ENGLISH 263 ONLINE: INTRODUCTION TO CREATIVE WRITING SPRING, 2015 ****SUBJECT TO CHANGE****

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1 ENGLISH 263 ONLINE: INTRODUCTION TO CREATIVE WRITING INSTRUCTOR: Sonya Dunning CONTACT INFORMATION: SPRING, 2015 ****SUBJECT TO CHANGE**** Please contact me via my Outlook (see above) from your Outlook (not Canvas) with any course- or assignment-related questions. I am generally very quick to respond to . However, if you don't hear from me within 24 hours, I expect that you will me again. BOOKS AND MATERIALS Sellers, Heather. The Practice of Creative Writing. Second Edition Supplemental readings, TBA, available via Canvas It is important that you purchase (or otherwise have reliable and consistent access to) the textbook. It is your responsibility to obtain the textbook by the first day of class. Failure to have the textbook by the first day of class will impact your ability to complete assignments in a timely manner, which will, in turn, impact your grade. Thus, if you are not able to obtain the textbook by the time the class starts, it is also your responsibility to be proactive and to find an alternative method for using the textbook for the assignments that are due in the interim. OVERVIEW OF COURSE Introduction to Creative Writing, English 263 is a beginner s class designed to give you reading and writing experience in various genres, including poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction (CNF). Class Participation/Homework Exercises and Quizzes will concentrate on the techniques, concepts, and practice of creative writing. Writing Assignments and Peer Reviews will provide you with the opportunity to further demonstrate your understanding of elements of technique, as well as to collaborate with other writers during the drafting and revision process. Grading is rigorous. Grammar and mechanics count. If you are a student who also works full time, which is something many students do at all levels of education and all across the world, it might be extra important that you look ahead at when exercises, quizzes, and other assignments are due and plan your schedule for school work accordingly. WRITING PROCESS AND QUALITY EXPECTATIONS Because English 263 students have completed Central s English 101 and 102 (or the equivalent), or have transferred to CWU with AA degrees, grammar and usage are assumed as acquired basic skills. Basic research skills, including proper citation of sources, is also expected. However, because many students continue to experience problems with these skills and because particular skills are crucial in technical writing, some assignments may be intended to help students perfect these skills. Members of the CWU Writing Program faculty recognize that writing is a process and that writers depend on a community of readers in order to develop and improve. We thus expect each student to participate in this course in the following ways:

2 Prewriting to generate and clarify content Revising to provide economy, clarity, unity, and balance Editing your own work and the work of others Writing polished prose that is purposeful, clear, and effective Understanding and using criteria to self-assess your writing Working responsibly in writing groups Engaging critically and constructively in the exchange of ideas during all conversations and activities Demonstrating academic integrity in all written projects COMPUTER AND CANVAS REQUIREMENTS AND EXPECTATIONS In order to succeed in this online course, you need access to a computer and the Internet. You also need to be able to read Word documents (.doc or.docx) and PowerPoint slides and/or watch videos. QuickTime Player, which you can download for free, is a good program for opening/viewing videos. You will also be taking quizzes online. Canvas is your classroom and your grade book, and it is your responsibility to ensure that you have adequate access to Canvas and are well-versed on how it works. Should you be unfamiliar with how Canvas works, it is your responsibility to seek the support and training you need in order to meet the demands of this course and the online learning environment at large. Note that the Canvas site offers a number of ways to get help. Explore them by clicking on the red Help button at the top right of the page. There are user guides, a live chat option, and a telephone number you can call for support. I have had the most success with the live chat option. LEARNING OUTCOMES AND ASSESSMENTS The learning outcomes for the traditional quarter-long in-class English 263 are listed below. Learning Outcomes Students will learn the conventions that govern poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. Students will complete and submit a portfolio of revised work that demonstrates the repertoire of creative writing skills they ve practiced throughout the quarter. Students will learn to critique each other s writing in workshop settings, attentive to the elements of form, tone, and language introduced by the instructor. Assessments Students will read textbook chapters relevant to poetry, fiction, and nonfiction and will be checked on their engagement with the contents of those chapters through Discussion Exercises and Quizzes. They will also generate original works of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction that enact what they ve learned about the respective genres and about the craft of creative writing at large. Portfolios will be assessed on the degree to which they illustrate familiarity with specific knowledge and skills related to the writer s craft, and on the degree to which the writing has improved in light of the revision process. Students will write peer reviews for each of the workshopped writing assignments.

3 Students will explore aspects of the Writing Life. Students will attend a reading of their choice as well as explore and review a literary journal of their choice. OVERVIEW OF COURSE DESIGN This course consists of a sequence of three units or modules, each of which includes a carefully scaffolded series of exercises that culminate in the following major writing assignments: Poems, Story, Essay. Below, you will find a more detailed description of homework/participation activities (see Grading Details and Policies for information on point values and weights for each category of assignment). HOMEWORK/PARTICIPATION ACTIVITIES Weekly Discussions: Provide a forum for small group and whole class discussion on a concept or topic of relevance to the module at hand. Weekly Journals: Assist you in preparing or honing a concept or project relevant to each of the modules you ll be completing, as well as provide you the opportunity to generate material for major assignments. Unit Workshops: Give you a chance to tell your peers how well the documents they have prepared meet criteria for submission. As readers, you are essentially testing the usability of each document required for the class. The writers then use your report to help them revise the work for final submission. Reading Quizzes: used to assess your comprehension of assigned readings and, occasionally, grammar skills. GRADING DETAILS AND POLICIES I will provide evaluation criteria with each major assignment sheet. You should read those criteria and try to meet them all to get a good grade. Generally speaking, I grade on the following scale: A Represents achievement that is outstanding relative to the level necessary to meet course requirements B Represents achievement that is significantly above the level necessary to meet course requirements C Represents achievement that meets the course requirements in every respect D Represents achievement that is worthy of credit even though it fails to meet fully the course requirements More, specifically, here are the percentages and corresponding point values for each grade available for the course, which has a total of 1000 points possible: Letter Grade Percentage Needed Points Required A

4 A B B B C C C D D D Please remember that grades are earned, not given. Complete the readings early in the week. Participate in class discussions throughout the week. Complete assignments, activities, and quizzes on time. Read directions/instructions carefully and don't wait until the last minute to do so. Contact me with any questions about your writing projects in advance. At the end of the quarter, should your grade be on the cusp, I will consider "rounding up" in your favor. However, I will only do so if you meet the following requirements: You have completed and submitted all categories of assignments ON TIME and have scored no less than 80% on all of them You are no more than.5% shy of earning the higher grade Grade Distribution/Weights, Per Canvas Group Weight Discussions (120 points total) 12% Workshops and Unit Capstones (120 points total) 12% Assignments (The Writing Life) (120 points total) 12% Final Portfolio (400 points total) 40% Journals (80 points total) 8% Quizzes/Tests 16%

5 Group Weight Total 100% SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS Length Most of your assignments have the acceptable page/word/line range stated prominently on the assignment sheet. If you fall short of the minimum in that range, you have not met the minimum requirements of the assignment. To be counted as a page, a page must be full. In other words, 2 1/2 pages of text do not equal 3 pages! Similarly, 120 words do not equal 150 words. Expect to do very badly if you turn in an assignment that falls short of the minimum length requirement. When you don't meet the minimum length requirement, your grade will be reduced automatically to reflect a half grade for every half page missing. For example, if your assignment is supposed to be 3 pages, and what you submit is 2 1/2 pages, what could have been an A will, instead, become an A-. Expect an automatic reduction of 2 points for every 15 words shy of a word count requirement. Submission Guidelines Unless otherwise stated on the assignment sheet, your assignments should be single-spaced with 12-point Times New Roman or Calibri font. Your submissions must also have 1-inch margins and a single column layout. Note that Word will sometimes set the default margins to 1.25 inches. You will need to change this. If you start tinkering with font sizes and margins to achieve the required page count, your paper will be marked down drastically. It s far more worth the effort to actually do what s required of you than to spend time cutting corners. The same goes for unnecessary use of the Return key. Unless otherwise specified, your submissions should use left-justified text. Please also see submission guidelines for individual exercises and assignments, as well as guidelines for class discussions. File Formats For work that is turned in online, unless otherwise stated, you must provide a.docx, or.doc file, and I must be able to open the file. If I can t open the file, I ll ask you to resend and the assignment will be counted as late, according the policy described below. Please note that OpenOffice allows you to save your file as.doc, which is fine. Late Work Late work will be marked down one FULL letter grade for every day that it is late (an A becomes a B, for example). This deduction is in addition to any others that apply per evaluation criteria. After 3 days, I will not accept the assignment at all. It is your responsibility to turn your work in on time. I will not provide reminders if you have assignments that are missing. This policy applies only to major assignments and journals, NOT to quizzes/tests, discussions, or workshop submissions. Those must be submitted on time in order to be eligible for credit. Unless otherwise stated, assignments are due by 11:59 PM on the day assigned. However, I do allow a three hour "grace period" for submissions. What this means is that I will accept assignments

6 with a minimal 2 point reduction up until 2:59 AM. After the two hour grace period is over, assignments will be considered late as previously described. No exceptions. I also allow one "Get out of Jail Free" card for initial discussion posts and prep exercises. This means that you have one safety net that expires after 24 hours should you need an extra day to complete and/or submit a discussion post or prep exercise. In order to be eligible, however, you MUST me at sdunning@cwu.edu with a professional , requesting the extension. Failure to me in the aforementioned manner may result in my denying your request. SCHOLASTIC INTEGRITY It is very easy to tell when a student has plagiarized in this class. If I suspect that you have plagiarized, I will run your assignment through Turnitin, a plagiarism detection service. Many assignments will be run through TurnItIn by default. If it appears that you have, indeed plagiarized, you will receive an F for the assignment. If it appears that you intentionally presented the ideas of someone else as your own, I will report that behavior to the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities and the process outlined in the CWU Academic Dishonesty policy will be followed. If it is determined that you did plagiarize, you will receive an F for the class. The Academic Dishonesty Policy can be found here: If you have any questions about how to properly cite your work, see me before the assignment is due. It s not plagiarism until you turn it in for credit. After you turn it in for credit, it doesn t matter whether you meant to do it or just didn t understand how to cite properly! Finally, it should go without saying that you must do your own work for this class. All of your writing must be 100% your own. DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR Behavior that is disruptive of class or disrespectful of other students will affect your performance and ultimately your grade. Please treat others in this class with respect and follow the guidelines of the student conduct code. DOCUMENTED DISABILITIES Central Washington University is committed to creating a learning environment that meets the needs of its diverse student body. If you anticipate or experience any barriers to learning, discuss your concerns with the instructor. Students with disabilities should contact Student Disability Services to discuss a range of options to removing barriers in the course, including accommodations. Student Disability Services is located in Bouillon 140. Call (509) or ds@cwu.edu for more information.

7 English 263: Introduction to Creative Writing Online Spring, 2015 ***SUBJECT TO CHANGE*** Reminders/Recommendations Assignments are due the day they are listed Following the suggested due dates for reading is highly recommended Unless otherwise stated, assigned textbook chapters don t include the poems/stories/essays Read Journal prompts ahead of time so that you can work on them throughout the week Comments to classmates on Discussions are always due on Wednesdays, except in Week One Workshop feedback is always due the Wednesday following the that drafts are due Due dates for comments to classmates and for Workshop feedback will not show up on your Canvas calendar, so please be sure to take other measures to remember those dates Week One: Introductions and Poetry 3/30 3/31 Wednesday 4/1 Thursday 4/2 4/3 4/5 Read: Syllabus, Unit #1 Overview, Writing Assignment #1: Poems and Reflective Statement, and Practice of Creative Writing Introduction and Chapter 1 Introductions Read: Chapters 2, 3, and 4 Discussion #1: Showing Versus Telling Read: My Heart, Genealogy, Buying Wine (56), Casimir Pulaski Day ( ), and Grammar Girl Show, Don t Tell Journal #1: Tell & Show Quiz #1: Syllabus, Chapters 1-4 4/6 Read Chapter 7, pages , The Waking (233), The River (286), and Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night (100) 4/7 Discussion #2: Patterns (Practice on 280 and Practice on 451) Week Two: Poetry Cont d 4/8 4/9 Journal #2: Unified Patterns of Imagery 4/10 4/12 Notes from the Literary Scene #1

8 4/13 Workshop #1 Read: Chapter Nine 4/14 4/20 4/21 Poems Due Discussion #3: Analyzing Elements of Tension (Practice on page 210) Week Three: Poetry Cont d 4/15 4/16 Workshop Journal #3: Comments Due Revision (Practice on page 365) Wednesday 4/22 Week Four: Fiction Thursday 4/23 Journal #4: Writing Project 2, 5, or 8 on pages (for a piece of fiction) 4/17 Read: Chapter Six, and What I Saw from Where I Stood ( ) 4/24 Read pages , and Cathedral ( ) 4/19 Quiz #2: Chapters 7, 9, and Villanelle 4/26 Notes from the Literary Scene #2 4/27 Read Chapter 5, Boys ( ), How to Become a Writer ( ), and Girl (58-59) 4/28 Discussion #4: Analyzing Energy Week Five: Fiction Cont d 4/29 4/30 Journal #5: How to 5/1 Read: Pretty Ice ( ), Surrounded by Sleep ( ), and Birdwatching at Night (95-96) 5/3 Quiz #3: Chapter 6, Journey Structure Week Six: Fiction Cont d 5/4 5/5 Wednesday 5/6 Thursday 5/7 Workshop #2 Workshop #2 Journal #6: Comments Due Journey Narrative 5/8 5/10 Notes from the Literary Scene #3

9 5/11 Story Due Read: Chapter Eight, including This is Not to Say ( ), The Veil ( ), and From an Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life 5/18 Read The Sloth, The Kite, The Twenty Dollar Fishing Rod, and Balancing Music and Meaning (links will be provided on Canvas) 5/12 Discussion #5: Analyzing Insight 5/19 Discussion #6: 20 Ways to Talk about CNF 5/25 5/26 Workshop #3 Discussion #7: How to Survive English 263 Week Seven: Creative Nonfiction (CNF) 5/13 5/14 Read Excerpts from Half in Shade Journal #7: Writing Project 1, 3, 7, or imitation of Kitchen Week Eight: CNF Cont d 5/20 5/21 Journal #8: Paying Attention to Form in Flash Nonfiction Week Nine: CNF Cont d 5/27 5/28 Workshop #3 Comments Due 5/15 5/22 5/29 Read: Chapter 10 and Text Appendices 5/17 Quiz #4: Chapter 8 Read TBA on CNF Ethical Issues 5/24 Quiz #5: Ethical Issues, Form, and Ways to Talk about CNF Notes from the Literary Scene #4 (In)Famous Literary Figure Report 5/31 Quiz #6: Chapter 10 and Text Appendices 6/1 Essay Due 6/2 Week Ten: Writing Life and Portfolio Preparation 6/3 6/4 6/5 Literary Event Due Literary Journal Review Due 6/7 Notes from the Literary Scene #5

10 6/8 Week Eleven: Writing Life and Portfolio Preparation Cont d 6/9 6/10 6/11 6/12 Final Portfolio Final Test Due 6/13