Special topics courses are approved to take advantage of timely subjects, the expertise of a faculty member, or to test student interest in a topic which may later be added to the curriculum.
This cross-genre and workshop-based writing course takes as its focus specific concerns of crafting and reading shorter work, including compressed narrative and narrative fragments. Students will read published writing, analyze literature, write original material and offer feedback for the work of their peers. They will gain familiarity with the conventions of the traditional short-story as well as flash fiction, (a.k.a. the shortshort,) short poetry forms, the ten-minute play, the one-page essay or editorial, the conte, and micro-formats, including social media and the nascent art of serialized literary work delivered in microinstallments via hand-held technology as either self-published material or with indie or corporate representation. Assigned readings will model successful writing, articulate aesthetic values, and offer a platform for discussion and debate. Students will complete a final project which may take the form of a portfolio, creative work with an analytical explication, an anthology with a contextualizing introduction, or other comprehensive work spanning creative, analytic and intellectual processes and production. This course counts as a studio elective for all other areas of concentration.
This workshop and critique-based creative writing studio is for students interested in writing poetry, as well as for those interested in using text in print, painting, digital and installation works. Over the course of the semester students will explore contemporary poetics and writing for various media in art and design. The course will open and close with a discussion around the idea of what and where the poetic exists in a contemporary, media-driven landscape (print publishing, online, performance, etc.).This studio expands on the traditional poetry workshop models and functions as an interdisciplinary lab for language-driven art experiments. This course welcomes consideration of language and writing in relation to sculptural objects and multiples, of word as symbol, and of image as mark-making alongside written words.Students will read assigned work; consider related images, visual material, and videos; write in class; work on projects outside of class; share work in a guided peer review and critique; create a portfolio of writings or related set of projects such as books, prints, audio recordings, and videos.
This course introduces students to the basic terminology, tools and media of contemporary scriptwriting, with specific emphasis and practice in telling stories destined for the stage, television, film, comics, and/or games. Course time will be spent in a combination of lecture blended and peer critique in a workshop setting. Upon successful completion of this course, students will have learned the basics in the craft of scriptwriting, conceived a workable idea, formulated an outline for the expression/ execution of that idea, and made significant work towards a complete and cohesive script for a stage production, television pilot/series, film, comics series/graphic novel, or board/videogame. This course counts as a studio elective for all other areas of concentration.
Surveying established and emergent modes of writing across media, this writing-based course augments traditional scholarship with the affordances of digital technology and social media. Drawing on the histories of language and the theories of linguistics and performance, students will explore new possibilities for the articulation and analysis of their ideas. Through various lenses, this course investigates themes such as translation, redaction, immediacy, visibility/invisibility, and various forms of remediation as they are manifest in flash fiction, dead drops, and other new media platforms. The course explores how new technologies depend on and reanimate ancient ways of thinking about language, communication, and meaning making. This course counts as a studio elective for all other areas of concentration.
Junior level Special topics courses are approved to take advantage of timely subjects, the expertise of a faculty member, or to test student interest in a topic which may later be added to the curriculum.
This advanced creative writing course expands on CW223 Poetry on and off the Page. Students will read assigned work; consider related images, visual material, and videos; write in class; work on projects outside of class; share work in a guided peer review; and complete a substantial final project. The final project can take multiple forms, such as a portfolio, chapbook, digital mock up or book, video/audio recording, or digital installation, etc., and will draw from works produced during the semester, reproducing the professional writing practice of generation, revision and submission or presentation/exhibition. In addition to self-directed independent study of writers chosen by the student, a selection of shared reading assignments will help students frame/consider questions about immediacy and accessibility, narrative, non-linearity, dissonance, collage and other contemporary poetic concepts. In this section, student participation will include workshop, discussion and critique forums, as well as self-directed study. The course will open and close with a discussion around the idea of what and where the poetic exists in a contemporary, media-driven landscape (print publishing, online, performance, etc.).
This course builds on Introduction to Scripting, giving students creative time to practice and employ methods learned. It focuses on terminology, tools and media of contemporary scriptwriting in consideration of the stage, television, film and/or comics alongside analysis of successful work by professionals in the field. Course time will be spent in a combination of lecture and peer critique in a workshop setting. Upon successful completion of this course, students will have put into practice the basics of the craft of scriptwriting, conceived a workable idea, formulated an outline for the expression/execution of that idea, and maintained creative momentum toward a complete and cohesive script for a stage production, television pilot, film or graphic novel. They will have also closely considered the work of a professional in the field and written a detailed analysis and presentation of that writer's work.This course counts as a studio elective for all other areas of concentration.
This is a writing workshop. It is a craft-based writing course is designed to grant students increased experience in the techniques of writing fiction, considering both short story and novel pacing, while also developing informed critique practices applicable to revising the student's own work as well as editing the work of peers. The primary focus is on a consistent flow of student-generated original writing. Reading assignments are intended to support the writing process through considering the craft, history and aesthetics.
We explore the use of language as a visual medium and incorporate writing into our visual work. We support both experimental writing practices and those focused on contemporary forms of fiction, poetry, and script writing.
Willamette University