Course Syllabus

JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "CW 205"
COURSE NAME: "Introduction to Creative Writing"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Fall Semester 2012

SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Minot George
HOURS: MW 8:30-9:45
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES: Prerequisite: EN 103 or 105 with grade of C or above
OFFICE HOURS: MW 17:00 - 18:00 and by appointment

COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This course provides an introduction to the creative practice of writing fiction, nonfiction, and poetry, while probing major issues of literary aesthetics. This course does not satisfy the General Distribution requirement in English Literature. Prerequisites: EN 110, one previous literature course or permission of the instructor. This course is a prerequisite for all higher-level Creative Writing courses.

SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:
This course presents opportunities for creative writing, while probing major issues of literary aesthetics.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:
At the conclusion of this course students will be familiar with the skills needed to produce literary fiction, nonfiction, and poetry; have the ability to self-edit work in progress; and be able to discern the qualities that constitute good literary fiction, nonfiction and poetry.

TEXTBOOK:

Book Title	Author	Publisher	ISBN number	Library Call Number	Comments	Format	Local Bookstore	Online Purchase
Creative Writing: Four Genres in Brief	David Starkey	Bedford/St. Martin's	9780312468668

REQUIRED RESERVED READING:

NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:

NONE

GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:

Assignment	Guidelines	Weight
participation		20%
conscientiousness of self-editing		20%
criticism/editing of classmates' work		20%
final portfolio		40%

-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
A excellent work
B good work
C meets class requirements
D does not meet class requirements
F fails the class

Late work will not be accepted. It is the student's responsibility to submit assignments by the specified deadlines. Misdirected emails, blank documents, incorrect documents, or any other technical or printing issues will not be considered as valid excuses for work that is not submitted on time. This is particularly important in a workshop setting, in which substantive class participation is a crucial element of learning, as well as of each student's grade.
-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Students are required to attend all scheduled class meetings. Students are allowed four absences during the term. Each additional absence beyond the four allowed will result in the reduction in the final grade for the course by 5%. Students arriving to class after attendance has been taken will be counted as late. Two late arrivals will count as an absence. Please refer to the JCU catalog for the attendance and absence policies.

ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.

STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.

SCHEDULE

CW 205: Introduction to Creative Writing Reading, Writing, Workshop Schedule

Fall 2011, Professor Egan John Cabot University

Schedule subject to change.

Date	Class focus	Reading (to be done for this ß class meeting)	Students up for workshop
WEEK 1 Mon, September 5	Introduction, syllabus, etc. FICTION	All pages refer to Starkey (sometimes handouts will be given)	(and the occasional literary event)
Wed, September 7	A few things you should know about creative writing…	Starkey, intro, pp. 1-8. Type up 3 things you learned/liked/argued with (one paragraph each). Start to brainstorm story ideas.
WEEK 2 Mon, September 12	FICTION A few things you should know…	pp. 92-102. List the 3 things. Also read Babel, Barthelme, Allen. Be prepared to discuss.
Wed, September 14	Getting started	pp. 135-138. Which ideas appeal to you? Get going! Boyle, pp. 139-142
WEEK 3 Mon, September 19	Structure & design	pp. 102-109. Carlson, 142-144	Checklist for fiction pp. 109-110.
Wed, September 21	Creating Characters	pp. 110-116. Carver, 145-146	Checklist for fiction pp. 116-117
WEEK 4 Mon, September 26	Writing dialogue	pp. 118-122 Cheever, 146-148	Checklist for dialogue p. 122
Wed, September 28	Setting the scene	pp. 123-126 Hempel, 151-152	Checklist for scene pp. 126-127
WEEK 5 Mon, October 3	Deciding on point of view & tense	pp. 127-132 Kincaid, 152-153
Wed, October 5	Tone and style	pp. 132-134 Oates*, 153-154	Checklist on p.o.v., tone, style pp. 134-135
WEEK 6 Mon, October 10	CREATIVE NONFICTION A few things you should know…	pp. 160-175 including the essays by Sanders, Doyle, McClanahan
Wed, October 12	Kick-starts: Beginning your creative nonfiction	pp. 202-205 check out which ideas you like most Moore pp. 214-15; Saner pp. 220-21
WEEK 7 Mon, October 17	Organizing creative nonfiction	pp. 175-180 Mukherjee 215-217	Checklist on organizing p. 180
Wed, October 19 Wed, October 19	Telling the truth	pp. 180-184 Danticat 209-212	Checklist on truth pp. 184-185
WEEK 8 Mon, October 24	Creative nonfiction as narrative	pp. 185-189 Aldrich, pp. 207-209	Tithi, Esmeralda Checklist on narrative p. 190
Wed, October 26	The poetry of creative nonfiction	pp. 190-193 Ackerman pp. 206-7	Checklist on poetry pp. 193-94
WEEK 9 Mon, October 31	Writing yourself into creative nonfiction	pp. 194-197 Nezhukumatathil (aka NezJ pp. 218-220	* Checklist on yourself p. 197
Wed, November 2	Ethics and edicts	pp. 197-201 Schwartz, 222-224	Checklist on ethics an edicts p. 201
WEEK 10 Mon, November 7	POETRY A few things you should know…	pp. 9-19 including poems by White, Stone, & Howe
Wed, November 9	Getting started writing poetry	pp. 63-66	(especially talk to me if you’re interested in writing in poetic form!)
WEEK 11 Mon, November 14	Lines and stanzas	pp. 20-25 Suarez, pp. 87-89; Su p. 87; Harjo pp. 78-79	Checklist on lines & stanzas p. 26
Wed, November 16	Meter and rhythm	pp. 27-33 Snyder p. 85; Tretheway pp. 89-90; Equip p. 76-77	Checklist on meter & rhythm pp. 33-34
WEEK 12 Mon, November 21	The music of poetry	pp. 34-37 Kinnell pp. 81-82; Joseph pp. 79-81; Guest, p. 78	Checklist on the music pp. 37-38
Wed, November 23	Images, symbols, and figurative language	pp. 38-45 Tate, p. 89; Soto p. 86	Checklist on images, symbols, fig. language pp. 45-46
WEEK 13 Mon, November 28	Diction, syntax, and the language of poetry	pp. 46-49 Lauterback, pp. 82-83; Shihab Nye pp. 83-85	Checklist on diction, syntax, and language pp. 49-50
Wed, November 30	Poetic forms	pp. 50-63 (don’t worry, a lot of the pages are examples of poems) Brooks pp. 70-71; Wojahn pp. 90-91	Checklist on poetic forms p. 63. Feel free to read the poems from the book that are not included here.
WEEK 14 Mon, December 5	Wrapping up loose ends, portfolios, READING J etc.		Whatever we need to wrap up.
Wed, December 7	Wrapping up.		More of the same
December 10-16 finals	Final portfolio due: 10 pages fiction, 10 pages non-fiction, 5 pages of poetry	Incorporating workshop comments into final revisions	Happy break!