Loyola University Chicago

Department of English

Course Schedules

The courses listed here are the introductory and advanced workshops that fulfill the creative writing concentration. For a full list of English Department undergraduate courses, see here.

Fall 2020
Spring 2021 
Fall 2021
Spring 2022
Fall 2022
Spring 2023
Fall 2023

 

Fall 2020 Courses

ENGL 317 The Writing of Poetry

Section: 001   #1625
Instructor: A. Baker
3.0 credit hours Seminar
M 4:15–6:45 PM LSC

This course offers practice and instruction in the techniques and analysis of poetry through reading, writing, discussing, and revising poems. We will give particular attention to the unique challenges and opportunities facing beginning poets as we first seek to channel our ideas and life experiences into poetry, to find and then develop our own voices in relation to not only our own impulses but to "the tradition" and the aesthetically diverse and fascinating world of contemporary poetry. The poems you write will be carefully read and critiqued by both your classmates and the instructor. The culmination of the course will be to compile a portfolio of the work you have written over the term.

Section: 002    #2574
Instructor: L. Goldstein
3.0 credit hours Seminar
W 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

This course approaches the writing of poetry as both a study and craft that requires reading, exploration, practice, and sharing. We read a unique work of contemporary poetry each week as a framework for discussion, but the core of the course is student writing. The workshop element of the course is focused on experimentation with language to foster each student’s own creativity and delight in creating work both as a group and on their own. Our work includes in-class collective and collaborative writing experiments, prompts for writing in between sessions, and presentations of student poetry for review by the group. Students produce a final collection of poetry in a self-published chapbook and give a reading of their work for the final.

Section: 003   #4616
Instructor: P. Sorenson
3.0 credit hours Seminar
F 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

This course aligns poetry writing with the reading of poetry and the exploration of poetic practices both old and new. Through outside reading, students will question their relationships to contemporary modes and cultures. Thus, students will further develop their own voices, styles, and methods of production, and they will begin to situate their craft in the larger poetic world. Weekly class meetings will center on discussions and presentations of outside materials, in-class writing and writing experiments, discussions of student-generated poetry, and collaborative writing.  In addition to regular writing assignments and in-class presentations, students will develop a portfolio by semester’s end. 

 

ENGL 318   The Writing of Fiction

Section: 001   #2241
Instructor: TBA
3.0 credit hours Seminar
M 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

 

Section: 003   #4618
Instructor: TBA
3.0 credit hours Seminar
W 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

 

Section: 004   #5808
Instructor: H. Axelrod
3.0 credit hours Seminar
F 2:45-5:15 PM LSC

This is a workshop class in fiction. Students will learn to become better readers and writers of fiction by learning how to attend to structure, character, imagery, dialogue and other craft elements as we analyze how writers such as Jamaica Kincaid, Denis Johnson, Jhumpa Lahiri, and others create stories that resonate with the stories of our own lives. What makes a character stay with us? What makes a metaphor work? What makes dialogue sound believable? What is the difference between suspense and surprise?

Students will write three original short stories, and will learn how to critique each other’s stories in class as part of a supportive workshop environment. Class participation is emphasized. Fulfills a Core Expressive Arts Requirement.

 

Section: 600   #4617
Instructor: M. Meinhardt
3.0 credit hours Seminar
T 7:00–9:30 PM LSC

This advanced writing workshop for fiction will explore traditional and contemporary flash fiction, short story, and novel (chapter) forms. Vocabulary, criticism, genre, and rhetoric will fuel a keen attention to the dynamics of both reading and writing fiction for personal and perhaps even artistic purposes. Character engagement, tone, and structural awareness will guide the development of each writer’s ‘voice’ through the development of creative writing designed to both explore and perform on the page. All students will write flash fiction and short story forms, but the novel start (or chapter) is optional. Old and new classics start the class off, but we shift very quickly to student writing and finish with attention to publication awareness and preparation. This workshop develops both new and experienced writers of fiction and satisfies the core expressive arts requirement!

 

ENGL 319 Writing Creative Nonfiction

Section: 001   #2873
Instructor: N. Kenney Johnstone
3.0 credit hours Seminar
W 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

The Importance of the Personal Essay

Personal essays allow writers to share unique experiences while communicating universal truths. They also have the power to spark important conversations and foster awareness. In this class, students will study and write five different forms of the personal essay. By reading and analyzing contemporary published models, students will deepen their learning of traditional and innovative creative nonfiction methods. Students will then write creative nonfiction pieces and participate in workshops of their classmates' writing.​ 

Section: 002   #5809
Instructor: H. Axelrod
3.0 credit hours Seminar
R 2:30–5:00 PM LSC

This is a workshop course in creative nonfiction, the fastest growing genre in publishing. It’s thriving in personal essay columns in magazines and newspapers, in memoirs, and in new hybrid forms. We’ll focus on personal essay and memoir, learning how to write about moments, activities, and relationships in your lives that have given you pause, stayed with you, and left you with questions. Among other craft elements, you’ll learn the distinction between I-narrator and I-character, between exposition and scene, and how to move from the situation—the facts of what happened—to finding insight and meaning through story.

In class, we’ll read, analyze, and discuss the works of creative nonfiction writers as models for your own writing. This is a workshop, so you’ll hear from each other what’s working on the page in your own writing and what isn’t—which will help develop your ear as you read and your instincts as you write. You’ll also learn to offer thoughtful commentary on the work of your classmates. The goal is for you to become a better reader and writer of creative nonfiction.

 

ENGL 397 Advanced Writing Workshop: Poetry

Section: 01W #1718
Instructor: A. Baker
3.0 credit hours Seminar
T 2:45- 5:15 PM

In this advanced poetry workshop, we will seek to deepen our engagement with poetry as an art form—both as readers and writers. Through reading, writing, and workshopping, we will grow more familiar with the anatomy and texture of poetry: image, word, voice, syntactical configurations, rhetorical devices— stanza, line, punctuation, and page. Your work will be given a great deal of individual attention in our workshops, and you will be offered the opportunity to work very closely with the instructor as you write and revise your final project for the course—a portfolio of your best work.

ENGL 397-01W #1718 is a writing intensive class.

 

Spring 2021 Courses

ENGL 317 The Writing of Poetry

Section: 001   #1312
Instructor: A. Baker
3.0 credit hours Seminar
T 2:30–5:00 PM LSC

Section: 002    #1313
Instructor: L. Goldstein
3.0 credit hours Seminar
W 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

Section: 003   #4466
Instructor: P. Sorenson
3.0 credit hours Seminar
F 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

 

ENGL 318   The Writing of Fiction

Section: 001   #1314
Instructor: TBA
3.0 credit hours Seminar
M 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

Section: 002   #2185
Instructor: TBA
3.0 credit hours Seminar
W 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

Section: 600   #2186
Instructor: M. Meinhardt
3.0 credit hours Seminar
T 7:00–9:30 PM LSC

 

ENGL 319 Writing Creative Nonfiction

Section: 001   #1813
Instructor: H. Axelrod
3.0 credit hours Seminar
R 2:30–5:00 PM LSC

Section: 001   #5128
Instructor: N. Kenney Johnstone
3.0 credit hours Seminar
W 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

 

ENGL 392 Advanced Creative Nonfiction

Section: 01W #3365
Instructor: H. Axelrod
3.0 credit hours Seminar
M 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

 

ENGL 398 Advanced Writing: Fiction

Section: 01W #1342
Instructor: TBA
3.0 credit hours Lecture
W 2:45 PM – 5:15 PM LSC
 

 

Fall 2021 Courses

 

ENGL 317    The Writing of Poetry 

Section: 001 #1581 
Instructor: A. Baker 
3.0 credit hours Seminar 
M 5:30–8:00 PM  Online/LSC 

Section: 002 #2404 
Instructor: L. Goldstein 
3.0 credit hours Seminar 
W 5:30–8:00 PM  LSC 

 

ENGL 318    The Writing of Fiction 

Section: 001 #2113 
Instructor: V. Popa 
3.0 credit hours Seminar 
M 5:30–8:00 PM  LSC 

Section: 002 #3931 
Instructor: M. Meinhardt 
3.0 credit hours Seminar 
5:30–8:00 PM  LSC

Section: 003 #4613 
Instructor: H. Axelrod 
3.0 credit hours Seminar 
F 5:30–8:00 PM  Online/LSC 

Section: 601 #3930 
Instructor: M. Hawkins 
3.0 credit hours Lecture 
W 5:30–8:00 PM  LSC 

 

ENGL 319    Writing Creative Nonfiction 

Section: 001 #2664 
Instructor: N. Kenney Johnstone 
3.0 credit hours Seminar 
W 5:30–8:00 PM LSC 

Section: 002 #4614 
Instructor: H. Axelrod 
3.0 credit hours Seminar 
R 5:30–8:00 PM  LSC 

 

ENGL 397   Advanced Writing: Poetry 

Section: 18W #1657 
Instructor: A. Baker 
3.0 credit hours Seminar 
T 5:30–8:00 PM  Online/LSC

 

 

Spring 2022 Courses

 

ENGL 317    The Writing of Poetry 

Section: 001 #1329
Instructor: A. Baker 
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
T 2:30–5:00 PM  LSC

Section: 002 #1330
Instructor: L. Goldstein
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
W 2:45–5:15 PM  LSC

Section: 003 #3760
Instructor: P. Sorenson
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
F 2:45–5:15 PM  LSC

 

ENGL 318    The Writing of Fiction 

Section: 001 #1331
Instructor: V. Popa 
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
M 4:15–6:45 PM  LSC

Section: 002 #2128
Instructor: M. Hawkins 
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
W 4:15–6:45 PM  LSC 

Section: 600 #2129
Instructor: M. Meinhardt
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
T 7:00–9:15 PM  LSC

 

 

ENGL 319    Writing Creative Nonfiction 

Section: 001 #1792
Instructor:V. Rendel
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
R 7:00–9:30 PM LSC

Section: 002 #4120
Instructor: C. Macon Fleischer
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
W 7:00–9:30 PM LSC 

 

ENGL 392    Advanced Creative Nonfiction

Section: 01W #4949
Instructor: H. Axelrod
3.0 credit hours Seminar
R  2:30–5:00 PM  LSC

 

 

Fall 2022 Courses

ENGL 317    The Writing of Poetry 

Section: 001 #3373
Instructor: A. Baker 
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
M 4:15–6:45 PM  LSC 

This course offers practice and instruction in the techniques and analysis of poetry through reading, writing, discussing, and revising poems. We will give particular attention to the unique challenges and opportunities  facing  beginning poets as we first seek to channel our ideas and life experiences into poetry, to find and then develop our own voices in relation to not only our own impulses but to "the tradition" and the aesthetically diverse and fascinating world of contemporary poetry. The poems you write will be carefully read and critiqued by both your classmates and the instructor. The culmination of the course will be to compile a portfolio of the work you have written over the term.

Section: 002 #5800
Instructor: L. Goldstein
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
W 2:45–5:15 PM  LSC 

Basic (Experimental) Poetry Workshop

Writing poetry is a craft that requires reading, exploration, practice, and sharing. Each week we read a unique work of contemporary poetry mostly by POC and queer writers to form a framework for discussion about vulnerable points of view and innovative forms. From there, students are encouraged to find their own process, form and voice. In our sessions, we experiment with language together to discover and foster creativity and delight in creating work both as a group and on our own. Our work also includes prompts for writing in between sessions, and presentations of student poetry for review by the group. Finally, students spend several weeks compiling and reviewing final collections of poetry for a self-published chapbook, and for the final, give a reading of their work.

Section: 003 #5801
Instructor: P. Sorenson
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
F 2:45–5:15 PM  LSC 

This course centers poetry as an individual and collective project. Through outside reading, students will question their relationships to contemporary modes and cultures while also working to develop their own voices, styles, and methods of production. Thus, students will begin to situate their craft in a larger poetic conversation. Weekly class meetings will center on discussions and presentations of outside materials, in-class writing and writing experiments, discussions of student-generated poetry, and collaborative writing.  In addition to regular writing assignments and in-class presentations, students will develop a twenty-page chapbook by semester’s end. 

 

 

ENGL 318    The Writing of Fiction 

Section: 001 #5805
Instructor:V. Popa
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
M 2:45–5:15 PM  LSC 

This course explores the art and techniques of writing fiction; how and why it succeeds in capturing the imagination of readers, and how those skills can be channeled successfully to craft new and original work. This introductory course will include a combination of craft lessons and workshop critique. We will investigate the output of a diverse cast of authors, from Francois Rabelais and Laurence Sterne to Denis Johnson and Danyial Mueenuddin. From these works, we will then distill valuable lessons about the writing of fiction, such as character development, dialogue, plot, and tension, which students will then apply to their own compositions. Assignments include two original works of short fiction (either short stories or novel excerpts) and a final portfolio (which will include revisions of workshopped assignments).

Section: 002 #5806
Instructor: TBA 
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
T 2:45–5:15 PM  LSC 

Section: 003 #5807
Instructor: H. Axelrod
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
F 2:45–5:15 PM  LSC 

This is a workshop class in fiction.  Students will learn to become better readers and writers of fiction by learning how to attend to structure, character, imagery, dialogue and other craft elements as we analyze how writers such as Jamaica Kincaid, Denis Johnson, Jhumpa Lahiri, and others create stories that resonate with the stories of our own lives.  What makes a character stay with us?  What makes a metaphor work?  What makes dialogue sound believable?  What is the difference between suspense and surprise?

Students will write three original short stories, and will learn how to critique each other’s stories in class as part of a supportive workshop environment.  Class participation is emphasized. Fulfills a Core Expressive Arts Requirement.

Section: 600 #5808
Instructor: C. Macon Fleischer
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
T 7:00–9:30 PM  LSC 

This class is half a book club, half a creative writing workshop. For book club, we’ll focus on contemporary award-winning books and short stories, recent titles from The New York Times bestsellers list as well as the latest winners and nominees of prestigious awards. By engaging deeply and critically with modern fiction, we’ll learn to be inspired by living writers’ techniques in our own writing. In-class writing prompts and peer workshops will lead you to finish the semester with two polished short stories and one flash fiction piece.

 

 

ENGL 319    Writing Creative Nonfiction 

Section: 001 #5810
Instructor: M. Hawkins
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
W 2:45–5:15 PM LSC 

This writing workshop will focus on the personal essay.  Students will draw from their own lives and their observations of the world around them to craft short, thoughtful, carefully composed works that tell true stories or raise questions and possibly (but not necessarily) draw conclusions.  One meaning of essay is to try; the purpose of a personal essay is not merely to report facts or to so say what happened but to try to understand it. How does your personal experience link to larger themes? Ideally, you will discover what you think about your chosen topics as you write. You may surprise yourself.

In addition to writing polished, finished essays, students will read each other’s work and discuss it in class. Weekly assigned readings of both classic and experimental essays will provide wide-ranging examples of this literary form at its highest level.

Section: 002 #5811
Instructor: H. Axelrod
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
R 2:45–5:15 PM LSC 

This is a workshop course in creative nonfiction, the fastest growing genre in publishing. It’s thriving in personal essay columns in magazines and newspapers, in memoirs, and in new hybrid forms. We’ll focus on personal essay and memoir, learning how to write about moments, activities, and relationships in your lives that have given you pause, stayed with you, and left you with questions. Among other craft elements, you’ll learn the distinction between I-narrator and I-character, exposition and scene, and how to move from the situation—the facts of what happened—to finding insight and meaning through story.

In class, we’ll read, analyze, and discuss the works of creative nonfiction writers as models for your own writing. This is a workshop, so you’ll hear from each other what’s working on the page in your own writing and what isn’t—which will help develop your ear as you read and your instincts as you write. You’ll also learn to offer thoughtful commentary on the work of your classmates.  The goal is for you to become a better reader and writer of creative nonfiction. 

Section: 600 #5812
Instructor: C. Macon Fleischer
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
W 7:00–9:30 PM  LSC 

One of the biggest questions surrounding creative nonfiction is: What is true? This writing course explores truth within the context of the personal essay, essay from the French “to try.” In class, we’ll have fun trying to tell the truth, our truth, examining what that might mean. The curriculum is divided into three main sections—book club, craft lectures, and peer writing workshops. We’ll examine the personal essay’s fascinating evolution, from The Pillow Book of Sei Shōnagon in 900 B.C. all the way to the “Cat Person” scandal in 2021. Designed to let students pursue their own interests, the class juggles literature with experimentation, self-exploration, and pop culture.

 

 

ENGL 397   Advanced Writing Workshop: Poetry

Section: 01W #5828 
Instructor: A. Baker
3.0 credit hours Seminar 
T 4:15–6:45 PM LSC

In this advanced poetry workshop, we will seek to deepen our engagement with poetry as an art form—both as readers and writers. Through reading, writing, and workshopping, we will grow more familiar with the anatomy and texture of poetry: image, word, voice, syntactical configurations, rhetorical devices—stanza, line, punctuation, and page. Your work will be given a great deal of individual attention in our workshops, and you will be offered the opportunity to work very closely with the instructor as you write and revise your final project for the course—a portfolio of your best work.

ENGL 397-01W is a writing intensive class.

 

 

Spring 2023 Courses

ENGL 317    The Writing of Poetry 

Section: 001 #1258
Instructor: A. Baker 
3.0 credit hours lecture
Tu 2:45-5:15 PM LSC

In this class, we will give a great deal of attention to the unique challenges and opportunities facing beginning poets as we first seek to channel our ideas and life experiences into poetry, to find and then develop our own voices in relation to not only our own impulses but to "the tradition" and the aesthetically diverse and fascinating world of contemporary poetry. The poems you write will be carefully read and critiqued by both your classmates and the instructor. The culmination of the course will be to compile a portfolio of the work you have written over the term.

Section: 002 #1259
Instructor: P. Sorenson
3.0 credit hours lecture
F 2:45-5:15 PM LSC

This course centers poetry as an individual and collective project. Through outside reading, students will question their relationships to contemporary modes and cultures while also working to develop their own voices, styles, and methods of production. Thus, students will begin to situate their craft in a larger poetic conversation. Weekly class meetings will center on discussions and presentations of outside materials, in-class writing and writing experiments, discussions of student-generated poetry, and collaborative writing. In addition to regular writing assignments and in-class presentations, students will develop a twenty-page chapbook by semester’s end.

Section: 003 #5801
Instructor: L. Goldstein
3.0 credit hours lecture
Tu 4:15-6:45 PM

Basic (Experimental) Poetry Workshop

Writing poetry is a craft that requires reading, exploration, practice, and sharing. Each week we read a unique work of contemporary poetry, mostly by POC and queer writers, to form a framework for discussion about vulnerable points of view and innovative forms. From there, students are encouraged to find their own process, form and voice. In our sessions, we experiment with language together to discover and foster creativity and delight by creating work both as a group and on our own. Our work also includes prompts for writing in between sessions, and presentations of student poetry for review by the group. Finally, students spend several weeks compiling and reviewing their own final collections of poetry for a self-published chapbook, and give a reading of their work.

 

 

ENGL 318    The Writing of Fiction 

Section: 001#1260
Instructor: N. Mun
3.0 credit hours  lecture
M 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

Five Beginnings, One Ending.

Starting a story or a novel is not unlike standing at the edge of a cliff. Both can be terrifying. There are many reasons to not dive into that project. My ideas are terrible, one might think. Or, I don’t know where to begin. Or, Is this really a good time to start something new? In this course, we’ll hold hands at the cliff for moral support but also to push each other off (gently). Some might tiptoe. Others might cannonball. And still others might swan dive into that abyss. But no matter our varying degrees of fear, we will, without a doubt, leave that ledge and land on our feet as better writers and better risk-takers. For the first five weeks, we’ll analyze notable beginnings and ask questions, such as: What propels the story forward? What stings us? What questions are being raised that can’t be easily answered? Then we’ll write five propulsive and perhaps unrelenting beginnings of our own. The goal isn’t only to practice the “art of diving” but to have five projects already in free-fall, so we’ll have things to work on, long after the course’s end. The final 10 weeks will be focused on developing one of those beginnings into a polished story or chapter. So the question is: Is this a good time to start something new? The answer is: always.

Section: 002 #1995
Instructor: V. Popa
3.0 credit hours  lecture
W 2:45–5:15 PM LSC 

This course explores the art and techniques of writing fiction; how and why it succeeds in capturing the imagination of readers, and how those skills can be channeled successfully to craft new and original work. This course will include a combination of craft lessons and workshop critique. We will investigate the output of a diverse cast of authors, from Francois Rabelais and Laurence Sterne to Denis Johnson and Danyial Mueenuddin. From these works, we will then distill valuable lessons about the writing of fiction, such as character development, dialogue, plot, and tension, which students will then apply to their own compositions. Assignments include two original works of short fiction (either short stories or novel excerpts) and a final portfolio (which will include revisions of workshopped assignments).

Section: 003 #4914
Instructor: M. Hawkins
3.0 credit hours  lecture
Th 2:45-5:15 PM LSC

In this fiction writing workshop students will read, write, revise and critique short fiction with the aim of becoming better writers and readers. Workshops will be rigorous and respectful, with the understanding that analysis of other writers’ craft teaches us to hone our own.
Every week we will read and discuss short stories by master writers; most weeks students will read and discuss each others’ stories, too. Every week students will write. In addition to three completed stories assigned as homework, students will respond to in-class writing prompts designed to create momentum, generate ideas, and explore technique. Class discussions will focus on craft as well as concept, with attention to the following topics: structure, character, dialog, voice, tone and imagery. Again and again, we will ask each other and ourselves: What works, what doesn’t, why and how can it be made better?

Section: 600 #4915
Instructor: M. Meinhardt
3.0 credit hours  Seminar
T 7:00–9:30 PM LSC

The course presents an advanced exploration of the principles of fiction writing through a combination of brief lectures, craft and response exercises, targeted assigned reading, in-class reading, critical workshops and multiple opportunities for discussion. One must be a good reader to be a good writer, so accept the fact that we need to read everything assigned for the class! But this is a writing course; students will be writing both critically and creatively every day. The course is both aggregate and recursive, meaning we continue to use and understand earlier concepts and techniques even as we progress, most notably through student critical awareness and creative writing. The course first establishes a general critical sensibility of fiction writing, history, technique, and purpose using established writers’ work and perspectives on craft using Flash Fiction. This critical foundation prepares students to guide their own writing as well as to engage and constructively assess that of their fellow students. The course then establishes an advanced sense of genre, structure and style using both established and student writing using the Short Story. The final stage of the course focuses wholly on student fiction writing, drafting and work-shopping using the student’s choice of either a second Short Story or the beginning of a novel; the healthy and productive workshop atmosphere and etiquette is modeled and utilized to address creative development as opposed to simply appeasing the writer’s ego or comfort. The class will learn and prepare for publication potential, including viable outlets, contact protocols, and invaluable research tools. Topics include: recognition of fiction elements; recognition and prioritization of craft elements; appreciation for creative expectations and obstacles; stimulation of identity within drama and conflict; and attention to concrete sensory detail, plot or setting structural considerations, internal and standard dialogue, characterization, opening and ending considerations, revision considerations, and fiction stylistics expected of publication-worthy work.

 

 

ENGL 319    Writing Creative Nonfiction 

Section: 319-001 #1687
Instructor: H. Axelrod
3.0 credit hours  lecture
Tu 2:45-5:15 PM LSC

This is a workshop course in creative nonfiction, the fastest growing genre in publishing. It’s thriving in personal essay columns in magazines and newspapers, in memoirs, and in new hybrid forms. We’ll focus on personal essay and memoir, learning how to write about moments, activities, and relationships in your lives that have given you pause, stayed with you, and left you with questions. Among other craft elements, you’ll learn the distinction between I-narrator and I-character, exposition and scene, and how to move from the situation—the facts of what happened—to finding insight and meaning through story.
In class, we’ll read, analyze, and discuss the works of creative nonfiction writers as models for your own writing. This is a workshop, so you’ll hear from each other what’s working on the page in your own writing and what isn’t—which will help develop your ear as you read and your instincts as you write. You’ll also learn to offer thoughtful commentary on the work of your classmates. The goal is for you to become a better reader and writer of creative nonfiction.

Section: 002 #3648
Instructor: S. Weller
3.0 credit hours  lecture
W 2:45–5:15 PM LSC

Over the course of our 15-week semester, we will explore a style and genre of writing known as creative nonfiction. While the words “creative” and “nonfiction” might seem at odds, the combination is rooted in a long tradition of telling stories, making personal observations, and employing a variety of literary techniques to communicate facts.  Creative nonfiction writers don’t make things up.  They just use facts creatively and interestingly.  In this class, we will be reading and writing a wide range of creative nonfiction essays. We’ll discuss craft and narrative approaches, the use of setting, scenes, dialogue, description, and observation as well as point of view, tone, and style. You’ll read (a ton!), analyze, and discuss the works of contemporary creative nonfiction writers as models for your own writing. We will do in-class writing exercises to get you going on drafts of your own work.  This is a workshop class, so we will also be responding to each other’s work, providing the writer with an attentive audience, and cultivating analytical skills and sensitivity as readers.   

The goal of this class is to learn the building blocks of creative nonfiction, and how to put that knowledge into practice by crafting your own pieces of writing. You’ll also learn to offer thoughtful commentary on the work of your classmates.  You’ll learn about research, structure, craft, and revision.  Overall, the goal of this course will be to discover your own stories and interests, and to develop a lens, a style, and a voice with which to create art out of facts. 

 

 

ENGL 392   Advanced Creative Nonfiction

Section: 392-01W #4139
Instructor: H. Axelrod
3.0 credit hours  Seminar 
M 2:45-5:15 PM  LSC 

In this advanced workshop in creative nonfiction, we’ll develop a keen sense of craft by reading each other’s work and the work of some of the finest writers in the genre, including Joan Didion, Vladimir Nabokov, Maggie Nelson, Eula Biss, Olivia Laing, and Leslie Jamison. We’ll pay particular attention to questions of voice, narrative distance, narrative immediacy, personal research, hybrids, concept essays, dialogue, and story. We’ll also have Skype visits from established authors working in the field, who will be willing to answer your questions about everything from writing habits to publishing. Through writing, reading, and workshopping, we’ll work to build a common vocabulary and orientation in the genre, and you’ll also be working to develop your own individual orientation, so that you become more comfortable and innovative as a writer.

ENGL 392-01W is a writing intensive course.

 

Fall 2023 Courses

ENGL 317    The Writing of Poetry

Section: 002 #4730
Instructor: L. Goldstein
3.0 credit hours lecture
Th 4:15 – 6:45 PM LSC

Basic (Experimental) Poetry Workshop

Writing poetry is a craft that requires reading, exploration, practice, and sharing. Each week we read a unique work of contemporary poetry, mostly by POC and queer writers, to form a framework for discussion about vulnerable points of view and innovative forms. From there, students are encouraged to find their own process, form and voice. In our sessions, we experiment with language together to discover and foster creativity and delight by creating work both as a group and on our own. Our work also includes prompts for writing in between sessions, and presentations of student poetry for review by the group. Finally, students spend several weeks compiling and reviewing their own final collections of poetry for a self-published chapbook, and give a reading of their work.

Section: 003 #4731
Instructor: P. Sorenson
3.0 credit hours lecture
W 2:45 – 5:15 PM LSC

This course centers poetry as an individual and collective project. Through outside reading, students will question their relationships to contemporary modes and cultures while also working to develop their own voices, styles, and methods of production. Thus, students will begin to situate their craft in a larger poetic conversation. Weekly class meetings will center on discussions and presentations of outside materials, in-class writing and writing experiments, discussions of student-generated poetry, and collaborative writing. In addition to regular writing assignments and in-class presentations, students will develop a twenty-page chapbook by semester’s end.

 

ENGL 318    The Writing of Fiction

Section: 001 #4734
Instructor: V. Popa
3.0 credit hours lecture
M 2:45 – 5:15 PM LSC

This course explores the art and techniques of writing fiction; how and why it succeeds in capturing the imagination of readers, and how those skills can be channeled successfully to craft new and original work. This course will include a combination of craft lessons and workshop critique. We will investigate the output of a diverse cast of authors, from Francois Rabelais and Laurence Sterne to Denis Johnson and Danyial Mueenuddin. From these works, we will then distill valuable lessons about the writing of fiction, such as character development, dialogue, plot, and tension, which students will then apply to their own compositions. Assignments include two original works of short fiction (either short stories or novel excerpts) and a final portfolio (which will include revisions of workshopped assignments).

 

ENGL 319    Writing Creative Nonfiction  

Section: 001 #4739
Instructor: H. Axelrod
3.0 credit hours lecture
Th 2:45 – 5:15 PM LSC