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Courses offered
a
word about the
The Creative Writing Program is a rigorous program for student writers of serious purpose who want to develop their potential through a series of workshops and individual projects. Students work through a syllabus of reading, exercises, and assignments in classes that divide their time between presentations of assignments and discussions of student work. Most advanced work is accomplished through individual projects.
There is a large demand for writing courses at all levels. Most courses and all individual projects require submissions and application forms that are designed to assess students serious commitment to the nature and structure of the classes. Students who receive a grade of B- or lower in CRWR 201 are normally discouraged from pursuing the major. .
the
creative writing
Students must complete at least 25 hours in Creative Writing which must include the following: Creative Writing 201; three of the six workshops and independent projects. Students work through a syllabus of reading exercises, and assignments in classes that divide their time between presentations of assignments and discussions of student work. Most advanced work is accomplished through independent projects.
There is a large demand for writing courses at all levels. Most courses and all independent projects require submissions and application forms that are designed to assess serious commitment to the nature and structure of the classes. Students who receive a grade of B- or lower in CRWR 201 are normally discouraged from pursuing the major.
Twelve hours of literature (in English, in translation, or in a foreign language) are also required, above the beginning level. Students are encouraged to take literature courses in the genre(s) in which they are writing. Film, theory, and other courses that do not focus primarily on written literature will not count toward this requirement, even if they are offered by the English Department. A list of recommended literature courses will be available in the Creative Writing Office prior to registration each semester.
First-year students are advised to take CRWR 110 and 120, but only one of these courses will count toward the 25 hours required for the major.
Students must have taken CRWR 201 before applying for 300-level poetry or fiction workshops, and must have completed the relevant 300-level workshop (and normally one other 300-level workshop as well) before pursuing an individual project in a given genre.
CRWR 470, 475, 480 and 485 are repeatable for credit, but only three credits of Reading for Writing (475) and two credits of Practicum (485) will count toward the major. CRWR 331 does not count toward the major.
The Program encourages cultural diversity among students and welcomes students of all cultural backgrounds.
Various faculty will sponsor projects on worthwhile topics that students have carefully designed in consultation with them before the registration deadline. Winter Term workshops, supervised by faculty and directed by advanced students, will be offered to students who have not taken Creative Writing 201.
course
listings for
110.
Technique and Form in Poetry
3 hours (3HU)
First Semester. Extensive reading of published poetry from a creative writing perspective. Writing includes weekly exercises aimed at exploring the various techniques of poetry used in the assigned reading. The class combines lecture-demonstrations and discussion of student exercises.
Notes: 18 places reserved for first-year students, 7 for sophomores.
Enrollment Limit: 25.
Sem 1 CRWR-110-01, MWF 11:00-11:50 am, Sarah Green
Sem 1 CRWR-110-02, MWF, 3:30-4:20 pm, Sarah Green
120.
Technique and Form in Fiction
3 hours (3HU)
Second Semester. Extensive reading of published fiction from a creative writing perspective. Writing includes weekly exercises aimed at exploring the various techniques of fiction used in the assigned reading. The class combines lecture-demonstrations and discussion of student exercises.
Notes: 18 places reserved for first-year students, 7 for sophomores.
Enrollment Limit: 25.
Sem 2 CRWR-120-01, Edan Lepucki
Sem 2 CRWR-120-02, Edan Lepucki
201.
Poetry/Prose Workshop
4 hours (4HU, WR)
First and Second Semester. The reading and writing of poetry, short fiction, and some drama. Students must submit a completed application form and a typed sample of recent work (at least two genres, due at Program office Friday, June 8, 2007 for first semester, and Friday, January 4, 2008 for second semester).
Notes: Not open to first-semester first-year students and seniors; juniors discouraged; some second-semester first-year students may be admitted. Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 12.
Sem 1 CRWR-201-01, MW 2:30-4:20 pm, Dan Chaon
Sem 1 CRWR-201-02, TTh 1:00-2:50 pm, Kazim Ali
Sem 2 CRWR-201-01,
Sem 2 CRWR-201-02,
Sem 2 CRWR-201-03,
245. Nature Writing Workshop
2 hours (2HU, WR)
NEXT OFFERED: 2008/09
Second Semester. First Module. Reading of modern and contemporary authors on nature and the environment; weekly writing. Admission based on a completed application form and writing sample (application due in Program office by TBA). Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 12.
Sem 2 CRWR-245-01, Pamela Alexander
255. Graphic Narrative
2 hours (2HU)
Second Semester, First Module. This course will examine the emerging art of the graphic novel and related forms such as the comic book, comic strip, and manga, with particular attention to the ways in which the structure, rhetoric and methods of the form relate to the other narrative form, such as fiction and drama. Open to non-majors. Consent of instructor is required.
Enrollment Limit: 24
Sem 2, Module 1, Dan Chaon
280. Small Prose Forms
2 hours (2HU, WR)
First Semester, First Module. In this course we will look at the technique and structure of a variety of minature forms--including prose poems, mini-essays, and short stories. The writing assignments will require creative responses in the forms being studied. Open to non-majors. Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 24
Sem 1, Module 1, CRWR-280-01, T, 7:00-8:50 p.m., Sylvia Watanabe
310.
Poetry Workshop
4 hours (4HU, WR)
First and Second Semester. The writing of poetry. Intensive discussion of student work, accompanied by assigned reading. Admission based on a completed application form and a writing sample of 6-8 poems (due in Program office by Friday, June 8, 2007 for first semester, and Friday, January 4, 2008 for second semester).
Prerequisites: CRWR 201. Identical to ENGL 395. Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 12.
Sem 1 CRWR-310-01,
W 7:00-10:00 pm, Kazim Ali
Sem 2 CRWR-310-01
320.
Fiction Workshop
4 hours (4HU, WR)
First and Second Semester. The writing of short fiction. Admission based on a completed application form and a writing sample of at least 12 pages of fiction, made up of at least 2 separate pieces (due in Program office by Friday, June 8, 2007 for the first semester and Friday, January 4, 2008 for second semester).
Prerequisites: CRWR 201. Identical to ENGL 397. Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 12.
Sem 1 CRWR-320-01,
T, 7:00-10:00 pm, Dan Chaon
Sem 2 CRWR-320-01, Sylvia Watanabe
330. Playwriting Workshop
4 hours (4HU, WR)
First Semester. A workshop focused on discussion of student work and on selected examples from modern and contemporary drama, working toward a staged reading of an original one-act play. The course presupposes considerable knowledge of drama. Admission based on a completed application form and writing sample (due in Program office by Friday, June 8, 2007).
Notes: Identical to ENGL 398. Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 12.
Sem 1 CRWR-330-01, TTh 3:00-4:15 pm, Mr. Walker
331.
Playwriting Lab
1 hour (1HU)
First Semester. For actors who are available to students in the playwriting class; to try out work in progress and be available for any productions that result. See CRWR 330.
Notes: CR/NE or P/NP grading. Consent of instructor required.
Sem 1 CRWR-331-01, TBA, Mr. Walker
340.
Nonfiction Workshop
4 hours (4HU, WRi)
First Semester. The writing of personal narratives which employ the techniques of both the traditional essay and fiction, with an emphasis on non-fiction as a literary art form. Students will read work by modern and contemporary authors with an eye toward understanding the variety of modes which come under the current heading "creative nonfiction" (memoir, meditation, travel, cultural critique, etc.), and will be asked to employ a number of these methods and approaches in their own work. Application based on a completed application form and writing sample (due in Program office by Friday, June 8, 2007).
Recommended preparation: CRWR 201. Identical to ENGL 396. Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit:
12.
Sem 1 CRWR-340-01, W 7:00 -10:00 pm, Sylvia Watanabe
350.
Translation Workshop
4 hours (4HU, CD)
Second Semester. Major writers in modern and contemporary poetry and some classical examples studied by translating them into effective American English. Exercises and assignments in the first half will help students focus on a project of their own design in the second half. Guest appearances by local and visiting writers. This course has no prerequisites, but knowledge of a foreign language and some experience in writing poetry are required. Admission is based on a completed application form and writing sample (due in Program Office by Friday, January 4, 2008).
Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 16
Sem 1 CRWR-350-01, Kazim Ali
360
Screenwriting Workshop
4 hours (4HU)
Second Semester. The elements of translating written work into a visual medium. Students will examine the art and craft of film scripoting from a writer's perspective, focusing on both adaptation and original work. Admission based on completed application and writing sample (due in Program office by Friday, January 4, 2008). Recommended preparation: CRWR 201.
Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 12
Sem. 1 CRWR-360-01, Dan Chaon
470
Advanced Writing Project I
1-4 hours (1-4HU,WR)
Poetry **** Nonfiction, Playwriting, Translation, Screenwriting **** Fiction
First and Second Semester. Students will work individually with an instructor in a single genre. Majors should have completed at least two.
and preferably three of their required 300-level workshops before applying. Applications due in Program office by Friday, June 8, 2007 for first semester, and Friday, January 4, 2008 for second semester. Faculty sponsoring projects include: Kazim Ali, Dan Chaon, Jed Deppman, Jessica Grim, DeSales Harrison, John Hobbs, Caroline Jackson-Smith, Paul Moser, Thomas Van Nortwick, David Walker, Sylvia Watanabe, Staff. Prerequisites: Workshop in the genre of specialization (i.e. poetry, fiction, nonfiction, playwriting, translation, or screenwriting) and one other 300-level workshop.
Consent of instructor required
475
Reading for Writing
1-2 hours (1-2HU)
First and Second Semester. This course is normally taken in conjunction with CRWR 480 (occasionally 470); it is not a substitute for required literature courses, and it is not a private reading. Advanced students, upon consulting with a faculty sponsor, will select a reaading list and keep a journal of their critical responses (and/or discuss the material they contract to cover with the instructor). Faculty sponsoring projects include: Kazim Ali, Mr. Chaon, Jedd Deppman, Jessica Grim, DeSales Harrison, John Hobbs, Caroline Jackson-Smith, Paul Moser, Thomas Van Nortwick, David Walker, Sylvia Watanabe, Staff . Note: CR/NE grading.
Consent of instructor required.
480.
Advanced Writing Project II
1-4 hours (1-4HU, WR)
Poetry **** Nonfiction, Playwriting, Translation, Screenwriting **** Fiction
First and Second Semester. Students will work individually with an instructor in a single genre. Applications due in Program office by Friday, June 8, 2007 for first semester, and Friday, January 4, 2008 for second semester. Faculty sponsoring projects include: Kazim Ali , Dan Chaon, Jedd Deppman, Jessica Grim, DeSales Harrison, John Hobbs, Caroline Jackson-Smith, Paul Moser, Thomas Van Nortwick, David Walker, Sylvia Watanabe, Staff.
Prerequisites: Advanced Writing Project I in the same genre.
Consent of instructor required.
485.
Practicum
0-2 hours (1-2HU)
First and Second Semester. This course is open only to students who are working for Oberlin College Press/FIELD Magazine or student literary publications, or who are engaged in other approved creative writing activities. Students can earn a maxmum of four hours credit toward graduation, and two hours credit toward the major. Applications due in Program office by Friday, June 8, 2007 for first semester, and Friday, January 4, 2008 for second semester. Note: CR/NE or P/NP grading.
Consent of instructor required.
Ms. Watanabe
490.
Senior Colloquium
1 hour (1HU)
First and Second Semester. A one-credit colloquium for senior creative writing majors, concentrators, and others who have taken a substantial number of creative writing courses. A variety of topics will be covered in meetings with various faculty, staff, and visiting writers, and some sessions may be devoted to discussion of student work (topics will be determined in part by discussion with students at the first session). Some reading and written work, including the completion of a literary review, will be required.
Note: CR/NE or P/NP grading.
Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 12.
Sem 1 CRWR-490-01,
R, 7:15-9:15 pm, Ms. Watanabe
Sem 2 CRWR-490-01, R, 7:15-9:15 pm, Ms. Watanabe
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