You may also want to check out the 6-week version of this course, the Accelerated Fundamentals of Nonfiction Writing workshop.
"Writing nonfiction is simple: You find out some facts, you figure out how to arrange them in light of a larger idea, then you do something artful with the arrangement. Simple, but hard. Like climbing a mountain—all you have to do is keep going up. The most important step is always the next one. That's the craft of it—paying attention to what's under your feet, what your hands are grabbing hold of, working against the gravity of all your bad habits."
—Philip Gerard, Creative Nonfiction
Read what students are saying about this class.
"Write what you know." How often have you heard that piece of advice? While it is certainly sound, as a nonfiction writer you also have an opportunity to "write what you want to know." In other words, if a subject interests you, you can do the research, interview the experts, explore it to your heart’s content, and then write about it. Nonfiction appeals to the amateur historian/anthropologist/psychologist/biographer in all of us. But contemporary nonfiction is about a lot more than just facts and figures and interview quotes. Contemporary readers expect their nonfiction to be engaging, compelling and entertaining—as well as informative.
In this workshop we’ll concentrate on the basic creative (yes, creative) techniques associated with all types of nonfiction writing. You will be encouraged—through the use of creative exercises, hands-on writing assignments, and constructive critical feedback—to develop practical skills and your own individual style. You will also learn the basics of interviewing, and how to bring your interview subject to life on the page. You can develop a variety of ideas in this class—from personal essays to magazine articles, even start a book if that’s what you want to do. The goal is not a single finished piece, but rather the mastery of techniques you can apply to any nonfiction project. (If you’re ready to concentrate on magazine articles, see our Focus on the Nonfiction Magazine Article workshop; if you’re primarily interested in writing about your own personal life experiences, you may also want to check out our Fundamentals of Life Stories Writing workshop.)
This workshop will consist of six two-week sessions. Each session will include online lectures and associated textbook reading assignments, along with writing assignments incorporating the techniques learned in the session, which you will submit to the instructor for private review at the end of the first week of the session. During the second week of each session, work will be posted for group review and feedback. Throughout the workshop you will be able to participate in asynchronous lecture discussion and encouraged to take advantage of ongoing informal discussions and posted self-directed writing and creativity exercises. (2.4 CEUs)
| Workshop length: |
Twelve Weeks |
| Textbook(s) to purchase: |
Creative Nonfiction: Researching and Crafting Stories of Real Life, by Philip Gerard (Story Press or Waveland Press) (If you are unable to locate this text, contact us for purchase information. Please note: the similarly-titled book Writing Creative Nonfiction: Fiction Techniques for Crafting Great Nonfiction is not the correct textbook for this workshop.) |
| Course Developer: |
David Fryxell |
| Tuition: |
$350.00 |
Workshop Outline
Session One: Getting Started
Creative nonfiction; Descriptive writing; Using detail in your writing
Writing Assignment: A 500-word description of a public place—and the actions of the people in it—as though you were crafting a larger story about this place.
Session Two: Real-life Characters
An introduction to interviewing; Using quotes; Paraphrasing & summary; Adding description to interview material
Writing Assignment: A short "profile" of a real person, based on an interview (maximum 500 words). For a subject, you can use a friend or family member, or someone else you have reasonably easy access to (your boss, a local small businessperson, your minister, etc.). Use a combination of description, and quotes to portray not just the substance of the interview, but some aspect of the subject's personality as well.
Session Three: Making Your Point—Logically
Structure & organization; Beginnings, middles and ends
Writing Assignment: Select a topic of your choice and write an opening (with an appropriate hook and lead), a summary of the body of the piece, and an ending (with an appropriate concluding device)—maximum 750 words.
Session Four: Style, Part I—Unity & Rhythm
Unity of viewpoint; Unity of pronoun; Unity of place; Unity of time; Rhythm and pacing
Writing Assignment: A complete article or essay on the topic of your choice, concentrating on the use of the stylistic techniques covered in this session (maximum 1,000 words).
Session Five: Style, Part II—Voice & Tone
Using an appropriate voice; How tone complements voice; Finding your voice
Writing Assignment: Put all of the piece together to write the first draft of an article, collection of related essays or other short pieces, or a chapter of a nonfiction book (maximum 2,500 words total).
Session Six: Polishing Your Prose
Drafts; Revision
Writing Assignment: An article, collection of related essays or other short pieces, or a chapter of a nonfiction book (maximum 2,500 words total). You may revise and rewrite the piece(es) you submitted for Session Five, based on the feedback you've received, or you may submit new work.