Advanced Reading and Writing Creative Nonfiction I (308-A-15)
Instructors
Sarah Fay
Dr. Fay’s writing appears in The New York Times, TIME, The New Republic, The Atlantic, Bookforum, The American Scholar, BOMB, The Iowa Review, The Rumpus, McSweeney’s, The Believer, and The Paris Review, where she served as an advisory editor. She is the recipient of the Hopwood Award for Literature, as well as grants and fellowships from Yaddo, the Mellon Foundation, the Center for Book Arts, the Poetry Center of Chicago, the Puffin Foundation, the Vermont Studio Center, the Sewanee Writers’ Conference, and the MacDowell Colony, among others. She has an M.F.A. in Creative Writing, an M.A. in English, and a Ph.D. in nineteenth- and twentieth-century American Literature. She currently teaches in the English departments at DePaul University and Northwestern University.
Meeting Info
Online: Thurs 6:15PM - 9:15PM
Overview of class
This course is for students who want to advance their writing. In it, we'll explore subgenres of creative nonfiction: the memoir, the personal essay, and literary journalism. In doing so, the course will help you embark on a new level of professionalism in your writing. We'll revisit the macro elements of creative nonfiction via close readings and discussions of published works. Inspirations will include Sonali Deraniyagala, Claudia Rankine, Alex Haley, John McPhee, Lillian Ross, Gabriel Mac (née Mac McClelland), Maxine Hong Kingston, Oscar Hijuelos, and Lindy West. Writing assignments will range from weekly exercises to workshop submissions.
The emphasis, of course, will be to get you writing and writing well by focusing on structure, technique, and style. At the same time, we'll go beyond the printed page to explore how technology and the internet have changed the longstanding traditions of creative nonfiction. Many of our discussions will center on how the publishing landscape has shifted with the advent of e-books, literary websites, and digital-only magazines. In both workshop and seminar, we'll consider how that has transformed the way we read and (must) write narrative and non-narrative forms. Subgenres covered will include audio life stories (such as StoryCorps), radio essays (such as This American Life), and digital essays (such as those by Claudia Rankine and John Lucas). We'll also discuss how the internet and social media can serve you in your career. Absolutely no technology skills required. All classes will be conducted in seminar and workshop formats.
Schedule Note: this course will meet remotely, with weekly remote synchronous sessions held on the scheduled day.
Registration Requirements
Prerequisite: ENGLISH 208 or permission of instructor. Students should have previous creative writing experience in an academic setting. Students who have not completed ENGLISH 208 should obtain instructor's consent and confirmation of appropriate writing experience. Please send an email to the professor with your writing background to request a permission number once registration for winter quarter has opened.
May not be audited or taken P/N.
Class Materials (Required)
Confirm course texts and materials by contacting instructor or viewing course Canvas site or University bookstore website.
Sonali Deraniyagala, Wave, Vintage, 2013 (978-0345804310)
Claudia Rankine, Citizen, Graywolf Press, 2014 (978-1555976903)
All other assigned readings will be available on Canvas or online. The majority have a live link.
Class Attributes
Synchronous:Class meets remotely at scheduled time
Enrollment Requirements
Enrollment Requirements: Pre-Requisite: Students must have taken & passed English 208 to enroll.