Writing Short Fiction

Curriculum Guideline

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Course
CRWR 2350
Discontinued
No
Course Code
CRWR 2350
Descriptive
Writing Short Fiction
Department
Creative Writing
Faculty
Language, Literature & Performing Arts
Credits
3.00
Start Date
End Term
Not Specified
PLAR
No
Semester Length
15 weeks
Max Class Size
20
Contact Hours
4 hours per week
Method(s) Of Instruction
Tutorial
Learning Activities

The following methods may be combined with the workshop format:

  • in-class writing exercises
  • lectures and discussions
  • small group work
  • assigned readings and class presentations
  • interviews with instructor
Course Description
This course concentrates solely on the process of writing short fiction. It includes instruction in the methods of beginning, sustaining, closing, revising and evaluating a short story. The student is introduced to a wide range of narrative approaches and techniques through the study of both traditional and contemporary texts.
Course Content

Selected short stories from published texts.

Students’ manuscripts will form the bulk of the course content.

Learning Outcomes

General Objectives:

The student will investigate the range of his/her writing voice and learn to write short fiction consistent with his/her ability and developing style.

Specific Objectives:

Pre-writing:

  1. The student will learn to recognize story material in his/her own life that may ultimately yield a work of short fiction.
  2. The student will learn to access story material through controlled classroom exercises.
  3. The student will learn to launch the story in first draft in a manner that does not disrupt the development or potential of the story.

Writing:

  1. The student will learn the stages necessary to draft a completed short story.
  2. The student will learn different methods of beginning, sustaining, and closing a short story.
  3. The student will learn to develop the writing habits necessary to produce work that is consistently readable, well-developed, and involving.

Reading:

  1. The student will learn to adapt and use the narrative techniques he/she discovers in published works of short fiction.
  2. The student will learn to read the work of his/her peers for the purpose of recognizing narrative techniques and to aid his/her peers in the effective revision of his/her work.

Revising:

  1. The student will learn to revise his/her own work for the purpose of developing the story to its full potential.
  2. The student will learn to evaluate editorial suggestions from the instructor and peers, and incorporate them into the story in the revision process.
  3. The student will learn to prepare the short story for submission to an editor.
Means of Assessment

A minimum of three separate short stories is required, with an overall minimum of forty pages. Each story must include a brief self-evaluation. A grade will be assigned both for the self-evaluations and for class participation. Student work will be discussed by both the instructor and students in the workshop.

Students are required to attend 80% of the workshops. A student missing more than 20% of the workshops without receiving prior permission from the instructor will receive a 0 in class participation. Leaving after the break is considered half an absence.

Textbook Materials
  • Pearls
  • An anthology of short stories such as Short Fiction, Lynch and Rampton
Prerequisites

A “B” in CRWR 1103, or instructor permission plus satisfactory result on College Writing Assessment or substitution/equivalent as stated in College Calendar.