CreativeWriting:IntroductiontoFictionandPoetry
CRWRI-UA815011
Monday/Wednesday12:30-1:45pm
Location:BOBS736
Instructor:KevinReilly
Email:kmr372@nyu.edu
OfficeHours:ByAppointment
“Goodfiction’sjobistocomfortthedisturbedanddisturbthecomfortable.”
-DavidFosterWallace
Objective:
Thiscourseisanintroductiontotheartofliterarythievery.Throughcloseanalysis
ofsomeofthegreatestwrittenworksinrecenthistory,youwilllearnhowtoread
likeawriter:notaskingwhatastoryorpoemmeansorwhyitwaswritten,buthow
theauthorhasmanagedtotrickusintoseeinganewworldwithinaseriesof
consecutivewords.Creativewritingisacraftandyouwilllearnitsfundamentals,
thenapplytheselessonstoyourownwork.Throughoutthesemester,youwillalso
submitoriginalshortstoriesandpoemstoyourpeers,andworkasateamtodecide
whichelementsareworkingwellandwhichcanbeimproved.Alongtheway,you
willfosteryournaturalcreativeinstinctsanddeploytheminacalculatedmanner,
designingworldsthatotherscanlosethemselveswithin,anddevelopingverbal
snapshotsoflifeasitpassesallaroundus.
Structure:
Themajorityofthecoursecanbeboileddowntotwocategories:craftand
workshop.Wewillspendthefirstfewclassesdiscussingthebasicsofcreative
writing,thenwewillalternatebetweencraftdiscussionsandworkshopping
submissionsinthegenrewearecurrentlystudying.
Mondayswillbedevotedtocraft.Eachweek,wewillmeditateonaparticular
elementofstorytellingorpoeticsthroughassignedreadingsthatsuccessfully
illustratethatelement,anddiscusswaysinwhichwecanusetheselessonsinour
ownwork.Youmayalsocompletein-classwritingassignmentsfocusingonthecraft
techniquewearecurrentlyinvestigating.Feelfree(butbynomeanscompelled)to
usetheseassignmentsasjumpingoffpointsforyourworkshopsubmissions.
Inadditiontotheassignedreading,youwillreadonenovelandonepoetry
collection(ofyourchoice)publishedwithinthelast25years,andsubmittwo3-5
pageessaysanalyzingsomecraftelementwithineachworkthatyoufeelwaswell
utilized.
Wednesdayswillbedevotedtoworkshop.Wewillworkshopshortstoriesduring
thefirsthalfofthesemesterandpoemsduringthesecondhalf.Eachweek,four
studentswillsubmit8-10pageshortstoriesorpoemsofanylengthtobe
workshoppedthefollowingweek.Youareresponsibleforprintingoutsixteen
copiesofyoursubmissionanddistributingthemtheweekbeforeyouwillbe
workshopped.Youareexpectedtoreadyourpeers’submissionscarefullyand
makeeditsandnotesthroughout,andwriteashortletterdiscussingbothaspectsof
thepiecesthatyouappreciatedandareasthatcoulduseimprovement.Printout
twocopiesoftheseletters,oneforyourpeersandanotherfortheinstructor.In
class,wewillhavearoundtablediscussionfocusingoneachstudent’ssubmission,
wherewewilltrytofindthegoalsthatthepiecehassetforitselfandadvisewaysin
whichthesegoalscanbebetterachieved.
Yourfinalprojectwillbeaportfolioofrevisionsthatyouhavemadebasedonadvice
youweregiveninyourlettersandduringworkshop,eitherarevisedshortstoryor
threerevisedpoems,anditwillbegradedondepthofrevisionratherthanartistic
merit.
Thiswillbethefirstworkshopexperienceformostofyou,anditispertinentto
discussetiquetteforboththestudentbeingworkshoppedandthestudents
workshoppinghisorhersubmission.Firstandforemost,theworkshopismeantto
beasafespacewherewecanallfeelcomfortablediscussingissuesthatmay
normallybetabooorunspeakable.Thisisthenatureofliterature,toattemptto
showthevariouscornersofthehumanmindthatarehiddenaroundthedinner
table.Assuch,itisimperativethatwefosteranenvironmentoftrustandopenmindedness,bothforthesakeofthosebeingworkshoppedandtheproductivityof
thediscussionasawhole.Personalattacks,negativitythatvergesonhostility,and
generalmeanspiritednessareabsolutelyunacceptable,andwillnotbedealtwith
lightly.Keepyourcommentsproductive,andyourcriticismconstructive,andwe
willhaveamuchbetterexperienceasaclass.Ontheothersideofthecoin,students
beingworkshoppedwillnotgainanythingbydefendingtheirpiecesagainst
criticism:wemustunderstandandrecognizetheshortcomingsinourworkifwe
wanttoimproveaswriters.Whenyoursubmissionisbeingdiscussed,takelotsof
notes,buttrynottotalkunlessyouarepromptedbytheinstructor.Wewilldiscuss
theworkshoppingprocessatlengthduringthesemester,butaboveall,be
professional,andthinkbeforeyouspeak.
RequiredReading:
-TheVintageBookofContemporaryAmericanPoetry,SecondEdition
-StructureandSurprise
-TriggeringTown
-VariousPDFspostedtoNYUClasses
Grading:
AttendanceandParticipation40%
FinalPortfolio20%
WorkshopSubmissionsandLetters20%
NovelandPoetryCollectionReflections20%
Attendance:
Itisessentialthatyoucometoclassinorderfortheworkshopprocesstobe
effective.Assuch,attendanceandclassparticipationarethelargestsectionofyour
grade.Feelfreetoeatlunchordrinkcoffeeordowhateveryouneedtodotobe
comfortable,butyouneedtocometoclass.Morethantwounexcusedabsenceswill
resultinthelossofalettergrade,andbeingmorethanthirtyminuteslateforclass
willcountasanabsence.
Plagiarism:
Thegoalofthisclassistoimproveyourselfasawriter,andyoucan’tdothatifyou
didn’tactuallywritewhatyouareturningin!Anyevidenceofplagiarismwillresult
inautomaticcoursefailure,andappropriatedisciplinaryactionswillbetaken
withinNYUguidelines.
Schedule:
Week1
• Monday,January25thIntroductions,Syllabus,GroupAssignments,
WorkshopEtiquette
• Wednesday,January27thIntroductiontoFiction,MockWorkshop
o Reading:”NutsandBolts:‘Thought’Verbs”byChuckPalahniuk
Fiction
Week2
• Monday,February1stConflictandReaderAttention
o Readings:“TheSchool”byDonaldBarthelme,and“ThePerfectGerbil”
byGeorgeSaunders
• Wednesday,February3rdCharactersandPointofView
o Readings:“PhilosophyandtheMirrorofNature”byDavidFoster
Wallace,“TheLittleKnife”byMichaelChabon
o GroupADistributes
Week3
• Monday,February8thPlotandTime
o Readings:“TheSaint”byV.S.Pritchett,“You’reUgly,Too”byLorrie
Moore
• Wednesday,February10thGroupAWorkshop
o GroupBDistributes
Week4
• Monday,February15thDialogandVoice
o Readings:“Emergency”byDenisJonson,“TheTelephoneCall”by
DorothyParker
• Wednesday,February17thGroupBWorkshop
o GroupCDistributes
Week5
• Monday,February22ndImageandSetting
o Readings:“Sonny’sBlues”byJamesBaldwin,“MeetthePresident!”by
ZadieSmith
• Wednesday,February24thGroupCWorkshop
o GroupDDistributes
Week6
• Monday,February29thTheme
o Readings:“InPersuasionNation”byGeorgeSaunders,“TheBearCame
OvertheMountain”byAliceMunro
• Wednesday,March2ndGroupDWorkshop
o GroupADistributes
Week7
• Monday,March7thRevision
o Readings:“WhatWeTalkAboutWhenWeTalkAboutLove”and
“Beginners”byRaymondCarver
• Wednesday,March9thGroupAWorkshop
o GroupsB&CDistribute
Week8
• Monday,March14thSpringRecess,ClassesCancelled
• Wednesday,March16thSpringRecess,ClassesCancelled
Week9
• Monday,March21stGroupBWorkshop
o NovelReflectionsDue
• Wednesday,March23rdGroupCWorkshop
o GroupDDistributes
Poetry
Week10
• Monday,March28thIronicStructure
o Readings:StructureandSurpriseCh.1,“WeRealCool”byGwendolyn
Brooks,“WhentheWarisOver”byW.S.Merwin,“TheCathedralIs”and
“WeWereontheTerraceDrinkingGinandTonics”byJohnAshberry
• Wednesday,March30thGroupDWorkshop
o GroupADistributes
Week11
• Monday,April4thEmblemStructure
o Readings:StructureandSurpriseCh.2,“ADisplayofMackerel”byMark
Doty,“WillowinSpringWind:AShowing”byJorieGraham,“Winter
Trees”bySylviaPlath,“TheShampoo”byElizabethBishop
•
Wednesday,April6thGroupAWorkshop
o GroupBDistributes
Week12
• Monday,April11thConcessionalStructure
o Readings:StructureandSurpriseCh.3,“TheIvyCrown”byWilliam
CarlosWilliams,“TheConditional”byAdaLimón,“TheEternalCity”by
A.R.Ammons,“TheWellDressedManwithaBeard”byWallaceStevens
• Wednesday,April13thGroupBWorkshop
o GroupCDistributes
Week13
• Monday,April18thDialecticalArgumentStructure
o Readings:StructureandSurpriseCh.6,“LittleFather”byLi-YoungLee,
“Epithalamium”byNickLaird,“TheClodandthePebble”byWilliam
Blake,“LovePoemwithToast”byMillerWilliams
• Wednesday,April20thGroupCWorkshop
o GroupADistributes
Week14
• Monday,April25thDescriptive-MeditativeStructure
o Readings:StructureandSurpriseCh.7,“SunflowerSutra”byAllen
Ginsberg,“ChurchGoing”byPhillipLarkin,“TheLyric‘I’DrivestoPick
upHerChildrenfromSchool:APoeminthePost-ConfessionalMode”by
OlenaKalytiakDavis
• Wednesday,April27thGroupAWorkshop
o GroupsB&CDistribute
Week15
• Monday,May2ndGroupBWorkshop
o PoetryCollectionReflectionsDue
• Wednesday,May4thGroupCWorkshop
Week16
• Monday,May9thLastDayofClasses,Celebration
• Wednesday,May11thNoClass
o RevisedPortfoliosDueatMidnightviaE-mail