English313,Literary Publications II (3 credits)
Meets 2:00 to 3:45 Tuesdays and Thursdays in South Engineering 314
Instructor: Eunice Johnston
Office: South Engineering 318 H
Office Hours: 9:30-10:30 M-F or by arrangement
Office Phone: 231-7153
Email:
Course Description and Objectives
Theory and practice in the process of producing a literary magazine. Students enrolled in this course will assume the responsibilities of one or more of the following roles based on interest, experience, and class standing in order to produce Carbon World, a literary magazine, and other literary publications:
- Editors-in-chief, who will provide leadership for the group and coordinate the efforts of other students.
- Literary and art editors, who will establish criteria and select materials to be included in the publication; they will also edit and proofread the selected materials.
- Production managers, who will do desktop publishing, graphic design, and possibly create a web-based version of themagazine.
- Business/publicity managers, who will solicit donations, write grant proposals, develop marketing strategies, and contact businesses that may resell the publication.
- In addition, some students may function as staff writers, artists, and/or photographers, who will contribute articles, art work, and/or photographs at the request of the editors-in-chief.
English 313, Literary Publications II, may not be repeated.
The course objectives are as follows:
- Students will develop effective strategies for working collaboratively and for managing large projects.
- Students will understand principles of design as they relate to the publication of literary works.
- Students will learn how materials are selected for publication and the process by which those materials come to published.
- Students will learn how economic conditions impact publishing decisions.
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Prerequisite
Students must complete English 120, College Composition II, or its equivalent before taking this course.
Resources
These books are required of all students:
- Frame, J. Davidson. Managing Projects in Organizations: How to Make the Best Use of Time, Techniques, and People. Jossey Bass, 1995.
- Kostelnick, Charles, and David D. Roberts. Designing Visual Language: Strategies for Professional Communicators. Allyn & Bacon, 1998.
In addition, the group will have a membership in the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses, which includes access to many resources related to all aspects of publishing literary magazines. The NDSUTechnologyLearningCenter will be asked to provide support on desktop publishing.
Students with Special Needs
Any student with special needs is encouraged to contact the instructor as soon as possible so that accommodations can be made.
Academic Honesty
All work submitted in this class must be done in a manner consistent with NDSU's Code of Academic Responsibility and Conduct, which states that "Students are responsible for submitting their own work" (see < Specifically, whenever a writer uses a fact, statistic, idea, or opinion from a source, the writer must cite that source appropriately. Using information from a source without giving credit to that source is plagiarism, which the university considers an act of academic dishonesty. Plagiarism includeshanding in a whole paper or parts of a paper written by someone else as well as not using quotation marks when copying the text of a source word-for-word and/or neglecting to cite the source of information used.
Requirements
Students’ understanding of the process of producing a literary magazine and their contributions to that process will be determined by observation and by evaluation of several documents related to the process that they will write:
- Critique of a Literary Magazine: 10%. This portion of the grade will be based on a written critique of a literary magazine. An explanation of how this portion of the grade will be determined is included in Appendix A: Procedure for Determining Grade for the Critique of a Literary Magazine Assignment (see page 6).
- Participation: 40%. This portion of the grade will be based on two components: (1) attendance at and participation in project meetings, and (2) weekly progress reports that detail each individual’swork-in-progress during Weeks 5 through 11. An explanation of how the grade for this portion of the grade will be determined is included in Appendix B: Procedure for Determining Grade for Participation (see pages 7-9).
- Project Report: 30%. Each subgroup (e.g. literary editors, art editors, production managers, business managers)will write collaboratively a report that summarizes what the group did, explains what worked well and what problems they encountered, and offers advice to people who will be working on a subsequent issue of the magazine. An explanation of how the grade for this portion of the grade will be determined is included in Appendix C: Procedure for Determining Grade for the Project Report (see pages 10-13).
- Reflective Report: 20%. Each student will write a reflective report to the instructor in which he/she discusses what he/she learned about working collaboratively and managing projects, about document design as it relates to literary works, and about the process by which a publication is produced. An explanation of how the grade for this portion of the course will be determined is included in Appendix D: Procedure for Determining Grade for the Reflective Report (see pages14-15).
Final grades will be assigned on this basis: A = 90% to 100% of the points possible; B = 80% to 89% of the points possible; C = 70% to 79% of the points possible; D = 60% to 69% of the points possible; F = 59% or fewer of the points possible.
Schedule
The schedule for this course assumes an ongoing cycle of publication. Submissions for a new issue will have been solicited and received by Week 2 of the current semester, and literary and art editors will work with these submissions. During Weeks 4 – 11, subgroups (e.g. literary editors, art editors, production managers, business managers) will meet during one of the scheduled class meetings and the editors-in-chief will rotate their attendance at those meetings.
Week 1
Tuesday:Large group meeting to discuss how the project will work. Students will complete forms on which they indicate their interests and experience.
Thursday: Large group meeting. Project Reports written by subgroups at the end of the last production cycle are reviewed and discussed.
Week 2
Tuesday:Large group meeting. Read Managing Projects in Organizations, Part One: The Project Context: People, Teams, and the Organization (pp. 1-107).
Thursday:Read Designing Visual Language, Rhetorical Background (pp. 3-46). Students are assigned roles based on interests, experience, and class standings.
Week 3
Tuesday:Large group meeting. Read Managing Projects in Organizations, Part Three: Project Planning and Control (pp. 161-234).
Thursday:Large group meeting. Read Designing Visual Language, Perception and Design (pp. 47-78). Analyze and evaluate designs of previous issues of Carbon World.
Week 4
Tuesday:Read Designing Visual Language, Visual analysis (pp. 80-115). Analyze and evaluate designs of other literary magazines.
Thursday:Critique of a Literary Magazine due. Subgroups (literary and art editors, production managers, business managers) meet to determine tasks that need to be completed and the projected schedule for completing them. Submissions that were received at the end of the previous cycle will be distributed to the literary and art editors; they will begin to establish criteria for selection. Production managers will meet to begin developing a design for the current issue. Business managers will review the costs and income from the previous issue; if substantial copies remain to be sold, they will devise a sales strategy.
Week 5
Tuesday: Project Meeting: everyone attends; all subgroups report on their progress. Read Designing Visual Language, Linear Components (pp. 119-159). More analysis and evaluation of designs of other literary magazines.
Thursday:Subgroups meet to work on specific task. Each student writes a weekly progress report and posts it to the website for the project.
Week 6
Tuesday:Project meeting: everyone attends; all subgroups report on their progress. Literary and art editors begin to provide items to the production managers. Production managers present initial concepts for the design. Business managers report on the current financial situation and their recommendations for financing the current issue. Read Designing Visual Language, Text Fields (pp. 160-217). Analysis and evaluation of these elements in previous issues of Carbon World.
Thursday:Subgroups meet to work on specific tasks. Each student writes a weekly progress report and posts it to the website for the project.
Week 7
Tuesday:Project meeting: everyone attends; all subgroups report on their progress. Read Designing Visual Language, Pictures (pp. 313-358), and Icons, Logos, and Symbols (pp. 359-386). Analysis and evaluation of these elements in previous issues of Carbon World.
Thursday:Subgroups meet to work on specific tasks. Each student writes a weekly progress report and posts it to the website for the project.
Week 8
Tuesday:Project meeting: everyone attends; all subgroups report on their progress. Read Designing Visual Language, Document Design (pp. 387-435). Begin analysis and evaluation of the design of the Carbon World issue currently in progress.
Thursday:Subgroups meet to work on specific tasks. Each student writes a weekly progress report and posts it to the website for the project.
Week 9
Tuesday:Project meeting: everyone attends; all subgroups report on their progress. Continue analysis and review of the design of the Carbon World issue currently in progress.
Thursday:Subgroups meet to work on specific tasks. Each student writes a weekly progress report and posts it to the website for the project.
Week 10
Tuesday:Project meeting: everyone attends; all subgroups report on their progress. Continue analysis and review of the design of the Carbon World issue currently in progress. The selection process by the literary and art editors must be complete by this date.
Thursday:Subgroups meet to work on specific tasks. Literary and art editors begin writing letters of acceptance and rejection to writers and artists who submitted work. Production managers concentrate on desktop publishing. Business managers obtain estimates for printing. Each student writes a weekly progress report and posts it to the website for the project.
Week 11
Tuesday:Project meeting: everyone attends; all subgroups report on their progress. Production people bring printouts of pages that are completed and/or in process for response from other group members. Business managers report on estimates for printing the issue currently being produced.
Thursday:Subgroups meet to work on specific tasks. Literary and art editors work on proofreading the manuscript. Each student writes a weekly progress report and posts it to the website for the project.
Week 12
Tuesday: Subgroups meet to work on specific tasks. Literary and art editors work on proofreading the manuscript.
Thursday:Project meeting: final review of the manuscript. Manuscript goes to the printer.
Week 13
Tuesday:Project meeting: everyone attends. Discussion of the successes and problems encountered in the process of producing Carbon World.
Thursday:Project meeting: everyone attends. Discussion of the successes and problems encountered in the process of producing Carbon World.
Week 14
Tuesday:Subgroups meet to draft Project Reports.
Thursday:Subgroups meet to draft Project Reports.
Week 15
Tuesday:Project Reports due. Project meeting: discuss the call of submissions for the next issue.
Thursday:Project meeting: discuss the call of submissions for the next issue.
Week 16
Tuesday:Reflective Reports due.
Thursday:Publication party to celebrate release of the new issue.
Appendix A: Procedure for Determining Grade
for the Critique of a Literary Magazine Assignment
Each student will select one previous issue of Carbon World or one issue of another literary magazine and write a critique of it that discusses the following concerns:
Design, Layout, and Professionalism
- Design (creativity, quality, consistency, and appropriateness).
- Book components (appropriate front matter, pagination, credits).
- Editing and proofreading.
Content
- Variety of content (genres represented, subjects covered).
- Quality of content.
The Critique of a Literary Magazine assignment will be evaluated on the following basis:
A =Excellent Work. The critique demonstrates superior completion of the assignment. The student provided an excellent critical response to a literary magazine: the critique includes excellent, insightful evaluations of both the visual elements and the content; it does an excellent job of incorporating appropriate concepts and examples into the discussion; the style is fluent, coherent, and correct. Range: 90% to 100% of the points possible.
B =Good Work. The critique demonstrates a thorough, well-organized example of the assignment. The student provided a good critical response to a literary magazine: the critique includes good evaluations of both the visual elements and the content; it discusses several appropriate concepts and examples; the style is interesting, precise, clear, and correct. Range: 80% to 89% of the points possible.
C =Acceptable Work. The critique meets the basic requirements of the assignment. The student provided an acceptable critical response to a literary magazine: the critique includes some evaluations ofboth the visual elements and the content and it discusses a few appropriate conceptsand examples. It may have minor mechanical problems or an occasional major one. There is nothing remarkably good or bad about the work. Range: 70% to 79% of the points possible.
D =Weak Work. The critique demonstrates a weakness in content, organization, or stylebut with some redeeming features. Range: 60% to 69% of the points possible.
F =Unacceptable Work. The critique fails to meet one or more of the basic requirements for the assignment. It may fail to cover essential information or it may digress to nonessential material. It may lack adequate organization or it may show confusion or misunderstanding of the rhetorical context. It may use an inappropriate tone or diction; it may display excessive repetition, awkward sentence structure; or it may lack clarity. Range: 59% or fewer of the points possible.
Appendix B: Procedure for Determining Grade for Participation
Two forms will be used to evaluate each student’s participation in the class project: (1) the Meeting Participation Evaluation Form (see page 8), and (2) the Written Progress Report Evaluation Form (see page 9).
The instructor will complete one Meeting Participation Evaluation Form for each meeting that a student is expected to attend and one Written Progress Report Evaluation Form for each progress report that a student is expected to write. One copy of each evaluation form will be given to the student and one will be kept on file. At the end of the semester, the student’s participation will be rated based on the following basis:
A = Excellent. This student went above and beyond expectations, did more work than was
expected, and demonstrated leadership qualities by facilitating and encouraging work by others. The student attended all meetings (orcommunicated his/her inability to attend specific ones). All progress reports were submitted on time, and they were written in a clear, concise, and correct style. The progress reports provided excellent evidence that the student had completed work. Range: 90% to 100% of the points possible.
B = Very Good. This student was always well-prepared, consistently did what he/she had agreed to do, and was cooperative with other students. The student attended all meetings (or communicated his/her inability to attend specific ones). All progress reports were submitted on time, and they were written in a clear, concise, and correct style. The progressreports provided good evidence that the student had completed work. Range: 80% to 89% of the points possible.
C = Satisfactory. This student was acceptably prepared, did much of the work he/she had agreed to do, and was cooperative with other students. The student attended most meetings (or communicated his/her inability to attend specific ones). Most progress reports were submitted on time and could be understood although the style might have been clearer,more concise, or more correct. The progress reports provided some evidence that the student had completed some work. Range: 70% to 79% of the points possible.
D = Deficient. This student was frequentlyunprepared, failed to complete several agreed- upon work assignments or declined to volunteer for most work assignments, failed to attend several meetings (and did not communicate his/her inability to attend them), and/or was sometimes uncooperative. Some progress reports were not submitted, were submitted late, and/or provided little evidence that the student had completed work. Range: 60% to 69% of the points possible.
F = Unsatisfactory. This student was consistently unprepared, consistently failed to complete any work, consistently failed to attend meetings (and did not communicate his/her inability to attend them),and/or was consistently uncooperative with other students. Range: 59% or fewer of the points possible.
The Meeting Participation Evaluation Form and the Written Progress Report Evaluation Form were adapted from Brown, R. W. (1995). “Autorating: Getting individual marks from team marks and enhancing teamwork.” Frontiers in Education Conference Proceedings, Paper 3C24.
Meeting ParticipationEvaluation Form
Name: ______
Date: ______
1. This student attended this meeting:___ yes ___ no
or
This student notified another group member that he/she could not attend:___ yes ___ no
- This student contributed to the meeting (e.g. suggested ideas, offered opinions, reported on work completed, reported on resources needed to complete a task).
___excellent: went above and beyond expectations; completed more than his/her share of the work;
encouraged and/or facilitated contributions by others.
___very good: very well prepared; completed work he/she had agreed to do; was cooperative with others.
___satisfactory: acceptably prepared; did much of the work he/she had agreed to do; was cooperative with others.
___deficient: poorly prepared; failed to complete work he/she had agreed to do; and/or was
uncooperative with others.
Written Progress Report EvaluationForm
Name: ______
Date of Progress Report: ______