Kitchen and Jones, In Short Root and Steinberg, The Fourth Genre

I would like you to keep all of the writing that you do for this course in a portfolio. This portfolio will make up most of your grade (75%) and will consist of the following:

• At least two completed pieces of creative nonfiction
• All drafts and revisions of the writing you produce in the course
• Writing exercises
• Introductory/Cover letter

Each week of this course you will need to write at least five pages of nonfiction prose. These pages may include listserv contributions (we will be discussing the course readings on-line), peer reviews, and writing exercises (which will often be asked to post on-line), but the large majority of your weekly writing will be drafts or revisions of your two main projects.Throughout the course we will read and discuss examples of a wide range of creative nonfiction forms, including travel writing; personal narrative; profile; review; literary journalism; prose poem; satire; and meditation. I will ask you to experiment a bit with each of these forms and during the first five weeks I will assign various writing exercises but it will up to you to choose which of these forms you want to focus on for your two main projects.

I will not grade any individual piece of writing. Instead I will give your entire portfolio a single grade. Although I will not grade your drafts, I will read and offer responses to most of them; I will let you know if you in serious trouble (that is, if you are heading for any grade below C); and I will give everyone an estimated course grade around mid-term. Criteria for Grading: The BC grading system consists of 12 categories: A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, and F. A is excellent; B is good; C is satisfactory; D is passing but unsatisfactory; and F is failure. To do well in this course, work hard on drafts and revisions; participate generously in class discussions, workshops, and on-line exchanges; demonstrate a willingness and ability to re-imagine and revise your first drafts and to listen to the suggestions and responses of others; and, most of all, produce thoughtful, insightful, original, well-written essays. To do poorly, skip more than one class; don’t participate in discussions and workshops or participate frequently without listening to anyone else or having anything thoughtful to say; resist all suggestions for improving your writing; and, most of all, produce poor writing.

Review BC’s statements in the Undergraduate Catalog on academic integrity, cheating, and plagiarism. The key, of course, is to not represent anyone else’s words or ideas as your own. If you are not sure whether you might be doing that by accident, ask me before you hand in the paper. If you are caught cheating, the consequences will be VERY serious.

During writing workshops, we will discuss works-in-progress by members of the class. You will each be responsible for >workshopping two of your essays during the semester and for reading and responding to your classmates’ essays when they are beingworkshopped. When your essay is being workshopped, you must e-mail copies to me and all of your classmates by Sunday afternoon at 4:00 PM. If your essay is not being workshopped that week, you must e-mail me a copy at least 24 hours before your conference. Please send your essay as both an attachment and as a part of the message itself.

Partcipation Guidelines

Since I want this class to be a seminar in which we discuss and learn from each other, I depend on you to be prepared and to be willing to respond to the material and questions assigned for each class. I value this so much that 25% of your final grade will be based on participation. However, I know that it is difficult for some people to talk in large groups. I also know that talking a little doesn’t necessarily mean that you haven’t thought a lot about the material and talking a lot doesn’t necessarily mean that you have something thoughtful to say. So: while I hope that you will feel comfortable talking during our discussions and will certainly give people credit for that sort of participation, I will also give you other options (e.g., contributions to the on-line listserv discussions; small-group sessions; peer reviews, etc.) to participate in this class.

Attendance Policy

It is very important that you show up for this class. Writing workshops depend on the establishment of trust, continuity, and a common set of ideas, criteria, and references. When people drop in and out of a class, it is almost impossible to establish that sort of understanding and community. Now I realize of course that there might be occasions when you need to miss class. You may get sick or be called out of town to take care of a family problem. If this happens, please call to tell me that you cannot be in class that day. I also realize that there might be occasions when you just want to miss class. If that happens — if, like Ferris, you decide that it is just too good a day to spend in school — you do not need to call. However, please note: if you have more than one unexcused absence, it will affect your grade. And if you have more than two, I will probably recommend that you withdraw so that you don’t end up with a failing grade on your record.

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