WriteNOW

Course Description

Anne Lamott said that the most important ingredient for writing is the act of “sitting.” During this five week course, students will focus on this seemingly simple act of the creative process. The focus of the course is on the generation of written material – the quantity rather than the quality. By the end of the course, students will have written 25,000 new and original words. To this end, students choose their own fiction or nonfiction writing topic(s) and project for these five weeks, and may use the material they create in a later effort (ILP, AP, etc.)

Learning Outcomes

After completing this course, you will be able to:

  1. Develop a process for writing that enables you to produce 25,000 words of text toward the completion of a written project in one month.
  2. Draw upon writing theory (from course readings and panel presentations) to help you understand and articulate your writing process in comparison to others.
  3. Capture this process in a final presentation to your peers.

Learning Strategies

In this course the following teaching and learning techniques are used: silent sitting and writing time (computer lab will be available; you may also work on a laptop or with paper and pencil), panel presentations, online submission system, UCWbl-facilitated writing group.

Students will spend five weeks getting words on to the page and reflecting on the creative processes of other writers. The month is for the creative process to take place. Then, in a final presentation, students will reflect upon and analyze their own engagement in the creative process. Competence is earned through mandatory submission of discussion posts, pep talk video, final presentation video, documentation of 25,000 new and original words.

Required readings: Because each student will write in a different genre on a different project, the reading for this course is individualized. You will report on your reading in a weekly log and journal, and will be required to integrate your reading into your final presentation.

Course Resources

Required Readings:

Because each student will write in a different genre on a different project, the reading for this course is individualized. You will report on your reading in a weekly log and journal, and will be required to integrate your reading into your final presentation.

If you are taking this competence, you must read:
List A (books have been placed on reserve in the DePaul Loop Library; chapters and articles are available on Ares):

Boden, Margaret A. “Creativity in a Nutshell.” The Creative Mind: Myths and
Mechanisms. 2nd ed. New York: Routledge, 2004.

Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly. Creativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and
Invention. New York: Harper Collins, 1997. (choose one relevant chapter)

Dissanayake, Ellen. “What is Art?” What Is Art For? Seattle: University of Washington
Press, 1988.

Gardner, Howard. Art, Mind, and Brain: A Cognitive Approach to Creativity. Basic
Books, 1984.

Gombrich, Ernst H. “Introduction: On Art and Artists.” The Story of Art. 16th ed.
London: Phaidon Press, 1995.

Handbook of creativity. Ed. Robert j. Sternberg. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 1999. (choose one relevant chapter)

Radford, Mike. “Emotion and Creativity.” Journal of Aesthetic Education 38 (1): 53-
63. 2004.

List B:

Barringon, Judith. Writing the Memoir: From Truth to Art. 2nd ed. Portland, OR: The
Eighth Mountain Press, 2002.

Bishop, Wendy. Working Words: The Process of Creative Writing. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield Publishing Company, 1991.

Butler, Robert Olen. From Where You Dream: The Process of Writing Fiction. Janet
Burroway (Ed.). New York: Grove Press, 2006.

Cameron, Julia. The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity. New York: 
Putnam, 2002.

Fry, Don. Writing Your Way: Creating a Writing Process That Works for You. Blue Ash,
OH: Writer’s Digest Books, 2012.

Goldberg, Natalie. Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 2005.  

King, Stephen. On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. New York: Pocket Books, 2000.

Lamott, Anne. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. New York: Anchor Books, 1994.

Melander, Rochelle. Write-A-Thon: Writing your book in 26 days. Blue Ash, OH:
Writer’s Digest Books, 2011.

“Pep Talks.” National Novel Writing Month. http://www.nanowrimo.org/pep/

Rand, Ayn. The Art of Nonfiction. New York: Plume, 2001.

Smith, Marion Roach. The Memoir Project: A Thoroughly Non-Standardized Text for
Writing & Life. Hachette Digital Inc., 2011.

“Writers at Work.” The Paris Review. Interviews.
http://www.theparisreview.org/interviews
This series includes interviews done with famed authors by the notable Paris Review since 1953, all archived online.

Evidence Students will Submit

Learning Deliverables

  1. 25,000 words of text (submitted weekly. This will not be read by the instructor).
  2. Attendance and active participation as evidenced by participation in all required discussion posts, including delivery of one pep talk.
  3. Final presentation demonstrating personal engagement in and understanding of one’s own creative process that draws on the assigned literature/presentations on creativity.

Course Competencies

Students may register for one competence only:

Competence

Competence Statement and Criteria

A-5

Can define and analyze a creative process.

  1. Can define the concept of creativity.
  2. Can identify, analyze, and describe the components of a creative process in one or more fields of human endeavor.
  3. Can explain how engaging in a creative process affects one’s perception of the world. 

Through engagement, reflection, and analysis, this competence invites the student to understand how a creative process is born, how it functions, and how it changes our perception and experience of the world.

A-2-X

Can produce a creative writing project (fiction or non-fiction) utilizing
25,000 or more words of text and describe the creative process of producing that text.

  1. Produces 25,000+ words of a creative project.
  2. Describes the creative process used to produce this piece.
  3. Discusses the relationship between one’s own creative process and the creative process of other writers.

F-X*

Can develop, manage, produce, and reflect upon the process of creating a
significant writing product.
*Note: if this wording is not appropriate for a student’s focus area, alternate wording may be negotiated with the instructor.

If you registered for CCA 196, the competencies that you will gain in this class are as follows:

  1. Can define the concept of creativity.
  2. Can identify, analyze, and describe the components of a creative process in one or more fields of human endeavor.
  3. Can explain how engaging in a creative process affects one’s perception of the world. 

Assessment Criteria

In order to successfully complete this course, students must:

  1. Complete 25,000 new words of text by the end of the course;
  2. Deliver one “Pep Talk” of 500-750 words;
  3. Deliver an individual presentation;
  4. Participate in required discussion posts.
Grading

Because the focus of this course is on the generation of content and discovery of the creative process, default grading is pass/no pass. Please inform the instructor in writing by the end of the second week if you would like a letter grade for this course.

Grading Distribution

Module One

15%

Module Two

15%

Module Three

15%

Module Four

15%

Module Five

10%

Pep Talk

10%

Final Presentation

20%

Final Grade

100%

You must write and submit at least 25,000 total words in order to pass this course.

Course Schedule

This is a five-week class that takes place entirely online.

Module

Readings

Assignments

Module 1: Quantity over Quality

Bradbury, Ray. “How to Feed and Keep a Muse.” Zen in the Art of Writing. Santa Barbara, CA: Joshua Odell Editions, 1994.

“Pep Talks.” National Novel Writing Month. Nanowrimo.org. http://nanowrimo.org/pep-talks

Herbert Lui. “Why Quantity Should Be Your Priority” https://medium.com/better-humans/3bc2b16fe3f5 

Michael Jarmer. “Forced Creativity Experiences (The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly)”http://michaeljarmer.com/2013/05/02/forced-creativity-experiences-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/

1.1 Introductions

1.2 Writing Marathon Contract

1.3 Feeding the Muse

1.4 Meet Your Word Count Goal

1.5 Weekly Log

Module 2: Birds do it, Bees do it, We all procrastinate!

Genre reading*

Readings by competence*

*Details in D2L

2.1 Just Do It

2.2 Meet Your Word Count Goal

2.3 Weekly Log

Module 3: You are not alone

Genre reading

3.1 Genre reading

3.2 Meet Your Word Count Goal

3.3 Weekly Log

Module 4: The Creative Process

Readings by Competence

4.1 Where does your creativity hide?

4.2 Meet Your Word Count Goal

4.3 Weekly Log

Module 5: What Now?

5.1 Final Presentation

5.2 What Next?

5.3 Meet Your Final Word Count Goal

Course Policies

College and University Policies

This course includes and adheres to the college and university policies described in the links below:

Academic Integrity Policy (UGRAD)

Academic Integrity Policy (GRAD)

Incomplete Policy

Course Withdrawal Timelines and Grade/Fee Consequences

Accommodations Based on the Impact of a Disability

Protection of Human Research Participants

APA citation format (GRAD)

Additional Course Resources

University Center for Writing-based Learning

SNL Writing Guide

Dean of Students Office

Changes to Syllabus

This syllabus is subject to change as necessary. If a change occurs, it will be clearly communicated to students.

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