ABSTRACT
Lately, psychological research on the development of talent has focused on the development of expertise, or how a person proceeds from being a novice to being an expert. The research has focused upon how people develop expertise in various domains, for example, painting, tennis, or jazz (cf. Ericsson et al., 2006). The expertise research downplays the existence of domain talent, as well as creativity ability, as too nebulous, too unquantifiable, and too abstract, and seeks to extrapolate how people acquire the skills to make what they will make. Expertise is acquired by focusing on certain skills polished by deliberate practice, and the question that is often asked is whether deliberate practice can account for differences between those who are considered “more talented” and those who are considered “less talented.” The expertise creativity researchers do not doubt that innate differences exist, but they are seeking to find out whether these differences account for the ultimate levels of accomplishment certain individuals can achieve. This chapter will consider those experts called creative writers, experts who make novelty as well as demonstrate the results of deliberate practice. A creative writer writes poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, scripts, or songs.
