Jack Harrell

The Adult Creative Writer: a Phenomenological Study Jack Harrell

What are the textures and structures of the creative writing moment" For this study, Jack Harrell asked nine adult creative writers to describe the phenomena of their subjective creative writing experiences. His purpose was to understand the meaning and essence of these experiences in the context of the writers" mental and material writing realms. The participants, both male and female, were published writers of poetry, fiction, drama, or creative non-fiction. The study illustrates the need for solitary work, trust, risk, and failure in creative writing. Shaped by the "underpaint" of the writing environment and the writer"s history, and fed by accumulated life experiences, the creative writing realm is a place of mystery and reason where the writer attains a heightened sense of meaning. The study substantiates tenets of adult learning the value of formal education early in the learning process, the value of life experience, and the deep significance of learner autonomy. The study"s findings deepen the claims of flow theory, show the detrimental effects of extrinsic rewards on creativity, and examine the need for psychological safety in the creative writing experience.