ENGL210: Intro to Creative Writing
Spring 2013 Syllabus
Tues and Thurs, 9:30-10:45am in M02-0621
Instructor: Aaron Devine
Office: Wheatley 06-044
Office hours: Thursdays after class and by appointment
Email: (or )
Wiki: http://engl210-devine.wikispaces.umb.edu/
Required Materials
1. Burroway, Janet. Imaginative Writing: The Elements of Craft (3rd Edition). Penguin Academics, 2010.
2. Readings distributed in class or via our wiki.
3. A notebook for in-class writing.
Course Objectives
What makes a story or a poem meaningful to you? This question is at the heart of our course, and we'll plot our course in search of its answer. A creative work, as Raymond Carver said, “is [the author's] world and no other. This is one of the things that distinguishes one writer from another. Not talent. There's plenty of that around. But a writer who has some special way of looking at things and who gives artistic expression to that way of looking: that writer may be around for a time.”
In this course, we seek to understand our own unique ways of looking at the world, and how to give them artistic expression. We are less concerned than Carver with being around for a time, but we hope to discover in writing a certain access to ourselves and to the world that will endure a lifetime. To paraphrase the musician Tony Glover: Writing is one of my oldest friends. You don't expect to get rich off your friends—you just hope they'll be there for you when you need them. Writing usually is.
Meanwhile, we will serve as one another's friends and guideposts. Because we write into the unknown, and most of what we look at in this course will be drafts—rough drafts—we will engage each other with respect, confidence, and admiration. “Easy reading is damn hard writing,” wrote a local boy named Hawthorne. Each word you'll seek alone. But the common goals of meaningful writing and artistic expression: those we'll pursue together.
Course Methods
We'll begin our semester with various readings and writing exercises designed to acclimate ourselves to the discipline and to each other. Expect in-class and out-of-class writing assignments in which you'll be encouraged to take risks and write to the borderlands of your ken (this will build your “can”). In time, we'll learn the workshop model for revising our short stories and poetry. For this, you'll discuss one another's writing in class, as well as via letters submitted directly to each author. Class discussion of texts and one another's writings, as well as whatever other serendipitous topics arise, will be essential to developing our class identity and your own creative engagement. Come prepared to participate.
Evaluation
During the semester, you will write. In-class writing exercises are designed to generate material, stimulate creativity, and experiment with language. Out-of-class writing assignments (a.k.a. homework) will include poetry and short stories. These will not be graded, in fact, none of your creative writing will be given a letter grade (so no one will be graded on his/her talent). All creative work will, however, lead to your...
Final Portfolio. This is a collection of your writing to be turned in at the end of the semester. It will include all your writing assignments from this course, as well as at least one “radically” revised poem or short story. Your final portfolio is meant to display your progress through this course. You will be graded on improvement and the degree to which you have taken risks, challenged yourself to write in new ways.
Also graded are three response papers: two based on a craft element, the third based on a literary reading. Craft response papers should be a maximum of 2 pages double-spaced and address the questions: How and why did the author do what he/she did? How did it work (or not work)? There will be one craft response to poetry and another to fiction. Reading response papers involve attending a literary reading during the semester and writing another 2-3 page paper based on your impressions. Your goal here is to connect the experience of a live reading to an element of craft, or to your own experience with writing creatively.
Final grades will be broken down:
35% Class participation/attendance/reading quizzes
25% Response papers
25% Final portfolio
15% Workshop (including workshop letters)
Mid-Semester Conference
The purpose of the conference is for us to check-in with each other, one-on-one. We can go over your writing, talk about your course goals, and discuss any concerns you have. This is a requirement; forgoing it will reflect in your participation grade.
Attendance Policy
You are allowed no more than two unexcused absences. Unexcused means you did not notify me in advance of class. So: notify me. This class depends on each of us being present and contributing, so I expect that you will not miss any more than four classes over the course of this semester – excused or unexcused. More than four absences will affect your grade. Please let me know if this is a concern, or if you have an outside circumstance that impacts your attendance.
Also, no cell phones, email, Facebook, etc. during our class. If I notice you using any of these, I will mark down your participation grade. If you have a particular circumstance that requires you to keep your phone on, you need to let me know before class.
Style Requirements
All written assignments must be done in a conventional, 12 point font (Times New Roman or Calibri are fine). Poetry should be single-spaced; fiction and all papers should be double-spaced and stapled. All assignments must be turned in on time and meet these requirements in order to be considered for grading. For graded assignments, 1/3 of a letter grade will be deducted for each day the assignment is late. So, if an assignment merits an “A,” but is handed in three days late, the student would receive a “B.”
Proofread your work and make sure it is free of excessive typos, misspellings, and grammatical errors. If you are making grammatical errors for effect, you should know what you are doing and be able to explain why you are doing it.
Students with Disabilities
If you have a disability that may affect your performance in this class, know that UMass Boston has resources that can help you succeed in your coursework. Contact the Ross Center for Disabilities (Campus Center UL211); they will provide documentation that you then bring to your instructor: http://www.umb.edu/academics/vpass/disability/
Plagiarism and Academic Honesty
Plagiarism is defined as the attempt to use or pass off as one’s own the ideas or writings of another. This includes copying from a friend, downloading material from the internet and pretending it’s yours, or using passages either reproduced word-for-word or paraphrased from someone else’s work without giving credit to the author. If you’re confused about the correct way to use sources, please see me and I’ll be glad to assist you. Because plagiarism involves stealing someone else’s ideas, it’s considered a very serious matter in academic life. Anyone who commits plagiarism risks failing this course.
All students are accountable to the definitions and regulations concerning Academic Honesty contained in the University of Massachusetts Boston “Code of Standard Conduct.” For more details, see: http://www.umb.edu/life_on_campus/policies/code/
SPRING 2013 WEEK TO WEEK TOPIC SCHEDULE
(Subject to change, always with advanced notice.)
WEEK 1 (1/29 and 1/31)
Introductions. Review Syllabus. Read: One Today and Why I Write.
WEEK 2 (2/05 and 2/07). On Image.
For Tuesday: your version of Why I Write + read “Invitation” (pgs 1-10) in Burroway.
For Thursday: Read Chapter 2 on Image in Burroway (pgs 13-25)
WEEK 3 (2/12 and 2/14). On Voice.
For Tuesday: Read Chapter 3 on Voice in Burroway (pgs 47-61)
For Thursday: see Wiki for readings
WEEK 4 (2/19 and 2/21). On Character.
For Tuesday: Read Chapter 4 on Character in Burroway (pgs 87-101)
For Thursday: see Wiki for readings
WEEK 5 (2/26 and 2/28). On Setting.
For Tuesday: Read Chapter 5 on Setting in Burroway (pgs 132-144)
For Thursday: Introduction to the Workshop Model
>First craft paper (on poetry) due Tuesday
WEEK 6 (3/05 and 3/07)
Class Poetry Workshop
WEEK 7 (3/12 and 3/14)
Conferences
SPRING BREAK (week of March 18th)
WEEK 8 (3/26 and 3/28)
On Story
WEEK 9 (4/02 and 4/04)
On Revision
WEEK 10 (4/09 and 4/11)
Class Fiction Workshop
WEEK 11 (4/16 and 4/18)
>Second craft paper (on fiction) due
WEEK 12 – WEEK 15: TBD