This course focuses on the foundational craft principles and narrative techniques of writing fiction, studying and drawing inspiration from the most central elements of style and structure in the short story and the novel. How does craft live in and move through the world both on and off the page? How do writers work within, break, and expand the boundaries and conventions of fiction?
We will observe how writers engage in larger literary traditions and contexts, experiment with language and form, oftentimes playing with expectations and breaking rules on the way to innovating their respective genres. We will read craft essays and interviews, and expand our terminology as a mode of inquiry—facilitating the transformation of our reading and writing practices. Students will also conduct a craft interview of a fellow student, professor, writer, editor, publisher, or member in our artistic-creative community.
Students will then practice their studied craft terms and put them in action. Throughout the semester, students will share their work in a small workshop environment and learn how to collaborate and support our class community’s developing creative vision and contribution as storytellers. Considering peer feedback and clarifying their intended and ideal audience, students will embark on various revision strategies, learning how to become informed readers and editors of their own work. At the end of the semester, students will compile a final portfolio including a revised drafts and a craft analysis of the techniques emerging in their work. Students in this course are expected to read and write with rigor and a higher level of accountability to themselves and their work-in-progress.
Prerequisites: ENG 313 or instructor approval.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the semester, students will understand how to:
- Identify a clear and intentional purpose, audience, and theme according to the narrative conventions, tools, and practices of fiction through close reading and the implementation of foundational craft principles.
- Compose, develop, and organize creative work with focused consideration of structure and style throughout the writing process, from generating ideas and drafting to revising and finishing a polished and completed work.
- Evaluate and integrate supporting materials from sources to reinforce class discussion, writing assignments, and your individual artistic vision through our collective knowledge building and sharing.
- Develop editorial skills through a care-informed practice of close reading, workshop, and feedback.
Required Texts
Craft in the Real World, Matthew Salesses
Various selections from texts available online or as PDFs in Laulima.
Major Assignments
- Weekly Writing Assignments/Creative Experiments
- Reading Response + Discussion Facilitation
- Craft Interview
- Small Group Workshop feedback
- Final Portfolio