Empathy in Creative Writing

This book provides an important exploration of empathetic practices and approaches in and to creative writing – both as a guide to the practice itself and to the teaching of creative writing. Contributors explore connections forged through creative writing; for instance, between writer and reader. They ask questions about how to represent empathetically, how to approach technical aspects of creative writing with an inclusive lens, how to consider the ethical implications of writerly communication, and about ways to engage in culturally informed writing practices. Ethics, diversity and communication underpin the book.  Contributors draw on practical, societal, textual and practice-led perspectives and, through their personal approaches and critical investigations, offer thoughts for further development. This book provides a wide exploration of ethical considerations and impacts in creative writing, and the teaching and learning and researching of creative writing.

Graeme Harper is a Dean at Oakland University in Michigan, USA. An award-winning fiction writer, he is also the author or editor of such critical works as The Desire to Write (Palgrave, 2019) and of the journal New Writing (Routledge). Robots and Other Stories (Parlor, 2025) is his latest fiction.