Writers’ Workshop

2009-2010/Trimester 2

Anderson, Office #210

handerson@jbha.org

Course Overview

"Our first ideas of life are generally taken from fiction rather than fact."

                                                                                     -- G.K. Chesterton

"Writing fiction has developed in me an abiding respect for the unknown in a human lifetime and a sense of where to look for the threads, how to follow, how to connect, find in the thick of the tangle what clear line persists."

                                                                                    -- Eudora Welty

"You cannot be a good writer of serious fiction unless you are depressed."

                                                                                     -- Kurt Vonnegut

              I like this collection of quotes by esteemed writers, because it seems to me that the first two, anyway, touch on the qualities of fiction, in particular, that are almost encoded in us from the start.  (The last quote is sort of funny, but it is by no means a recommendation.  Scholars and scientists have, of course, discovered that there is a link between creativity and depression; again, not an endorsement.)  But this notion of stories and storytelling connects us to one another and, in a best case scenario, opens us up to the wide-ranging possibilities inherent in the human condition.  To be able to write convincingly about those possibilities, and to allow other people to relate to, be puzzled about and be moved by them can be a source of great satisfaction.

             The purpose of this class is to reduce the distance between what we mean and what we write in a variety of ways, although primarily in fiction.  To those ends, we will be doing a great deal of reading and discussing published authors (particularly their short stories), writing and revising drafts, monitoring our growing consciousness of our writing strategies and workshopping each others' work.  You will, with practice and hard work, emerge on the other side as better writers, readers and editors.

              A workshop is a funny animal.  It requires seriousness, a light touch, a thick skin, and a lot of honesty tempered by sympathy.  You’re going to have to pay attention to the human side of it as much as to the writing side, and you must be prepared to do so.  So: a few policies that will make our trip smoother:

Procedures and Requirements:

1) All of your writing outside of class must be typed and double-spaced.  Final drafts will be assessed based on your success in conveying your ideas to your audience.  Clear and logical development of ideas, grammar, organization, word choice and spelling all contribute to the effectiveness of an essay, and, thus, all play a role in your grade.

2) You should work through at least one serious rough draft before bringing a piece to class to be workshopped.  It should be the best you can do alone so that constructive criticism of it in class can be as helpful as possible.

3) Although I won’t put a grade on a rough draft, a late or incomplete rough draft will reduce the grade of your final paper by one full letter grade.  In addition, the final grade of your final work will be reduced by one full letter grade every day it is late.  Printer problems are no excuse for late work.  Email me your paper on time and bring me a hard copy the next day.  If you’re in school on the day an assignment is due, but miss my class, your work is still due.  If you miss a day due to sickness, you must bring in your work on the day you return to school. 

4) Your semester grade will be comprised of final grades on writing assignments as well as your thorough completion of reading assignments and homework, class participation, in-class writing assignments and small reading quizzes.

5) I expect all work you turn in for this class to be written for this class alone.  If I learn that you have submitted work that has already been graded by another teacher or plagiarized, you will receive a zero and other disciplinary consequences may ensue.

6) Bring a separate binder (preferably) or notebook section dedicated to Writer’s Workshop, texts, paper and pens every time we meet.

7) Be respectful.  This kind of class can be known to singe one’s ego, and I’d rather this class didn’t. 

Assignments:

>For December 17th read Denis Johnson's "Emergency"

>For December 22nd, read Michael Cunningham's "White Angel" and be ready to turn in list of character attributes

>For January 5th, read Andre Dubus' "The Fat Girl"

>For January January 13th, read Samantha Hunt's "Three Days"

>First two scenes of short story due January 13th

>Read Mona Simpson's "Lawns" for February 2nd and revise and compose two new scenes of student short stories

>Read Richard Ford's "Rock Springs" for the class after next (below)

>Complete story in first draft form due March 2nd

>For next class, read Amy Bloom's "Silver Water" (below)

>Final short story draft due March 10th, C-day (our final class)

Handouts:

Richard Ford, "Rock Springs"

Amy Bloom, "Silver Water"