Yes Jewelie, I was referring to a lot of those articles/statements written about AS which (personally) strike me to be somewhat true:  a lack of spontaneous ability in expression of self... the articles I refer to call this "lack of social imagination."  Social imagination is one "type" of imagination, and there is a bridge between imagination and creativity... to some extent.

Furthermore, I feel that a lot of Aspergians have some degree of difficulty with abstract thinking (myself included... reading between the lines in fiction/poetry is very difficult for me.)   To me, this can be interpreted as either a lack of creativity (which those articles/diagnostic criteria mention), or a simple "cognitive roadblock" that NTs aren't familiar with.  To me, still, this is a deficiency.

And yet... Perhaps it is the fact that we have this "abstractification difficulty," paradoxically, that makes us so creative.  We live without the convenient NT filter, the "automatic template" that everyone seems to have access to... except for those with AS.

So, those with AS have to find meaning and order manually, and consider everything mindfully...  every thought/item/concept in our world is considered separately, and compared to everything else.  One can see how this "mindful integration" can lead to some very unique interpretations... hence, potential for great creativity.

In summary, I do agree that Aspies can have extraordinary/unusual creativity, and this is one of our greatest strengths.  But at the same time, I think that problems with abstract/symbolic thinking can be considered a kind of "detractor" of creativity in some ways...  and this very problem has stifled my attempts at creative expression, time and time again.