Many of the problems that confront students in creative writing courses are similar to those experienced by students of other types of composition. This discussion delineates three problems that seem to be at the core of the difficulties for both groups of students: preconceived notions of what an essay, poem, or short story should be; inability or unwillingness to adjust the focus of examination to deal with the specific; and lack of imagination. It is suggested that students can profit from keeping a journal (written in the third person) and that they might be well served by an overview provided in a workshop-type class in which the relationship between creative writing and other kinds of composition is recognized. (KS)