ENGL 310-01, Creative Writing: Advanced Fiction Writing, Spring 2001

Abstract

Students begin this course with a basic understanding of the craft of fiction writing. The goals in continuing your work as writers and readers of fiction will be to increase your breadth of understanding of trends in contemporary century fiction, to hone your awareness of your style and thematic concerns, to take further creative risks, and to become a better reader of your peers’ work. Our particular interest this semester will be in the issue of structure. We will begin by looking at Hemingway’s spare and enigmatic approach to story, and contrast this to O’Connor’s tightly constructed plots. Using these poles as a basis, we will consider how contemporary writers create a whole with unexpected elements, and use this understanding to consider how convention may be understood, violated and substituted for to, and some of the theoretical trends which have contributed to this evolution in style. Through readings, craft lectures tailored to student needs, and workshop, students will use these questions as intellectual and creative springboards for their own writing.