ABSTRACT
This article seeks to outline how practice-led research provided the methodological focus for a recently completed doctoral study in creative writing as science communication. A selection of the findings is presented within this review document to offer a flavour of the processes involved and the approaches taken, delivered together with excerpts of creative practice, to illustrate how the critical element combines with the creative to produce a practice-led research outcome.

The doctoral study examines how the representation of scientific knowledge can be critically explored through creative writing grounded in science and specifically, in this case, genetic science. The practice element is presented as a linked collection of genetic science-inspired speculative fiction in the form of two novelettes and one novella. These works present opportunities to explore scientific, ethical and moral issues within an area of contemporary-facing genetic science through fiction. As objects of creative production, these works offer the experience of engaging with science-related characters as they pursue their goals. This approach allows investigation through a range of methods to examine the creative process from a critical perspective using practice-as-research methodology. Through this exploration a critique is delivered on the influence of science in the design and writing of the collection.

KEY WORDS
creative writing; fiction; speculative; genetic science; practice-led; practice as research; intertextuality; science-as-fiction; science communication; creative-critical