ENGL 6397: Directed Study in Publishing
Kathleen Volk Miller
Through independent research and group seminars,students will come to understand the function of the literary magazine for writers, readers, universities and organizations, and the publishing industry. Moving through the genres of poetry, creative non-fiction and fiction, students will find examples of work they respect and share them with the professor and their peers, thereby creating a con(text) and a text for the class. As we explore the creative work itself, we will look at the structure of each magazine, its editorial practices, and its design.
Course goals and rewards:
By the end of this directed study, students will have: improvedtheir own creative writing, by virtue of reading and critiquing contemporary writing; discovered new voices and new venues; learned how the publishing industry works, specifically how writers, publishers, universities, and funding sources value literary magazines. Students will garner experience in all aspects of lit mag production, including the selection process, production processes such as design, layout, and publicity, author contact, and copy-editing. They will be able to apply everything they’ve learned regarding magazines to emulate, avoiding pitfalls, etc. and create their own literary magazine that best exemplifies the work done by all participants in the Writing Workshops in Cork 2015.
**PRE-MEETING PROJECT: Students will find a literary magazine for which they would like to work, or be published in, or to which they’d make a donation. In an informal essay, (about 1500 words for undergraduates/2000 words for graduate students) students will explain why they’ve made their choice, and validate their reasoning via examples and specific details from their chosen magazine, as well as some comparison and contrast of other magazines they came across in their research.
In order to accomplish this task, students will need to spend some time simply “moving” about online magazines. Starting with literary portals and literary organization’s link pages, students will simply read and take notes until they can make an informed decision. Each essay should reference a minimum of five different magazines as well as five contemporary authors the student found in his or her research. Students should also prepare a short report complete with hyperlinks in order to give a presentation on the literary magazine they’ve chosen.
By the end of the semester, students will be able to:
1)Effectively analyze the history of the literary magazine and how it has changed over time
2)Articulate their own perception of the need for and purpose of contemporary literary magazines.
3)Navigate the world of contemporary creative writing, such as literary magazines and public readings.
4) Understand many elements of the business of literary publishing.
5) Analyze their own strengths and weaknesses as a thinker/writer and set goals for themselves as writers.
In addition, Graduate students will be able to
1)Effectively lead a class discussion and present complex ideas.
2)Effectively prioritize tasks and know when to delegate tasks.
Week One:
Overview of history of literary magazines; presentation of pre-meeting projects and literary magazine research; reflective and response-based writing exercises; examination of literary magazines that have been introduced and discussion of technical and logistical issues like navigation, funding sources, etc.; find a story exercise*; discussion of a “dream magazine,” including selection process, production, and promotion; solicitation of work from program participants.
Week Two:
Discussion of the editorial process; find a poem exercise*; Read real Painted Bride Quarterly (PBQ) submissions as a mock editorial board; reflective and response-based writing exercises.
Week Three:
Graduate students will lead the discussion of work under review for our magazine; find a piece of creative nonfiction (CNF) exercise*; discussion of the author/editor relationship; discussion of the daily operations of magazines and what is needed to launch a magazine; short reading assignments; reflective and response-based writing exercises.
Week Four:
Work this week will focus on reading, selection, and layout of material for our literary magazine, West Wing Craic; students will share theirbest discovery of the month; reflection and assessment of the directed studyand their personal experiences researching and creating a literary magazine; LAUNCH of West Wing Craic second issue by July 16.
*Found [insert genre} exercise:
You will go back out onto the wild, wild internet and find (week 1-a story; week 2-a poem; week 3 CNF)you want to share. Be prepared to back up your choice.
The rules:
*You cannot share a piece because you think it's bad--it's too easy to be snarky.
*You cannot share a piece by a person who is well-known. Part of this exercise is to find authors ON YOUR OWN.
*You cannot use the lit mag you profiled in your pre-course meeting essay.
*Your support when you present must focus on the work itself. If you relate to the piece because of your own life experience, that's terrific and you may reference that connection, but keep the discussion of your own life brief---you can write about it yourself later!!!
*Have fun!!!
****BEST DISCOVERY OF THE MONTH: needs to follow all of the rules above, can be any genre, and CAN be chosen from someone we are including in our magazine. Your best discovery can be about an entire magazine or an author (as long as he or she is alive and not yet famous).