Aims

To develop the student’s imaginative capacity, confidence and technical skills in writing poetry, script and creative prose.
To introduce them to the teaching methods of Creative Writing.
To encourage them to read as writers, and to discuss critically their own creative writing and that of others.

Outline Of Syllabus

There are a series of lectures which introduce students to the principles, methods and techniques of Creative Writing. These are accompanied by seminar teaching, where students may be given exercises to help them write creative texts; engage in close reading of exemplar texts; or bring in creative work which will then be discussed by the workshop members. There is also an individual tutorial to discuss submission. Responding to project work set in lectures and exercises given in seminars, students build up a portfolio of work independently and maintain a creative journal.

Teaching Rationale And Relationship

The lectures give an overview of the course's aims and introduce the students to the principle methods of learning creative writing: the writing exercise, close reading of exemplar texts, and the group discussion of creative texts, as well as formal issues about the composition of poetry, creative prose, and script. The seminars encourage students to create and discuss texts. Students build up a portfolio of work independently: this is then discussed before submission in one-to-one tutorial.

Assessment Rationale And Relationship

Submitted portfolio of creative texts, which may consist of either 10-12 poems, 2000 words theatre script, 2500 words screenwriting, 3000 words of creative prose, or (if discussed and agreed with the tutor) a combination of these elements, or an equivalent amount of work completed as assignments.