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ENG 643: Creative Non-Fiction
Workshop
4 credits
This graduate workshop focuses on the craft of writing creative nonfiction.
Learning Goals
How are the personal and the public intertwined in the essay? How does author come to understand her situation in context: in history, in politics, in place? How does the author reconstruct and present her memories? Is the meaning transparent to her, or does she struggle with the interpretation? Is the self in narrative fragmented or whole, in the process of becoming, or already constituted? These are some of the key questions we ask of the personal essay as we explore how memory and identity are interpreted and reinterpreted, and in what ways such writing informs us not only about the author, but the society we live in and the beliefs we hold. In this class the focus is on learning to write about your own personal experience and its relation to the larger, collective experience. We will read essays and discuss how other authors deal with structure, language, technique, and style. For workshop, you must be willing to put your writing up for close scrutiny, and able to give criticism generously and honestly. The best workshop is about approaching the work on its own terms. Egos should have nothing to do with it. Remember: the only way to learn how to improve is to talk about what is working and what is not. The best reader is both sympathetic to the project, and without mercy. Strive to be your own best reader.
*The learning goals displayed here are those for one section of this
course as offered in a recent semester, and are provided for the purpose of
information only. The exact learning goals for each course section in a
specific semester will be stated on the syllabus distributed at the start
of the semester, and may differ in wording and emphasis from those shown
here.