In this course, we
will explore a variety of narrative techniques available to writers of fiction
who want to create vivid and compelling short stories. We will read Janet
Burroway’s craft handbook Writing Fictionand will discuss how these techniques help to shape the published short
stories collected in that book, as well as the stories in Dan Chaon’s
collection Among the Missing. We will
also discuss the life of the short story in today’s literary marketplace: what
does it do? What do we want it to do?
This course will
require near-daily writing, in the form of fiction and critiques for peers.
Required reading not listed below will be available to download and print via
Laulima.
Course Requirements
- Attendance and
participation - Weekly writing
exercises related to narrative technique - In-class
discussion-leading - Two short
stories - Revised final
version of one short story with revision reflection - Critiques for
peers
Required Texts (Available at UHM Bookstore)
- Janet Burroway
and Elizabeth and Ned Stuckey-French, Writing
Fiction: a Guide to Narrative Craft(Eighth Edition) - Dan Chaon, Among the Missing