# Creative Writer

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This article is about the original software package. For the sequel, see [Creative Writer 2](/source/Creative_Writer_2).

**Creative Writer** is a [word processor](/source/Word_processor) released by [Microsoft Kids](/source/Microsoft_Kids) in 1993. Using this program, which is specifically targeted at children,[1] it is possible to create documents such as letters, posters, flyers and stories complete with different fonts, [Clip art](/source/Clip_art), [WordArt](/source/WordArt) and effects. The interface and environment are set in Imaginopolis with the main helper being a character known as McZee.[2] A sequel, [Creative Writer 2](/source/Creative_Writer_2), was released in 1996. Both are now discontinued.

The original Creative Writer was announced by [Microsoft](/source/Microsoft) on 7 December 1993 [3] and was released in 1994. It ran on both [MS-DOS](/source/MS-DOS) 3.2 and the [Windows 3.1](/source/Windows_3.1) operating system.[4] A version was also released for the [Apple](/source/Apple_computer) [Macintosh](/source/Macintosh), compatible with computers running the [classic Mac OS](/source/Classic_Mac_OS) from the [System 6](/source/System_6) version up to [Mac OS 9](/source/Mac_OS_9).

The program took place in McZee's home of Imaginopolis and had several levels of a building each with a different topic (e.g. one for plain writing, one for story templates, one for poster templates). The design of the program was very similar to that of its sister program [Fine Artist](/source/Fine_Artist). The program runs full screen and creates an all-inclusive environment. The interface was similar to a later product called [Microsoft Bob](/source/Microsoft_Bob).

Creative Writer featured many of the features found on Microsoft's [Word for Windows](/source/Word_for_Windows) product, including the [WordArt](/source/WordArt) feature used to create titles and headlines and the ability to add clip art. Creative Writer also used sounds heavily where each tool would make a different noise. Examples of this include a vacuum cleaner suction to delete and an explosion to denote deleting everything from a page.

## File formats

Creative Writer and its sequel [Creative Writer 2](/source/Creative_Writer_2) both use different versions of the proprietary .max file format. This file format does not open in other word processors such as Word. Files created in Creative Writer can be viewed in Creative Writer 2 but files saved using Creative Writer 2 will not open correctly in Creative Writer. Creative Writer was also able to open .doc files kept in a location known as "Outside Of Imaginopolis".

## Expansion pack

An expansion pack, titled *Ghostwriter Mysteries for Creative Writer*, was released in 1994 by Microsoft Kids. It featured elements from the TV series *[Ghostwriter](/source/Ghostwriter_(1992_TV_series)),* including the show's team members and ten different mysteries to solve.

## See also

- [Creative Writer 2](/source/Creative_Writer_2)
- [Fine Artist](/source/Fine_Artist)
- [Microsoft Home](/source/Microsoft_Home)

## References

1. Lohr, Steve (1993-12-07). ["Microsoft Aims for Younger Market"](https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0CE5DE153EF934A35751C1A965958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all). *New York Times*

1. Eugène F. Provenzo; Arlene Brett; Gary N. McCloskey (2005). ["6 Technology and the Curriculum"](https://archive.org/details/computerscurricu0000prov/page/93). *Computers, Curriculum, and Cultural Change: An Introduction for Teachers, Second Edition*. Routledge. p. [93](https://archive.org/details/computerscurricu0000prov/page/93). ISBN 978-0-8058-4464-1.

1. ["thocp.net domain name is for sale. Inquire now."](http://www.thocp.net/companies/microsoft/microsoft_company_part2.htm)

1. Creative Writer & Fine Artist manual

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Creative Writer](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_Writer) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_Writer?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.