manhire/
Creative Science Writing Prompt-
“One evening two frogs fell into a vat of milk. One was
a scientist. The other was a poet.”
Creative Solution-
• Which of the two was able to survive ‘til morning and
why?

4. Royal Society of New Zealand
Manhire Prize for
Creative Science Writing
Anthology of winers 2007-2010
http://www.royalsociety.org.nz/programmes/competitions/manhire-prize/

5. Two Frogs in a Vat
Here is a story I once heard from a Dutch writer.
“One evening two frogs fell into a vat of milk. One was
a scientist. The other was a poet.
The scientist trod water for a while, then did a rapid calculation
involving the buoyancy of his frog-body in milk. It was clear that he
could not last. He gave a sigh and sank to the bottom, where he
drowned.
The poet tried to remember what he knew about
milk. ‘Something about the milk of paradise,’ came
to mind. There was something, too, about the milk
of human kindness.

6. Two Frogs in a Vat
Some lines for a new poem of his own also occurred to
him, though we will not quote them here. And all the
while he went on treading water – or, more accurately,
milk – occasionally wondering how long he could last.
In the morning, the farmer’s wife came into the dairy.
There in the vat was a large block of butter and … lying on
top … a small, exhausted frog.”
Bill Manhire

7. • Definitions of Creativity

8. Definitions of Creativity
1. “Mental activity” providing an answer to a novel
situation.
2. A “process” resulting in one of a kind ideas.
3. A thought “experience” that demonstrates
uniqueness, divergent thinking, imagination, and
fearlessness.
4. The “generation” of the most unusual thoughts .
The Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching at The Iowa State University
http://www.celt.iastate.edu/creativity/defining.html

9. Terms Used to Describe Creativity
• Fluency – number of ideas generated
• Originality and imagination – unusual, unique, and
novel ideas
• Elaboration – ability to explain ideas in detail
• Flexibility, curiosity, resistance to closure – ability to
generate multiple solutions
• Complexity – details and implications of ideas;
recognition of patterns, similarities and differences
• Risk taking – willingness to be wrong and to admit it
The Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching at The Iowa State University
http://www.celt.iastate.edu/creativity/defining.html

10. Stages in the Creative Process
Dennett in Gaboras sees the creative process as a two stage cyclic process:
• The generative stage – you brainstorm
Preparation
This stage is characterized by obsessiveness. A period devoted to trying
to solve the problem and collecting data through traditional approaches.
Incubation
In this stage you unconsciously work on the problem.
• The evaluative stage – you focus
Illumination
Here you make an association between the problem and something
familiar. You discover a previously unknown or underlying order.
Verification
The idea is materialized, can be proven, and is diffused or communicated.
Gabora, L. (2002) Cognitive mechanisms underlying the creative process. In (T. Hewett and T. Kavanagh, Eds.) Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on
Creativity and Cognition , October 13-16, Loughborough University, UK, 126-133

11. Variable Focus as the Key to Creativity
In sum, creativity is associated with conceptual
fluidity and focus or control.
The focus is variable:
• First you brainstorm an idea (generative stage)
• Then you focus attention on the creative idea
(evaluative stage).
Gabora, L. (2002) Cognitive mechanisms underlying the creative process. In (T. Hewett
and T. Kavanagh, Eds.) Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on
Creativity and Cognition , October 13-16, Loughborough University, UK, 126-133

12. Applying the Creative Process
to Scientific Writing

13. Narrative, Protagonist, and Triumph
• “The central task of science writing for a broad
audience is...how to make science human and
enjoyable without betraying nature. The best
writers achieve that end by two means. They
present the phenomena as a narrative...and they
treat the scientists as protagonists in a story that
contains...the mythic elements of challenge and
triumph."
Edward O. Wilson The Best American
Science and Nature Writing 2001
http://www.jacobberkowitz.com/science-writing/

14. How to Write Creatively about Science
• Don’t just summarize facts. Place the scientific
facts within a story or narrative of triumph.
• Instead of concentrating on the investigative
problem, concentrate on the investigative
triumph.
• Instead of keeping the scientist obscure, make
the scientist the protagonist in the narrative.
• Either that or write a narrative about the
consequences of the scientific triumph or
problem posed.

15. Narrative of the Consequences of a
Scientific Problem
2007 Royal Society of New Zealand Manhire Prize for
Creative Science Writing
Inspiration: Climate Change (Biology)
• Many scientists and social scientists believe that
climate change is a serious threat to human
civilisation. Regardless of climate change, we need
to find sustainable forms of agriculture,
manufacturing and energy. How will we respond?
How can we respond?
• Fiction winner: Bryan Walpert 16 Planets
• Non fiction winner: Alison Ballance Touchstones

16. Fiction winner: Bryan Walpert 16 Planets
• Read pages 6-14 of Shift: Anthology of
Winners

17. 2011 Manhire Award
Chemical World
Fiction biography
• http://www.royalsociety.org.nz/programmes/
competitions/manhire-prize/2011-
information/

18. • REPORT ON THE BIRS WORKSHOP
“CREATIVE WRITING IN MATHEMATICS AND
SCIENCE,”
BANFF, 2-6 MAY 2010

19. RISE Creative Writing Competition
• Writing about the RISE Seminars
• Tell a story about a seminar presentation in
which the scientist is the protagonist.
• Describe the triumphs and challenges of
his/her investigation.

20. RISE Creativity Writing Competition
• Instructions handout

21. Assessing Creativity
Referene:
Silvia, P., Winterstein, B., Wellsi, J. Barona, C., Cram, J., Hess, K., Martínez, J., & Richard, C.
(2008). Assessing creativity with divergent thinking tasks: Exploring the reliability and
validity of new subjective scoring methods. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the
Arts 2(2), 68-85. DOI: 10.1037/1931-3896.2.2.68

22. Creativity Assessment Scores
• Score of 1 - Not at all creative
• Score of 2 - Somewhat creative
• Score of 3 - Creative
• Score of 4 – Very creative
• Score of 5 – Highly creative

23. Creativity Assessment Criteria
Uncommon
• “Any response that is given by a lot of people
is common, by definition.”
• “Unique responses will tend to be creative
responses, although a response given only
once need not be judged creative. For
example, a random or inappropriate response
would be uncommon but not creative.”

24. Creative Assessment Criteria
Remote
• “Creative ideas are remotely linked to everyday
objects and ideas. For example, creative uses for
a brick are “far from” common everyday uses for
a brick, and creative instances of things that are
round, are “far from” common round objects.
Responses that stray from obvious ideas will
tend to be creative, whereas responses close to
obvious ideas will tend to be uncreative.”

25. Creativity Assessment Criteria
Clever
• “Creative ideas are often clever: they strike
people as insightful, ironic, humorous, fitting,
smart. Responses that are clever will then to
be creative responses. Keep in mind that
cleverness can compensate for the other
facets. For example, a common use cleverly
expresses could receive a high score.”

26. Instructions for Judging Creativity
• Creativity can be viewed as having three facets
– uncommon, remote, and clever.
• Creative responses will generally be high on all
three criteria.
• A low score on one criteria will not eliminate
the possibility of a high rating.

27. Creativity Assessment Scale
Criteria 1 2 3 4 5
Uncommon
Remote
Clever

29. Application Exercise
Writing Science Fiction
The Royal Society
• http://invigorate.royalsociety.org/ks2/creating-and-
discovering/science-fiction.aspx
• Instructions:
• Click on the doors. Click on the library. Click on one of the books.
• Search through the books until you find an illustration that inspires
you to write a creative story.
• Select one illustration and write a creative story about it.
• Use the prompt and guide questions for inspiration or just use your
own imagination.

30. Closing
• Questions or comments
• Please, assess the workshop before you leave.