Title: Ways for novelty: disparity and commonness between business innovation and fiction creation

Authors: Ping Lan

Addresses: School of Management, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska 99775, USA

Abstract: This research aims at bridging two distinct creative streams and promoting innovation. Business innovation and literature creation are two powerful engines for propelling modern society. However, how they pursue novelty with their styles and how they can learn from each other is rarely addressed. The author uses both literature surveys and participant observation, systematically looking into six areas in each stream. They are the classification of final products, the key elements contained in a success output, personal traits and skillsets of creators, originations of 'aha' moments, the realisation of a creative idea, and the ecosystem surrounding a creation. In addition to pinpointing the novelty roots shared by the two streams, this research reveals the critical differences in the six areas. The article further points out how business innovation could enrich itself by learning from its creative counterpart based on the disparities.

Keywords: business innovation; fiction writing; participant observation; disparity and commonness; cross-boundary learning.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBIR.2023.130076

International Journal of Business Innovation and Research, 2023 Vol.30 No.4, pp.497 - 520

Received: 21 Feb 2020
Accepted: 13 Jan 2021
Published online: 05 Apr 2023 *

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