Coming Soon: Most of the links on this page!
|
|
1-2-WritingSite MapWhat's NewInspirationFictionPoetryMFA ProgramsTeaching Creative WritingPublicationReading ListCustomer Support |
|
What's New |
|
Inspiration for Writing -How Writing Prompts Can Start the Ideas Flowing -Use Freewriting to Jump-Start Your Muse |
|
Writing the Novel Writing the Short Novel/Novella/Novellette Writing the Short Story |
|
Finding Good Rhymes Poetic Forms: Sonnets, Sestinas, Blank Verse, etc. Finding Inspiration Through Music |
|
MFA Programs and Applications - You're Not Alone Should I apply for an MFA in Creative Writing? Lucky versus Fortunate - Are MFA Admissions just a Game of Chance? What are the benefits of an MFA in Creative Writing? Picking the "Right" MFA Program Applying to MFA Programs: How to Write Your Best Manuscripts and Essays How Does "Life Experience" Apply to Academic Writing? Will the MFA Workshop Affect My Writing Style? |
|
Creative Writing Pedagogy - Why Everyone Should Learn How to Teach |
|
Publishing Your Work Organizing Your Submissions Submitting to "The Right" Publications Reading "The Competition": Learning About Your Own Writing by Seeing the Works of Published Writers The Psychology of Overcoming Rejection Editors and the Swamp: Escape from the Slush Pile Blues |
|
Complete List of Reviewed Books Books on the Writing Craft Anthology Collections You Should Consider Owning Must-Read Poetry Collections Riveting Works in Fiction Novels to Read for Plotting Novels to Read for Character Authors to Read for Characterization Plot-Driven Science Fiction Novels Thought-Provoking Fantasy Novels Examples of Poorly-Written Books that Limit Themselves to Genre The Transformation from the Cutting Edge to Stodgy Fame |
|
|
 |
Search 1-2-Writing:
Custom Search
|
|
Creative Writing Pedagogy - Learning How to TeachI love creative writing. I love creative writing classes, especially good ones. But few things in life can be more frustrating - or more demoralizing - than taking a fiction or poetry workshop which doesn't help. Some courses are poorly run, plain and simple - feedback is slow, the instructor doesn't guide discussion toward useful topics, the advice that is given doesn't apply to the work you're writing. Other times, the atmosphere of a workshops simply isn't conducive to producing new work. In the worst-case scenario, you can find your work - and your desire write - simply torn to shreds. |
|
|||||
| As a student and an instructor of creative writing, I think it's critical that writers not only learn how to write, but that they learn to teach. Both aspects - writing and teaching - must be brought together for a teacher to be effective. It's impossible to teach skills you haven't mastered yourself, and all the experience in the world won't help you share your knowledge unless you can connect with your students. I've dedicated this section of the website to addressing the concerns that affect both teaching in general and the teaching of creative writing in particular. Although creative writing is a very unique field, I feel that the instructional techniques of other fields can both inform our teaching and provide us additional avenues for getting to know our students on a personal level. |
|
|||||
| If you are not yet an instructor, you should still consider reading this section. As Pat Schneider writes in her book, Writing Alone and With Others, students of writing learn a great deal about the art itself by learning about how to teach it. Most MFA and PhD programs see this as implicit, and they require their students to teach either creative writing or composition courses while they work toward their degrees (my own program, the Johns Hopkins Writing Seminars, requires us to teach one undergraduate creative writing class each of our four semesters).
My challenge to you, as a writer, is to be a student - be a student of writing, and a student of teaching. Learn as much as you can about both these aspects of writing, and then continue your learning after you reach the point of "mastery." There is no such thing as a perfect story, and there is no such thing as a perfect class. We all come to the point of "good enough" and "really good" - sometimes even "exceptional" - but the only true path to writing fame lies with continued and diligent improvement. |
|
|||||
Recommended Links:
Sitebuilder