Professional Documents
Culture Documents
2015-16
Subject Leader
Dr Paul Meyer
(01225) 876 591
p.meyer@bathspa.ac.uk
Major, Joint or Minor Single Hons, Joint, Major/Minor
School Humanities and Cultural Industries
Department Creative Writing and Publishing
Campus Newton Park
Date specification last updated Once every six years an in-depth review of the whole
area is undertaken by a panel that includes at least two
external subject specialists. The panel considers
documents, looks at student work, speaks to current and
former students and speaks to staff before drawing its
conclusions. The result is a report highlighting good
practice and identifying areas where action is needed.
Our last review took place in 2008, and our programmes
received ten commendations, including these:
If you want to learn about the creative industries, how writing gets written, how it gets published,
and how you can take your own writing as far as possible.
Our comprehensive programme includes prose, poetry, drama, feature journalism and life writing: in
fact, whatever you want to write, there should be the opportunity at BSU. We also make films and
podcasts, and encourage you to get involved in a wide range of writing-related areas such as
readings, performances and magazines. Our Broadcast and Publishing labs give you the chance to
work with practicing industry professionals using state-of-the-art equipment to enhance your
creativity.
You can see a list of modules on p.5, and the full guide beginning on p. 18.
You'll be encouraged to think about your future career from the beginning of the course.
Typically, our graduates are communicators. They can talk, they can listen, and they can persuade.
They are confident. They can manage projects through from initial idea to successful completion.
They can work alone or as part of a team. Thats why recent graduates have found jobs with the BBC,
other broadcast organisations large and small; theyve gone into publishing, journalism, teaching,
social work in fact, just about any career that requires a good Humanities degree.
As a graduate the chances are youll need to be familiar with the various media platforms and
software packages used in the creative industries. A feature of our course is that we offer access to
training throughout your three years with us, making you more employable.
The emphasis on employability and industry connections embedded at both the course
and module level is exemplary, and precisely the sort of best practice that should be
disseminated, and adopted, more widely.
"The class workshops helped me assess my own writing from a more professional angle. I learnt how
to give and accept criticism, both positive and negative. The lecturers were really encouraging, and
regularly informed me of new writing competitions and other opportunities to get my work
published." (2012 graduate.)
Bath Spa puts students' priorities first. When I was offered a two-month internship from Universal
Studios to join the 'Bourne Legacy' crew, I thought was going to repeat the year for missing nearly a
whole semester. But I received so much support from my lecturers. They were so proud of my
accomplishment that we worked together to tailor the modules so I could gain credits from doing
the placement. What I learned working on the film set was invaluable. Bath Spa recognizes the
importance of work placements and will do their best to provide support and guidance. Now I feel
even more confident that I have the education and relevant work experience to back up my degree.
(2012 graduate.)
The Creative Writing course really helped me explore and engage with different forms, with
invaluable feedback from peers and tutors. In my last year, I had the opportunity to carry out two
individual projects with guidance from the university, which developed both my creative ability and
my confidence. I have also collaborated with very artistic individuals from the pool of writers, along
with students from other courses here. The BA is swarming with talent and encouragement, and it
felt like a great environment to be a part of. I loved the course so much that I proceeded to do the
MA in Creative Writing here at Bath Spa straight after graduating. This year I hope to complete my
first novel. (2012 graduate.)
COURSE CONTENT
Year 1 (Level 4)
Year 1 is the time to experiment, and try out as many kinds and styles of writing as possible. It is also
the time to build the habits of writing that will provide the foundations for your future development.
The compulsory core workshop module helps you develop your own writing, and to see yourself as a
writer. You will have the opportunity to take part in a group project (for example, making a film, or
organising an event or performance). The optional genre modules in prose, poetry and script
encourage you to read widely, and to contextualise your own work in terms of other writing. There is
also specialist Publishing option for Creative Writing students subject to availability.
Year 2 (Level 5)
In Year 2 you will learn more specialised skills, and you will be encouraged to take your work into the
creative world outside the course. The innovative core workshop module allows you to combine a
range of optional modules which then give you the chance to try out specialist areas such as Short
Stories, Poetry, Lifewriting, Writing for Theatre or Genre Fiction. If youre keen on screen, then you
can take a module called Scripting for Screen or the 40-credit Making a Film module, run to industry
standards, and taught by accomplished practitioners. Year 2 is designed to give you the confidence
and skills to push yourself to your limits in Year 3.
Year 3 (Level 6)
In Year 3 you apply the skills learned in the first two years. You are encouraged to develop your own
characteristic styles and approaches, and to take your work out into the world as far as possible.
The year-long structure of many modules enables you to work intensively on large-scale projects:
you can specialise in two of five areas (Fiction, Non Fiction, Poetry, Script, and Writing for Young
People). Alternatively you can realise your own ambitions, and gain academic credit for the creative
work you do outside the act of writing in our Enterprise Project module. For example, you could put
on a play, research and gain experience in the career of your choice, organise an event anything,
in fact, that you can imagine, and we can help you realise.
For students with a practical technological bent, there may be the chance to work with our ground-
breaking Artswork Media company, based at the Paintworks in Bristol.
There is also a selection of modules aimed to further enhance your knowledge and understanding of
the writing context, and to help you see the range of possibilities for your writing after the course
(Reading as a Writer, Speaking as a Writer, Professional Writing, and Teaching Writing).
(N.B. a detailed description of each module follows at the end of this handbook)
* Students must take one and can take up to two of these dissertation-equivalent modules in the
third year.
Artistic engagement the ability to produce artistically coherent, original and technically
sophisticated creative work.
Skills in communication and presentation - you will be able to:
o Articulate complex ideas and information comprehensibly in oral and written forms
o present ideas and work to audiences in a range of situations
o use the views of others in the development or enhancement of your work.
Self-management the ability to:
o study independently, set goals, manage your own workloads and meet deadlines
o anticipate and accommodate change, and work within contexts of ambiguity,
uncertainty and unfamiliarity.
Critical engagement you will have the ability to:
o analyse information and experiences, formulate independent judgements, and
articulate reasoned arguments through reflection, review and evaluation
o source and research relevant material, assimilating and articulating relevant findings
o formulate reasoned responses to the critical judgements of others
o identify personal strengths and needs, and reflect on personal development.
Group/team working and social skills you will have the ability to interact effectively with
others, for example through collaboration, collective endeavour and negotiation.
Information skills you will have the ability to:
o source, navigate, select, retrieve, evaluate, manipulate and manage information
from a variety of sources
o select and employ communication and information technologies.
LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
You'll learn through participating in a wide variety of activities including lectures, seminars,
workshops, presentations and performances. Formal contact time varies from module to module,
and from level to level, but you should expect at least 3 hours per week formal contact per module
plus an additional 8 - 10 hours per module each week for private study (also known as student-
centred learning).
ASSESSMENT
Assessments in Creative Writing are geared to fit with what you are supposed to be learning. There
is a high proportion of creative coursework, but you will also be asked to contextualise your own
work in terms of other writing and markets. You may also be asked to "pitch" your ideas, or perform
your poetry.
70%-100% Distinction
60-69%
Work that goes beyond competence, that shows flashes of Distinction level work, but fails to hit that
level consistently. Shows thorough awareness of and ability to exploit conventions.
50-59%
This is competent work, with a workmanlike grasp of audience and context, well presented. Shows
awareness of and ability to use conventions.
40-49%
Mostly competent, but with areas of significant weakness: some unexplored assumptions,
acceptance of received wisdom without question, poor presentation, carelessness, superficial grasp
of context.
0-39% Fail
Work that would be extremely embarrassing to show to an industry professional. Poorly presented,
little sense of audience or context, difficult to read. Little or no awareness of relevant conventions.
The writing programme encourages work experience of every kind, particularly when it is relevant to
your course. We also have a growing number of placements with local organisations such as the
Bath Festivals. In the past, our students have gained placements in a wide variety of contexts, such
as radio stations and theatres, with newspapers and publishers, or other area festivals. For students
with a practical technological bent, there may be the chance to work with our ground-breaking
Artswork Media company, based at the Paintworks in Bristol.
To broaden your horizons you may also have the chance to go on an Erasmus exchange at another
European university, or take advantage of other international exchange opportunities in the United
States, Korea or Australia. For more information about overseas opportunities, talk to Dr Paul
Meyer, who is also the International Co-ordinator for the School of Humanities and Cultural
Industries.
PROJECT WORK
Project work is a key feature of Creative Writing at Bath Spa University. You will take part in a group
project in your first year (for example, making a film, putting on a performance, organising an event
or reading). In your second year you will be asked to look outside the university for outlets for your
writing. In your final year up to two thirds of your course will be project based, when you will have
the opportunity to develop real world projects that can give you a head start in your chosen career.
CAREERS
Here at Bath Spa, you'll be encouraged to think about your future career from the beginning of the
course.
Typically, our graduates are communicators. They can talk, they can listen, and they can persuade.
They are confident. They can manage projects through from initial idea to successful completion.
They can work alone or as part of a team. Thats why recent graduates have found jobs with the BBC,
other broadcast organisations large and small; theyve gone into publishing, journalism, teaching,
social work in fact, just about any career that requires a good Humanities degree.
As a graduate the chances are youll need to be familiar with the various media platforms and
software packages used in the creative industries. A feature of our course is that we offer access to
training throughout your three years with us, making you more employable.
ADDED VALUE
*
DHLE Data, 2013-14
TEACHING QUALITY INFORMATION
The marking across the programme is exemplary. Enormous care is taken to ensure that students
work is fairly considered and commented upon, with an emphasis on constructive criticism.
The writing programme at Bath Spa University prides itself on student-centred learning, and
specialist teaching staff are paired with students according to the students own writing interests.
Overall student satisfaction for Creative Writing at Bath Spa last academic year was 86%, according
to the National Student Survey.
Apart from your module tutors you will have a personal tutor, to give you general advice about your
time at Bath Spa and beyond.
There is also a first Year Tutor, Dr Mimi Thebo, who provides additional support for students getting
used to their first year at Bath Spa University, a second-year tutor Dr Steve Hollyman, and a third-
year tutor, Dr Carrie Etter, who helps prepare students for living and working as writers in the world.
Before the course started, a process of course approval took place which included consultation with
academic and industry subject experts. The following was checked:
There would be enough qualified staff to teach the course
Adequate resources would be in place
Overall aims and objectives are appropriate
Content of the course meets requirements of Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education
and European Standards and Guidelines
The course maps to subject benchmark statements
The course meets any professional/statutory body requirements
Internal quality criteria, such as admissions policy, teaching, learning and assessment strategy
and student support mechanisms
The course team use this information to undertake annual monitoring, which, in turn, is monitored
by the Universitys Academic Quality and Standards Committee.
Every six years an in-depth periodic review of the subject area is undertaken by a review panel,
which includes at least two external subject (academic and industry) specialists. The panel considers
documents, meets with current/former students and staff before drawing its conclusions. This
results in a report highlighting good practice and identifying areas where action is needed.
This course has a course committee comprising all relevant teaching staff, student representatives
and others who make a contribution towards the effective operation of the course (for example
library and technical staff). The committee has responsibilities for the quality of the course and plays
a critical role in the Universitys quality assurance procedures.
The standard of this course is monitored by at least one external examiner whose duties include:
STUDENT PRIZES
The Department offers a number of prizes to students in order to celebrate their many successes.
These prizes include:
The Bath Spa University Prize for Best Creative Writing Project
The Bath Spa University Prize for Best Emerging Writer
The Bath Spa University Flash Fiction Prize
The Creative Writing Leadership Prize
The Rising Stars performance poetry prize
The Bath Spa University Poetry Prize
The Bath Spa University Prize for Best Script
The Les Arnold Prize (for most outstanding 2nd year student)
The Bath Spa University Short Story Award
The Bath Spa University Writing for Young People Award
The Bath Spa University Lifewriting Award
The Guild of Food Writers Award for Best Food Writing
The BBC Wildlife Magazine Prize for Flash Nonfiction
The Bath Spa University Prize for Best Copywriting
The Bath Chronicle Prize for Best New Student Journalist
http://www.bathspa.ac.uk/services/student-services/policies/unfair-practice.asp
http://www.bathspa.ac.uk/services/student-services/current-students/your-course/guide-for-
students-course-of-
study/2011_12%20Modular%20Scheme%20Guide%20for%20StudentsDec2011revised.pdf
http://www.bathspa.ac.uk/services/student-services/current-students/your-course/guide-for-
students-
assessment/A%20GUIDE%20TO%20UNDERGRADUATE%20MODULAR%20SCHEME%20ASSESSMENT
%20%202011_12.pdf
STAFF PROFILES
Dr Tracy Brain teaches English and Creative Writing, and coordinates our PhD programme
Celia Brayfield is the author of nine novels and four non-fiction books. Her most recent novel is
Wild Weekend (Little Brown) a pastoral comedy that reworks Oliver Goldsmiths She Stoops to
Conquer in a Suffolk village during the New Labour era. While her later novels are mostly
contemporary social comedies, her first three were international genre bestsellers and her non-
fiction guide to narrative in popular fiction, Bestseller, was published by Fourth Estate. Her first
career was as a journalist; she contributes to a wide range of print media and also writes fiction and
travel writing reviews for The Times. Arts Reviews (Kamera Books) considers the art of the critic,
while Deep France, (Pan Macmillan) is a memoir of a year she spent in the Bearn in the Pyrenees-
Atlantiques region. A former member of the management committee of the Society of Authors,
she has also judged many national literary prizes including the Betty Trask Award and the Macmillan
Silver Pen Award. She is currently working on a historical novel set in the time of Mary, Queen of
Scots.
Professor Gavin Cologne-Brookes is co-editor of Writing and America (1996); editor of Joyce Carol
Oates (2006), a special issue of Studies in the Novel, and author of The Novels of William Styron:
From Harmony to History (1995); Dark Eyes on America: The Novels of Joyce Carol Oates (2005), and
a fictionalised travel memoir, If Im Ever Back This Way (2008). Among his essay subjects are
Stendhal, Flaubert, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Steinbeck, Mary Higgins Clark, Julian Barnes, Cormac
McCarthy and Bruce Springsteen. He is currently writing Rereading William Styron for Louisiana
State University Press.
Lucy English is a performance poet and novelist. She has three novels published by Fourth Estate:
Selfish People 1998, Children of Light 1999 and Our Dancing Days 2000. As a poet she has toured the
US, Denmark, Holland, Sri Lanka, India, Canada, Thailand and Taiwan. She organised the
International Performance Poetry conference in 2003. In 2005 she received an arts council grant to
write new material for the UK "Temptation" poetry tour and in 2006 she was artistic director for the
"Exposed" poetry tour, the biggest UK poetry tour ever scheduled. She has run workshops for the
Arvon Foundation and the British Council. In 2007 she was a finalist in the first BBC radio four poetry
slam. Her latest work is the acclaimed multi-media poetry show 'Flash' which is touring the UK in
2011-12.
Dr Carrie Etter loves all forms of writing, with particular passions for poetry and the short story. Her
first collection, The Tethers (Seren Books, 2009), won the London New Poetry Award for the best
collection of poetry published in Britain and Ireland in the preceding year, and her second, Divining
for Starters, was published in 2011 (Shearsman Books). She has also edited an anthology of women's
experimental writing, Infinite Difference: Other Poetries by UK Women Poets (Shearsman, 2010).
She is currently working on a short story collection and her third volume of poems, and she regularly
reviews for The Guardian.
Julia Green Julias postgraduate work was in the field of nineteenth century English fiction but she
now specialises in writing for young people. Her novels for teenagers are Blue Moon, Baby Blue,
Hunters Heart ( Puffin) and Breathing Underwater ( Bloomsbury, 2009). Her fiction for younger
children includes Over the Edge (Pearson Longman), Taking Flight, Sephys Story and Beowulf the
Brave ( A & C Black). Julia has also published short stories for children and adults. She leads writing
workshops for schools and literary festivals and has taught for Arvon. She is currently writing a new
novel for teenagers to be published by Bloomsbury, plus several commissioned projects for younger
children. Julia is the Programme Leader for the MA in Writing for Young People.
Mike Johnston is a Media professional with experience of filmmaking and programme making in
television and online. He is an Apple trained Instructor for desktop editing and digital production.
He has taught short storytelling and filmmaking at BSU for 5 years producing over 70 shorts. You can
see some of those produced in the second year module making a short film on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/user/Broadcastlab
He also teaches a short documentary module for Students who have taken the short filmmaking
module.
Mike is currently working on a PhD that combines his interest in storytelling with web 2.0 and social
media. If you are interested in these areas, you can follow him on Twitter
(http://twitter.com/mikiie) or read his blog (http://mikjohnston.blogspot.com/).
Professor Tim Liardet has published work in many high profile literary magazines, including London
Review of Books, The Times Literary Supplement, The Independent, The Independent on Sunday,
The Guardian,The New Republic, Slate Magazine, New Statesman, The Spectator, PN Review and
Poetry Review. He has also reviewed poetry for The Guardian, Poetry Review and PN Review. He has
received awards from The Society of Authors, The Royal Literary Fund and was the recipient of a
Hawthornden Fellowship in 2002. Liardet has produced seven collections of poetry. Competing with
the Piano Tuner was a Poetry Book Society Special Commendation for Spring 1998 and long-listed for
the Whitbread Poetry Prize. To the God of Rain was a Poetry Book Society Recommendation for
Spring 2003. In 2006 he was poet-in-residence at The Guardian. His fifth collection The Blood Choir
won an Arts Council England Writer's Award, was a Poetry Book Society Recommendation for
Summer 2006 and short-listed for the 2006 TS Eliot Prize. In 2008, he appeared at the Ars Interpres
Festival in Stockholm and was visiting poet at the Internationales Literaturfestival Berlin in the same
year. Priest Skear, a pamphlet, appeared in 2010 and was the Poetry Book Society Pamphlet Choice
for winter of that year. The Storm House, his seventh collection, appeared from Carcanet in 2011.
Professor Steve May has written more than 50 plays for radio, the most recent being Horizon,
broadcast in 2008. He has won prizes for poetry, drama and fiction and has contributed to
publications as diverse as Medieval English Theatre and Penthouse. His latest novel for young
people, One Chance, was published in 2004. His book for undergraduates, Doing Creative Writing
was published in 2007. Steve is Dean of the School of Humanities and Cultural Industries.
Dr Paul Meyer is a novelist and advertising creative director by trade. His first book, What Love, was
published by SAQI-Telegram in 2008 and formed the main part of his PhD in Creative Writing. As
Subject Leader of Creative Writing, he is responsible for the overall quality of the undergraduate
writing programme.
Katharine Reeve has commissioned and edited hundreds of non-fiction books on a wide range of
subjects from poststructuralism to madness; natural history to historic houses; and fashion to
fundamentalism. With experience of both academic publishing (as Senior History Editor, OUP) and
trade (as structural editor for HarperCollins lead titles, and consultant for digital content
development), she now combines publishing work with lecturing.
Katharine's own writing includes: The Rough Guide to Food (2009, Penguin, co-authored with G
Miller), winner of the 2010 Food Writers Guild award for investigative writing; Jane Austen and Bath
(2006, The Little Bookroom/ NYRB); and introductions for Sense and Sensibility (2011, Palazzo).
Current writing includes a digital non-fiction research project on writers and place.
Dr Bambo Soyinka is Head of Department: Creative Writing and Publishing. Her specialties include
multiplatform storytelling and production, theatre and film.
Dr Mimi Thebos primary area of interest is in the novel. Since 2002, she has published seven books
for adults and young people, most recently the Corner Booth Chronicles, a novel for Random
House/Ballantine in the USA. Mimi has published and won awards for short stories and poetry and
has completed a PhD in English with Creative Studies to do with the ethics of representation. She has
also worked as a freelance journalist. She is currently finishing a memoir about injury for young
adults and a post-apocalyptic fantasy based in the nearby town of Keysnham. Mimi is the Senior
Teaching Fellow for the Artswork Broadcast Lab and engages substantially with issues of graduate
employability.
Steve Voake's first novel, The Dreamwalkers Child, was published by Faber and Faber in 2005 and
has since been translated into many different languages. Its sequel, The Web of Fire, was one of the
novels on a list of books published by the Education Secretary in 2007 to encourage teenage boys to
read. He has since published four more novels with Faber and Faber: The Starlight Conspiracy, Blood
Hunters, Fightback and Dark Woods.
Steve also writes books for younger readers including the Daisy Dawson series, the Hooey Higgins
series and the award-winning non- fiction book Insect Detective. In addition to his work at the
University, he regularly teaches creative writing workshops to groups of Gifted and Talented children
in Wiltshire and Somerset as well as providing creative writing workshops in schools across the
country. He is a regular tutor for the Arvon Foundation and has given talks on his work at various
events including the Edinburgh International Book Festival, Cheltenham Literary Festival, Bath
Literature Festival and Aberdeen Storytelling Festival.
Professor Gerard Woodward is a novelist, poet and short story writer. He studied fine art at
Falmouth School of Art, and Social Anthropology at the London School of Economics, later carrying
out postgraduate research in the same subject at Manchester University. His trilogy of novels
concerning the Jones Family (August, Ill Go To Bed at Noon and A Curious Earth) have won
widespread critical acclaim, including shortlistings for the Man-Booker Prize and Whitbread First
Novel Award. His four poetry collections (Householder, After The Deafening, Island to Island and We
Were Pedestrians) have earned him a Somerset Maugham Award and two T.S.Eliot Prize
shortlistings. His most recent publications are a collection of short stories (Caravan Thieves) and a
novel, Nourishment, which combines food, sex and cannibalism in a story set during the London
Blitz. A new collection of poetry will be published in 2012. He is a regular contributor to the
Guardian, Telegraph and TLS and is currently working on his fifth novel.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES POLICY
The following provides information concerning the Bath Spa University Equal Opportunities Policy.
Please take the time to familiarise yourself with it as it is relevant to everybody.
Bath Spa University is fully committed to being an equal opportunities employer and providing
equality of opportunity for all its staff and students, applicants and visitors. The University will not
tolerate unfair or unlawful discrimination on the grounds of gender, ethnicity, colour, disability,
religion, nationality, age, occupation, marital status or sexual orientation or any distinction which is
not relevant to the employee/employer relationship or its student body.
Responsibilities
All staff and students are aware of the equal opportunities policy and our procedures
Staff, Students and Union representatives are provided with appropriate forums to
guidance;
Procedures are in place for the fair appointment, promotion and development of
staff, the fair selection and teaching of students, free from unjustifiable
discrimination.
Ensure that their behaviour and/or actions do not amount to discrimination or harassment.
Staff and students of the University are expected to comply with this policy and are expected to
promote a culture free of unfair discrimination, prejudice and all forms of harassment and bullying.
Any incidents of discrimination, harassment or bullying will be investigated and may be grounds for
dismissal or expulsion.
Disclaimer
Students should note that whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information
reproduced here, the University Academic Office hold the definitive and approved version of
regulations where they may be viewed by arrangement.
Module Guide
Code CS4001-40
Level 4
Credits 40
Pre-requisites None
Excluded combinations
Core/Optional Core
This module provides students the opportunity to explore their potential for creative
expression, to hone current skills, to develop new ones, and to explore a wide variety of
approaches and subject matter. The module emphasises both creative exploration and
writing as a craft, with particular emphasis on writing as a process that involves considerable
rewriting.
The aim is to help students improve their writing and reading skills: both in terms of analysis
of professional writing as a model for their own work, and in terms of offering constructive
criticism of the writing of their peers. Students should set a high priority on improving their
presentation skills, both for the mechanics of writing and for reading it aloud.
Outline Syllabus
--Attendance at talks by established and emerging writers in the plenary series, with two
reflective reports thereon
--Reflection on ones development as a writer, with the setting of useful goals, in the
Action Plan
Portfolio; Creative
Project Report;
3. learned something of the standards of presentation
Cultural Events
expected by professional practitioners;
Reports
Action Plan;
4. received tutorial advice about the areas of writing which
Portfolio
they might target for development, as well as clarification of
where their present achievements are taking them.
Formative
Summative:
Learning Resources
Recommended, general:
Steve May, Doing Creative Writing. Routledge, 2007. Library location: 808 MAY.
Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. Hodder and Stoughton, 2000. 808.02 KIN
Recommended, genre-specific:
Fiction
Janet Burroway, Writing Fiction: A Guide to Narrative Craft. Addison Wesley Longman,
2000. 808.3 BUR
Patricia Highsmith, Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction. St Martins Press, 1983.
808.3872 HIG
Raymond Carver, The Stories of Raymond Carver by Raymond Carver. 813.54 CAR
Audrey Niffenegger, The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. 813.6 NIF
Tricia Wastvedt, The River by Tricia Wastvedt. Penguin, 2005. 823.914 WAS
Mark Haddon, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. 823.92 HAD
Aimee Bender, The Girl in the Flammable Skirt. JF BEN (located in Schools Resources)
Annie Proulx, Close Range: Wyoming Stories. Fourth Estate, 2000. 813.54 PRO
Alice Sebold, The Lovely Bones. JF SEB
Ellen Raskin, The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. Puffin, 2004. 823.91 RAS
Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials Trilogy: Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife, and The
Amber Spyglass. JF PUL (Schools Resources) and F PUL
Scriptwriting
Robert Mckee, Story: Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of Screenwriting.
Methuen, 1999. 808.23 MACK
Harold Pinter, The Birthday Party, from Plays (volume 1). Faber, 1996. 822.914 PIN
Useful websites:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom
http://www.script-o-rama.com
Poetry
Ruth Padel, 52 Ways of Looking at a Poem: Or How Reading Modern Poetry Can Change
Your Life. Chatto and Windus, 2002. 808.1 PAD
Matthew Sweeney and John Hartley Williams, Writing Poetry. Teach Yourself, 2003. 808.1
SWE
Recommended individual works:
Simon Armitage, Tyrannosaurus Rex Versus the Corduroy Kid. Faber, 2006. 821.914 ARM
Stuart Friebert, ed., Models of the Universe: An Anthology of the Prose Poem. Oberlin,
1995. 808.81 FRI
Neil Astley, ed., Staying Alive: Real Poems for Unreal Times. Bloodaxe, 2002. 821.914 AST
Neil Astley, ed., Being Alive: The Sequel to "Staying Alive". Bloodaxe, 2004. 821.008 AST
Moniza Alvi, How the Stone Found Its Voice. Bloodaxe, 2005. 821.914 ALV
Philip Gross, The Wasting Game. Bloodaxe, 1998. 821 GRO (located in Schools Resources)
Blake Morrison, And When Did You Last See Your Father? (Granta, 2006). 828.914 MOR
http://www.favoritepoem.org/poems/index.html
Dakota: http://www.yhchang.com/DAKOTA.html
Learning Resources
BSU Library, VLE Minerva
Code CS4002-20
Level 4
Credits 20
Pre-requisites None
Excluded
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
This module aims to make students confident and versatile writers and
readers prose fiction. It will concentrate on both the
technical/grammatical elements of prose, ensuring that students have a
sound understanding of its constituent parts, alongside an awareness of
the wide ranging genres and styles that writers have used. An
understanding of these two aspects of prose will be the basis upon which
students begin to develop their own voices as writers and find ways in to
the creative process of writing prose fiction.
The module breaks down into three parts. Part 1 looks at the elements of
grammar, starting with the individual word, and how words are built into
phrases, sentences and paragraphs. Set texts will offer widely varying
perspectives on style and grammatical construction. Part Two will look at
style in relation to the many different genres of prose fiction, from
childrens writing to horror to romance, again accompanied by relevant set
texts. Part Three will look at the basic elements of storytelling
characterisation, plot construction and so on, and explore starting points
in writing prose fiction, with accompanying set texts.
Students will;
Students will also study short sample texts from non-fictional genres
such as advertising copy, legal documents, academic essays, instruction
manuals, blogs and other new media etc
Learning Resources
Code CS4003-20
Level 4
Credits 20
Pre-requisites None
Excluded
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
issue and this may help to frame self-study during the ensuing week. This
will be combined with as much one-to-one tutorial work as possible within
the framework of hourly paid tuition. More hours for the tutor would seem
to be essential in this regard.
Key Texts:
Fifty Two Ways of Looking at a Poem, ed Ruth Padel, Chatto and Windus.
Websites
www.uk.poetryinternationalweb.org
www.poetrymagazines.org.uk
www.poetrysociety.org.uk
www.poetryarchive.org
Learning Resources
Videos
DVD
Code CS4004-20
Level 4
Credits 20
Pre-requisites None
Excluded CS2014
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
The module will introduce students to the craft of scriptwriting. All kinds of
scripts will be covered and compared, so that the basic generic differences
between (say) theatre and radio scriptwriting are established. The module
will also deal with the varying routes and processes by which scripts get
into performance. Students will view, discuss and analyse films, television,
radio and theatre scripts, and will write a short film, radio or theatrical
play to gain an understanding of the ultimate aims of scriptwriting. This
module will be a step towards the specialist modules in scriptwriting for
theatre, television, radio and film at Levels Five and Six.
Outline Syllabus & Teaching & Learning Methods
Students will:
Formative:
Summative:
4. Collaborative Effort:
0% (P/F)
Item:
Students are expected to read widely, and to see and hear as many plays
in performance as possible. In seminars we will usually use short
photocopied extracts as examples on which to base our own efforts. The
following books may be useful:
Carter, David, Teach Yourself How to Write a Play, (Teach Yourself Books,
1998) [unfortunately now out of print. However there is an abridgement
on Minerva].
Field, Syd, The Definitive Guide to Screenwriting, (Ebury Press, 2003)
Websites etc.:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom
www.script-o-rama.com
http://www.screenstyle.com/screenstyle/howtoforscre.html
Learning Resources
Level 4
Credits 40
Pre-requisites None
Core/Optional Optional
Text editing: This part of the module is designed to introduce you to the
role of the editor and the editing skills required to manipulate and correct
text to create a clear and appropriate piece of writing suitable for
publication. You will gain much experience of editing real-life texts and will
also learn to check your own work and the work of others to ensure it is of
a professional standard. You will be taught industry practice regarding the
marking up system used in editing internationally and will experience a
range of approaches to this: content editing, structural, copyediting,
following house style, on-screen editing within a template, through to
proofing. Some consideration will also be given to legal and ethical issues
facing those responsible for producing text for publication. In this module
you will start to develop your understating of what is stake when
exercising editorial judgement over a piece of writing or a written
document.
Copywriting:
Writing concisely
Writing accurately
Text editing:
On-screen editing
Following a stylesheet
Proof reading
T&L:
Copywriting:
Coursework in
form of a
1. Acquire and develop skills of targeted portfolio
information gathering and focused distillation
submission;
using a variety of sources
written work in
form of critical
2. Begin to develop effective written commentary
communications
Text editing:
Formative: 40%
Other:
Summative:
Copywriting
Text editing
Ritter, R. M., Stevenson, Angus, Brown, Lesley (eds), The New Oxford
Dictionary for Writers and Editors (2nd edn) (Oxford University Press,
2005)
Marsh, David, Guardian Style, (Guardian Books, 2007) (2nd revised edn):
Learning Resources
Code CS5101-40
Title Writers Workshop 2 (Short Story)
Subject area Creative Writing
Pathway Single, Major, Minor, Joint
Level 5
Credits 40
ECTS* 20
Contact time 78 hours plus 26 hours screenings, readings, events etc
Acceptable for
Excluded combinations Cannot be studied with CS5002-20
Core/Optional Core
Module Co-ordinator Dr Steve Hollyman
Description
This module builds on Writers' Workshop 1. It focuses on three related areas:
a. Your own development as a writer in a specialist area of your choice, Short Story
writing.
b. Your knowledge of opportunities within the creative industries to get your work "out
there".
c. Your awareness of and confidence in yourself as an independent practitioner.
You'll also explore ways in which writers independently manage themselves (and their
writing) in writing-related careers.
The module will help you to develop specialist skills in Short Story writing while at the
same time helping you to think about your work and writing-related activities beyond
University. As part of this module, you will complete a writing project to a brief and a
related author-analysis, alongside a professional portfolio and promotional pack.
In this module you will continue to bring work each week to workshops, but there will be
an increasing emphasis on specialisation and employability. You will develop your
writing skills within a specialist field, and refine your understanding of how creative
writing is presented within professional contexts surrounding the creative industries. The
module consists of two interlinked strands 1) Specialist Writing Project and 2)
Negotiated Professional Portfolio.
You will normally complete the specialist project in the first part of the year, and then
work on your professional portfolio in the second half. The specialist component will
develop your creative writing skills your elected field or genre.
During the specialist component of the module, you will also be asked to produce a
context folder that demonstrates awareness of the wider cultural environment
surrounding your work as a writer within your field (this could include, for example, an
analysis of relevant practitioners, forms, and/or economic factors).
The negotiated portfolio will enable you to extend your specialist skills within the context
of the creative industries and related occupations. You will be encouraged to sharpen
your writing skills, develop an understanding of the business of creative practice and
adapt existing work for a specific publication, outlet or audience.
You may produce a negotiated portfolio that takes forward work developed in your writing
workshop. For instance, if you choose to specialise in writing short stories, you will write
short stories during the first thirteen weeks, and then for the second half of the term you
could adapt your short stories for a recognised segment of the literary market and
prepare an accompanying promotional package. If you choose to specialise in writing for
theatre, you will write a short play during the first thirteen weeks, and then for the second
half of the term you could edit your play, market it and put on a live performance. In your
professional portfolio, you will need to demonstrate that your work has been substantially
adapted for a relevant market, and that you are aware of the possible outlets and
audiences for your publication.
Looking forward, this module will help to prepare you for a greater level of independent
study at level 6. It will enable you to develop both your writing skills and your
employability skills, laying the foundations for enterprise-focused modules at L6 (i.e. The
Independent Module, Strategy Camp and Creative Enterprise).
Your pattern of study will normally be as follows:
At the start of the module, you will attend an introductory lecture, during which the
module leader will outline the module aims, assessment criteria and learning outcomes.
Throughout the entire year, the module leader will continue to convene industry focused
plenary lectures and workshops to broaden your knowledge of the practice of writing
within a professional context. You will receive 78 teaching hours in this module in the
form of lectures, workshops and one-to-one tutorials, plus the equivalent of 26 hours of
cultural events
Workshops will take place during three-hour sessions in the first semester of the
academic year. You will pitch your ideas for your negotiated project towards the end of
the first semester, and you will then be assigned a tutor, who will help you to develop a
proposal for your negotiated professional portfolio in the second semester. This will
consist of an industry-focused body of creative work that extends from your experience in
the first semester, and a market analysis / proposal positioning your work in a particular
market (this should include a CV or an equivalent written account of your professional
experience). Your tutor will meet with you to discuss your career aspirations and develop
this market analysis / proposal. In your scheduled meetings with your tutor, you will
identify the content of your portfolio and review work in progress at key stages in your
journey.
Formative:
Draft portfolio of specialist work
Draft context folder
Draft creative project
Summative:
1. A specialist piece of creative work, written to a brief, (2500 25%
words).
Gawande A (2011) The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right. Profile Books
Oates J.C. ed. (1998) Telling Stories: An Anthology for Writers. New York: Norton.
Ritter, R.M. ed. (2014) New Harts Rules: The Oxford Style Guide. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
Anthologies
The Penguin Book of Modern British Short Stories
The Penguin Book of Short Stories
The Penguin Book of American Short Stories
The Oxford Book of English Short Stories
The Oxford Book of American Short Stories,
Hyphen, an anthology of Short Stories by Poets
Short! A book of Very Short Stories
The Picador Book of the New Gothic
The Oxford book of Science Fiction Stories
Individual writers
Anton Chekhov The Lady with a Lap Dog and Other Stories
James Joyce Dubliners
Ernest Hemingway The First Forty-Nine
Joyce Carol Oates High Lonesome: Selected Stories 1966-2006
Samuel Beckett First Love and Other Novellas
Raymond Carver The Stories of Raymond Carver
Alice Munro Hateship, Friendship, Courtship
Lorrie Moore Who Will Run the Frog Hospital
Tim Winton The Turning
Elizabeth Taylor The Devastating Boys
John Updike Selected Short Stories
James Kelman Not Not While the Giro
Angela Carter American Ghosts
Dave Eggers Short short stories
Dave Eggers Anthropology and a Hundred Other Stories
Katherine Mansfield Bliss and Other Stories
Leo Tolstoy, The Cossacks and Other Stories
Guy de Maupassant, Le Boule de Suif and Other Stories
William Styron, A Tidewater Morning: Three Tales from Youth
Genre Fiction
Adam Roberts The History of Science Fiction
Roger Luckhurst Science Fiction
Raffaella Baccolina Dark Horizons
Lisa Tuttle Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy
Ada Roberts Science Fiction
Peter Hunt Alternative Worlds in Fantasy Fiction
C.N Manlove Modern Fantasy
Guy Smithy Writing Horror Fiction
Journals.
Writing Magazine. Articles and information for writers.
Writers News. Contains information of interest to professional writers.
Poets and Writers. A Magazine from the U.S.
http://www.classicshorts.com/
Magazines (print or online):
The Bookseller
Granta
Mslexia
The Paris Review
Writing Magazine
Online Resources
http://www.theshortstory.org.uk/
http://www.utterpants.co.uk/
http://www.authoradvance.com/http://www.authoradvance.com/
http://www.authonomy.com/http://www.authonomy.com/
http://www.theknowledgeonline.com/http://www.theknowledgeonline.com/
http://blog.litmatch.net/
www.Quilliant.com
http://www.theshortstory.org.uk/prizes/http://www.theshortstory.org.uk/prizes/
http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/whatson/writingcomps.htmlhttp://www.literacytrust.org.uk/w
hatson/writingcomps.html
http://www.prizemagic.co.uk/html/writing_comps.htmhttp://www.prizemagic.co.uk/html/wri
ting_comps.htm
www.short-stories.co.ukhttp://www.prizemagic.co.uk/html/writing_comps.htm
www.utterpants.co.uk
Learning Resources
Code CS5102-40
Title Writers Workshop 2 (Poetry)
Subject area Creative Writing
Pathway Single, Major, Minor, Joint
Level 5
Credits 40
ECTS* 20
Contact time 78 hours plus 26 hours screenings, readings, events etc
Acceptable for
Excluded combinations Cannot be studied with CS5003-20
Core/Optional Core
Module Co-ordinator Dr Steve Hollyman
Description
This module builds on Writers' Workshop 1. It focuses on three related areas:
You'll also explore ways in which writers independently manage themselves (and their
writing) in writing-related careers.
The module will help you to develop specialist skills in Poetry writing while at the same
time helping you to think about your work and writing-related activities beyond University.
As part of this module, you will complete a writing project to a brief and a related author-
analysis, alongside a professional portfolio and promotional pack.
In this module you will continue to bring work each week to workshops, but there will be
an increasing emphasis on specialisation and employability. You will develop your
writing skills within a specialist field, and refine your understanding of how creative
writing is presented within professional contexts surrounding the creative industries. The
module consists of two interlinked strands 1) Specialist Writing Project and 2)
Negotiated Professional Portfolio.
You will normally complete the specialist project in the first part of the year, and then
work on your professional portfolio in the second half. The specialist component will
develop your creative writing skills your elected field or genre.
During the specialist component of the module, you will also be asked to produce a
context folder that demonstrates awareness of the wider cultural environment
surrounding your work as a writer within your field (this could include, for example, an
analysis of relevant practitioners, forms, and/or economic factors).
The negotiated portfolio will enable you to extend your specialist skills within the context
of the creative industries and related occupations. You will be encouraged to sharpen
your writing skills, develop an understanding of the business of creative practice and
adapt existing work for a specific publication, outlet or audience.
You may produce a negotiated portfolio that takes forward work developed in your writing
workshop. For instance, if you choose to specialise in writing short stories, you will write
short stories during the first thirteen weeks, and then for the second half of the term you
could adapt your short stories for a recognised segment of the literary market and
prepare an accompanying promotional package. If you choose to specialise in writing for
theatre, you will write a short play during the first thirteen weeks, and then for the second
half of the term you could edit your play, market it and put on a live performance. In your
professional portfolio, you will need to demonstrate that your work has been substantially
adapted for a relevant market, and that you are aware of the possible outlets and
audiences for your publication.
Looking forward, this module will help to prepare you for a greater level of independent
study at level 6. It will enable you to develop both your writing skills and your
employability skills, laying the foundations for enterprise-focused modules at L6 (i.e. The
Independent Module, Strategy Camp and Creative Enterprise).
At the start of the module, you will attend an introductory lecture, during which the
module leader will outline the module aims, assessment criteria and learning outcomes.
Throughout the entire year, the module leader will continue to convene industry focused
plenary lectures and workshops to broaden your knowledge of the practice of writing
within a professional context. You will receive 78 teaching hours in this module in the
form of lectures, workshops and one-to-one tutorials, plus the equivalent of 26 hours of
cultural events
Workshops will take place during three-hour sessions in the first semester of the
academic year. You will pitch your ideas for your negotiated project towards the end of
the first semester, and you will then be assigned a tutor, who will help you to develop a
proposal for your negotiated professional portfolio in the second semester. This will
consist of an industry-focused body of creative work that extends from your experience in
the first semester, and a market analysis / proposal positioning your work in a particular
market (this should include a CV or an equivalent written account of your professional
experience). Your tutor will meet with you to discuss your career aspirations and develop
this market analysis / proposal. In your scheduled meetings with your tutor, you will
identify the content of your portfolio and review work in progress at key stages in your
journey.
Formative:
Draft portfolio of specialist work
Draft context folder
Draft creative project
Summative:
1. A specialist piece of creative work, written to a brief, (2500 25%
words).
Key Texts:
Astley, N. ed., (2002) Staying Alive: Real Poems for Unreal Times. Hexham: Bloodaxe
Books.
Baer, W (2006). Writing Metrical Poetry: Contemporary Lessons for Mastering Traditional
Forms. Cincinnati: Writers Digest.
Chivers, T. ed., (2012) Adventures in Form: A Compendium of Poetic Forms, Rules and
Constraints. London: Penned in the Margins.
Hobsbaum, P (1996) Metre, Rhythm and Verse Form. New York; London: Routledge.
Hollander., J (2000) Rhymes Reason: A Guide to English Verse. New Haven: Yale
University Press.
Hughes, T (1995) Winter Pollen: Occasional Prose. London: Faber and Faber.
Keegan, P.J. ed., (2004) The Penguin Book of English Verse. London: Penguin Books.
Padel, R (2002) 52 Ways of Looking at a Poem: Or How Reading Modern Poetry Can
Change Your Life. London: Chatto and Windus.
Padgett, R (2000) The Teachers and Writers Handbook of Poetic Forms. New York:
Teachers and Writers Collaborative.
Paterson, D. ed., (2002) 101 Sonnets from Shakespeare to Heaney. London: Faber.
Ritter, R.M. ed. 2014. New Harts Rules: The Oxford Style Guide. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
Strand, M and Boland, E (2001) The Making of a Poem: A Norton Anthology of Poetic
Forms. New York; London: W.W. Norton. [set text]
Websites
http://www.mcsweeneys.net/columns/sestinas
www.poetryfoundation.org
www.uk.poetryinternationalweb.org
www.poetrymagazines.org.uk
www.poetrysociety.org.uk
www.poetryarchive.org
Code CS5103-40
Title Writers Workshop 2 (Writing Theatre)
Subject area Creative Writing
Pathway Single, Major, Minor, Joint
Level 5
Credits 40
ECTS* 20
Contact time 78 hours plus 26 hours screenings, readings, events etc
Acceptable for
Excluded combinations Cannot be studied with CS5004-20
Core/Optional Core
Module Co-ordinator Dr Steve Hollyman
Description
This module builds on Writers' Workshop 1. It focuses on three related areas:
a. Your own development as a writer in a specialist area of your choice, Writing Theatre.
b. Your knowledge of opportunities within the creative industries to get your work "out
there".
c. Your awareness of and confidence in yourself as an independent practitioner.
You'll also explore ways in which writers independently manage themselves (and their
writing) in writing-related careers.
The module will help you to develop specialist skills in Writing Theatre while at the same
time helping you to think about your work and writing-related activities beyond University.
As part of this module, you will complete a writing project to a brief and a related author-
analysis, alongside a professional portfolio and promotional pack.
In this module you will continue to bring work each week to workshops, but there will be
an increasing emphasis on specialisation and employability. You will develop your
writing skills within a specialist field, and refine your understanding of how creative
writing is presented within professional contexts surrounding the creative industries. The
module consists of two interlinked strands 1) Specialist Writing Project and 2)
Negotiated Professional Portfolio.
You will normally complete the specialist project in the first part of the year, and then
work on your professional portfolio in the second half. The specialist component will
develop your creative writing skills your elected field or genre.
During the specialist component of the module, you will also be asked to produce a
context folder that demonstrates awareness of the wider cultural environment
surrounding your work as a writer within your field (this could include, for example, an
analysis of relevant practitioners, forms, and/or economic factors).
The negotiated portfolio will enable you to extend your specialist skills within the context
of the creative industries and related occupations. You will be encouraged to sharpen
your writing skills, develop an understanding of the business of creative practice and
adapt existing work for a specific publication, outlet or audience.
You may produce a negotiated portfolio that takes forward work developed in your writing
workshop. For instance, if you choose to specialise in writing short stories, you will write
short stories during the first thirteen weeks, and then for the second half of the term you
could adapt your short stories for a recognised segment of the literary market and
prepare an accompanying promotional package. If you choose to specialise in writing for
theatre, you will write a short play during the first thirteen weeks, and then for the second
half of the term you could edit your play, market it and put on a live performance. In your
professional portfolio, you will need to demonstrate that your work has been substantially
adapted for a relevant market, and that you are aware of the possible outlets and
audiences for your publication.
Looking forward, this module will help to prepare you for a greater level of independent
study at level 6. It will enable you to develop both your writing skills and your
employability skills, laying the foundations for enterprise-focused modules at L6 (i.e.
Independent Module, Strategy Camp and Creative Enterprise).
At the start of the module, you will attend an introductory lecture, during which the
module leader will outline the module aims, assessment criteria and learning outcomes.
Throughout the entire year, the module leader will continue to convene industry focused
plenary lectures and workshops to broaden your knowledge of the practice of writing
within a professional context. You will receive 78 teaching hours in this module in the
form of lectures, workshops and one-to-one tutorials, plus the equivalent of 26 hours of
cultural events
Workshops will take place during three-hour sessions in the first semester of the
academic year. You will pitch your ideas for your negotiated project towards the end of
the first semester, and you will then be assigned a tutor, who will help you to develop a
proposal for your negotiated professional portfolio in the second semester. This will
consist of an industry-focused body of creative work that extends from your experience in
the first semester, and a market analysis / proposal positioning your work in a particular
market (this should include a CV or an equivalent written account of your professional
experience). Your tutor will meet with you to discuss your career aspirations and develop
this market analysis / proposal. In your scheduled meetings with your tutor, you will
identify the content of your portfolio and review work in progress at key stages in your
journey.
Formative:
Draft portfolio of specialist work
Draft context folder
Draft creative project
Summative:
1. A specialist piece of creative work, written to a brief, (2500 25%
words).
Gawande A (2011) The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right. London: Profile
Book Ltd.
Ritter, R.M. ed. (2014) New Harts Rules: The Oxford Style Guide. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
Play Texts
Online Resources:
http://www.authoradvance.com/http://www.authoradvance.com/
http://www.authonomy.com/http://www.authonomy.com/
http://www.theknowledgeonline.com/http://www.theknowledgeonline.com/
http://blog.litmatch.net/http://blog.litmatch.net/
www.Quilliant.com
http://www.theshortstory.org.uk/prizes/http://www.theshortstory.org.uk/prizes/
http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/whatson/writingcomps.htmlhttp://www.literacytrust.org.uk/wh
atson/writingcomps.html
http://www.prizemagic.co.uk/html/writing_comps.htm
Learning Resources
Code CS5104-40
Title Writers Workshop 2 (Life Writing)
Subject area Creative Writing
Pathway Single, Major, Minor, Joint
Level 5
Credits 40
ECTS* 20
Contact time 78 hours plus 26 hours screenings, readings, events etc
Acceptable for
Excluded combinations Cannot be studied with CS5005-20
Core/Optional Core
Module Co-ordinator Dr Steve Hollyman
Description
This module builds on Writers' Workshop 1. It focuses on three related areas:
a. Your own development as a writer in a specialist area of your choice, Life Writing.
b. Your knowledge of opportunities within the creative industries to get your work "out
there".
c. Your awareness of and confidence in yourself as an independent practitioner.
You'll also explore ways in which writers independently manage themselves (and their
writing) in writing-related careers.
The module will help you to develop specialist skills in Life Writing while at the same time
helping you to think about your work and writing-related activities beyond University. As
part of this module, you will complete a writing project to a brief and a related author-
analysis, alongside a professional portfolio and promotional pack.
In this module you will continue to bring work each week to workshops, but there will be
an increasing emphasis on specialisation and employability. You will develop your
writing skills within a specialist field, and refine your understanding of how creative
writing is presented within professional contexts surrounding the creative industries. The
module consists of two interlinked strands 1) Specialist Writing Project and 2)
Negotiated Professional Portfolio.
You will normally complete the specialist project in the first part of the year, and then
work on your professional portfolio in the second half. The specialist component will
develop your creative writing skills your elected field or genre.
During the specialist component of the module, you will also be asked to produce a
context folder that demonstrates awareness of the wider cultural environment
surrounding your work as a writer within your field (this could include, for example, an
analysis of relevant practitioners, forms, and/or economic factors).
The negotiated portfolio will enable you to extend your specialist skills within the context
of the creative industries and related occupations. You will be encouraged to sharpen
your writing skills, develop an understanding of the business of creative practice and
adapt existing work for a specific publication, outlet or audience.
You may produce a negotiated portfolio that takes forward work developed in your writing
workshop. For instance, if you choose to specialise in writing short stories, you will write
short stories during the first thirteen weeks, and then for the second half of the term you
could adapt your short stories for a recognised segment of the literary market and
prepare an accompanying promotional package. If you choose to specialise in writing for
theatre, you will write a short play during the first thirteen weeks, and then for the second
half of the term you could edit your play, market it and put on a live performance. In your
professional portfolio, you will need to demonstrate that your work has been substantially
adapted for a relevant market, and that you are aware of the possible outlets and
audiences for your publication.
Looking forward, this module will help to prepare you for a greater level of independent
study at level 6. It will enable you to develop both your writing skills and your
employability skills, laying the foundations for enterprise-focused modules at L6 (i.e.
Independent Module, Strategy Camp and Creative Enterprise).
At the start of the module, you will attend an introductory lecture, during which the
module leader will outline the module aims, assessment criteria and learning outcomes.
Throughout the entire year, the module leader will continue to convene industry focused
plenary lectures and workshops to broaden your knowledge of the practice of writing
within a professional context. You will receive 78 teaching hours in this module in the
form of lectures, workshops and one-to-one tutorials, plus the equivalent of 26 hours of
cultural events
Workshops will take place during three-hour sessions in the first semester of the
academic year. You will pitch your ideas for your negotiated project towards the end of
the first semester, and you will then be assigned a tutor, who will help you to develop a
proposal for your negotiated professional portfolio in the second semester. This will
consist of an industry-focused body of creative work that extends from your experience in
the first semester, and a market analysis / proposal positioning your work in a particular
market (this should include a CV or an equivalent written account of your professional
experience). Your tutor will meet with you to discuss your career aspirations and develop
this market analysis / proposal. In your scheduled meetings with your tutor, you will
identify the content of your portfolio and review work in progress at key stages in your
journey.
Formative:
Draft portfolio of specialist work
Draft context folder
Draft creative project
Summative:
1. A specialist piece of creative work, written to a brief, (2500 25%
words).
Gawande A (2011) The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right. London: Profile
Books
Ritter, R.M. ed. (2014) New Harts Rules: The Oxford Style Guide. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
Diski, J (2002) Skating to Antarctica Ma Jian, Red Dust: A Path Through China. New
York: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group Inc
Quammen, D (1990) Wild Thoughts from Wild Places. New York: Simon& Schuster
Robb, P (1999)Midnight in Sicily: On Art, Food, History, Travel and the Cosa Nostra.
London: Vintage
Magazines (print or online):
The Bookseller
Granta
Mslexia
The Paris Review
Writing Magazine
Online Resources:
http://www.authoradvance.com/http://www.authoradvance.com/
http://www.authonomy.com/http://www.authonomy.com/
http://www.theknowledgeonline.com/http://www.theknowledgeonline.com/
http://blog.litmatch.net/http://blog.litmatch.net/
www.Quilliant.com
http://www.theshortstory.org.uk/prizes/http://www.theshortstory.org.uk/prizes/
http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/whatson/writingcomps.htmlhttp://www.literacytrust.org.uk/wh
atson/writingcomps.html
http://www.prizemagic.co.uk/html/writing_comps.htm
Learning Resources
Code CS5105-40
Title Writers Workshop 2 (Genre Fiction)
Subject area Creative Writing
Pathway Single, Major, Minor, Joint
Level 5
Credits 40
ECTS* 20
Contact time 78 hours plus 26 hours screenings, readings, events etc
Acceptable for
Excluded combinations Cannot be studied with CS5031-20
Core/Optional Core
Module Co-ordinator Dr Steve Hollyman
Description
This module builds on Writers' Workshop 1. It focuses on three related areas:
a. Your own development as a writer in a specialist area of your choice, Genre Fiction.
b. Your knowledge of opportunities within the creative industries to get your work "out
there".
c. Your awareness of and confidence in yourself as an independent practitioner.
You'll also explore ways in which writers independently manage themselves (and their
writing) in writing-related careers.
The module will help you to develop specialist skills in Genre Fiction while at the same
time helping you to think about your work and writing-related activities beyond University.
As part of this module, you will complete a writing project to a brief and a related author-
analysis, alongside a professional portfolio and promotional pack.
In this module you will continue to bring work each week to workshops, but there will be
an increasing emphasis on specialisation and employability. You will develop your
writing skills within a specialist field, and refine your understanding of how creative
writing is presented within professional contexts surrounding the creative industries. The
module consists of two interlinked strands 1) Specialist Writing Project and 2)
Negotiated Professional Portfolio.
You will normally complete the specialist project in the first part of the year, and then
work on your professional portfolio in the second half. The specialist component will
develop your creative writing skills your elected field or genre.
During the specialist component of the module, you will also be asked to produce a
context folder that demonstrates awareness of the wider cultural environment
surrounding your work as a writer within your field (this could include, for example, an
analysis of relevant practitioners, forms, and/or economic factors).
The negotiated portfolio will enable you to extend your specialist skills within the context
of the creative industries and related occupations. You will be encouraged to sharpen
your writing skills, develop an understanding of the business of creative practice and
adapt existing work for a specific publication, outlet or audience.
You may produce a negotiated portfolio that takes forward work developed in your writing
workshop. For instance, if you choose to specialise in writing short stories, you will write
short stories during the first thirteen weeks, and then for the second half of the term you
could adapt your short stories for a recognised segment of the literary market and
prepare an accompanying promotional package. If you choose to specialise in writing for
theatre, you will write a short play during the first thirteen weeks, and then for the second
half of the term you could edit your play, market it and put on a live performance. In your
professional portfolio, you will need to demonstrate that your work has been substantially
adapted for a relevant market, and that you are aware of the possible outlets and
audiences for your publication.
Looking forward, this module will help to prepare you for a greater level of independent
study at level 6. It will enable you to develop both your writing skills and your
employability skills, laying the foundations for enterprise-focused modules at L6 (i.e.
Independent Module, Strategy Camp and Creative Enterprise).
At the start of the module, you will attend an introductory lecture, during which the
module leader will outline the module aims, assessment criteria and learning outcomes.
Throughout the entire year, the module leader will continue to convene industry focused
plenary lectures and workshops to broaden your knowledge of the practice of writing
within a professional context. You will receive 78 teaching hours in this module in the
form of lectures, workshops and one-to-one tutorials, plus the equivalent of 26 hours of
cultural events
Workshops will take place during three-hour sessions in the first semester of the
academic year. You will pitch your ideas for your negotiated project towards the end of
the first semester, and you will then be assigned a tutor, who will help you to develop a
proposal for your negotiated professional portfolio in the second semester. This will
consist of an industry-focused body of creative work that extends from your experience in
the first semester, and a market analysis / proposal positioning your work in a particular
market (this should include a CV or an equivalent written account of your professional
experience). Your tutor will meet with you to discuss your career aspirations and develop
this market analysis / proposal. In your scheduled meetings with your tutor, you will
identify the content of your portfolio and review work in progress at key stages in your
journey.
Formative:
Draft portfolio of specialist work
Draft context folder
Draft creative project
Summative:
1. A specialist piece of creative work, written to a brief, (2500 25%
words).
Ritter, R.M. ed. (2014) New Harts Rules: The Oxford Style Guide. Oxford:
Oxford University Press.
Online Resources:
http://www.authoradvance.com/http://www.authoradvance.com/
http://www.authonomy.com/http://www.authonomy.com/
http://www.theknowledgeonline.com/http://www.theknowledgeonline.com/
http://blog.litmatch.net/http://blog.litmatch.net/
www.Quilliant.com
http://www.theshortstory.org.uk/prizes/http://www.theshortstory.org.uk/prizes/
http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/whatson/writingcomps.htmlhttp://www.literacytrust.org.uk/wh
atson/writingcomps.html
http://www.prizemagic.co.uk/html/writing_comps.htm
Learning Resources
Code CS5002-20
Level 5
Credits 20
Excluded None
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
1) To introduce the student to the short story form and to enable them to
understand how writers across all the genres of short story-writing
achieve their goals.
2) To use the short story form as the basis upon which the student can
explore further and in more detail the elements of narrative fiction
that were introduced in Year One. The student will be expected to
complete a number of short stories for their final submission.
Students will
Formative:
Set Text
Joyce Carol Oates, ed. Telling Stories: An Anthology for Writers (New
York: Norton, 1998).
Students use this text of over a hundred stories as the basis for
researching further stories by writers in the volume, including Chekhov,
Kafka, Rhys, Borowski, Calvino, Updike, Borges, Hurston, Gordimer and
Banks.
Charles May, The New Short Story Theories (Athens: Ohio UP, 1994)
Adele Ramet, Writing Short Stories, How to Get Your Work Published
(Oxford:
Michael Baldwin, The Way to Write Short Stories (London: Elm Tree,
1988)
Journals.
Websites
www.short-stories.co.uk
www.theshortstory.org.uk
www.utterpants.co.uk
www.classicshorts.com
Learning Resources
Code CS5003-20
Each student will be expected to tackle all the traditional forms available: sonnet, villanelle,
sestina, quatrain, tercet, tirza rima, blank verse, free verse, and so forth. The object of this is
to show students how form will assist in the control and focusing of poems. At the same
time, having studied and individual form, every student will be actively encouraged to
subvert the form as much as possible: to make a form his/her own. The final assessment will
certainly take account of how successful how creative - such subversion is.
All students will, at the same time, be encouraged to ask themselves who they imagine is
listening to their poem. Who is the poetic You so often used? Establishing a dialogue with
poetry both in the past, present and the future this issue will be looked at in depth. In
extenuation, students will be encouraged to answer the question: how do we ensure the
reader continues to listen?
With regard to both strains of this course reading will continue to be the key, and, to support
both strains, students will be expected to attend The Bath Spa Stand Up Poetry Series.
Study Focus One: Why form? What are its advantages? What Challenges?
Study Focus Two: What is meant by the subversion of form? What is meant by the
contemporising of form? How do you make a form your own? How can form sharpen
writing?
Study Focus Seven: What is Free verse? What is blank verse? Why have these forms come
to prevail in contemporary poetry?
Focus Study Eleven: Having started writing in form, what happens if from now on if you
abandon it?
The workshop will be the fundamental learning vehicle of this module. Students will be
expected to bring at least one new poem incorporating the lessons of their reading in the
previous week to each session. Each student in turn will be expected to deliver a short
presentation on one particular issue from his/her reading which is currently influencing
his/her work. Students will be expected to write two reviews of two poets appearing in the
Bath Spa University Stand Up Poetry Series. Every week, the tutor will deliver a short
treatment of a particular issue and this may help to frame self-study during the ensuing
week.
2
5. Demonstrate the ability to write poetry using different
modes of address for creative effect / impact.
1
Assessment Scheme Weighting %
Formative:
Summative:
Astley, N. ed., 2002. Staying Alive: Real Poems for Unreal Times. Hexham: Bloodaxe Books.
Hughes, T., 1995. Winter Pollen: Occasional Prose. London: Faber and Faber.
Keegan, P.J. ed., 2004. The Penguin Book of English Verse. London: Penguin Books.
Padel, R. 2002. 52 Ways of Looking at a Poem: Or How Reading Modern Poetry Can Change
Your Life. London: Chatto and Windus.
Websites
www.uk.poetryinternationalweb.org
www.poetrymagazines.org.uk
www.poetrysociety.org.uk
www.poetryarchive.org
Learning Resources
Projector
Tape recordings
Videos
DVD player
Code CS5004-20
Level 5
Credits 20
Contact time 39 hours plus open lectures and presentations
Excluded
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
You will perform and analyse plays from a variety of theatres, while
working on your own scripts, and auditioning them regularly.
Students will: 1.
1. gain an overview of the changing relations of
theatre space to world-view
2.
Formative:
Summative:
Agamemnon, Aeschylus
Code CS5005-20
Title Lifewriting
Level 5
Credits 20
Pre-requisites CS4001
Excluded
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
This module prepares you to write nonfiction for a general audience that
tells a story in ways that use all your skills as a creative writer. You write a
true story about other people, but you write it in the way you would write
a short story or a novel. At this level, we encourage you to write about
other people, not yourself.
Outline Syllabus & Teaching & Learning Methods
About half the course will be spent reading a wide variety of good
nonfiction books to see how the writer does the research and tells the
story. Then each student picks a topic anything you want, but it has to
be about other people, not yourself. Then you interview at least two
people, with a lot of help in class on interview methods. Finally, you turn
your interview and other research into a creative piece that tells a story.
Learning outcomes:
Students will:
Formative:
The set reading will change from year to year, but a reading list might
include:
Adrian Nicole LeBlanc, Random Family: Love, Drugs, Trouble and Coming
of Age in the Bronx
Anna Funder, Stasiland: Stories from Behind the Berlin Wall (East
Germany and the secret police)
Learning Resources
Level 5
Credits 20
Pre-requisites None
Excluded
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
Students will examine the history and current state of writing for young
people, and explore a variety of forms and genres. Students will be
encouraged to read as writers and explore their own creative writing in
response to their reading, experimenting with voice subject-matter and
readerships. Close analysis and discussion of texts together with editing
and redrafting of their own work will be important parts of the process.
Students attend seminar-workshop for one and a half hours each week.
invite students to experiment with their own writing for young people in
response to texts they have read
Notes on assessments
Sendak, M. Where The Wild Things Are. London: Bodley Head, 1967.
Learning Resources
Level 5
Credits 20
Pre-requisites None
Core/Optional Optional
The module would outline the changing nature of the screen for which scripts are
written, and introduce students to contemporary technological developments in film,
television and computing and their impact on the scripts written for an ever increasing
range of screen media. Wherever possible, it would seek to involve guest speakers
from the industry to provide students additional exposure to contemporary industry
practices.
This module will aim to provide students with a detailed account of scriptwriting in a
wide range of media. Key concepts relating to theories of adaptation, narrative and
spectatorship will be discussed in lectures, and will be applied by students
individually and in groups in the ensuing seminar and workshop sessions. Lectures
and seminar discussions will be supported by appropriate audio-visual material and
background reading, with reference to online resources and specialist software as
required. These, and additional resources to encourage ideas and research both
within and outside the classroom will be made available through Minerva.
Summative Assessment
Formative Assessment
Howard, David. How to Build a Great Screenplay: A Master Class in Storytelling for
Film, St. Martin's Griffin, 2007
Tierno, Michael. Aristotle's Poetics for Screenwriters: Storytelling Secrets From the
Greatest Mind in Western Civilization, Hyperion, 2002
Vogler, Christopher. The Writers Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers, 3rd ed.,
Michael Wiese, 2007
Website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/
Code CS5010-40
Level 5
Credits 40
Core/Optional Optional
Field trips might include: London Book Fair (April); Bath Literary Festival
(March). Future Publishing
Brand management
Report writing
Marketing
Website conceptualisation
Website development
Project management
CV and careers
Field trips
T&L:
Industry Project
Formative:
Summative:
Pass/fail
InDesign test: intermediate (March)
Pass/ fail
40%
Lowery, Joseph W., Dreamweaver CS4 Bible (John Wiley & Sons, 2009)
Negrino, Tom and Smith, Dori, Dreamweaver CS4 for Windows and
Macintosh: Visual QuickStart Guide (Visual QuickStart Guides) Peachpit
Press, 2008)
Search Engine Optimization for Dummies, 3rd Edition (John Wiley &
Sons, 2008)
Smith, Jon, Get into Bed with Google: Top Ranking Search Optimisation
Techniques (Infinite Ideas Limited, 2008)
Learning Resources
Code CS5021-20
Level 5
Credits 20
Excluded
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
This module introduces students to the prose poem and short-short story,
partly through the forms themselves and partly through comparing them
with lineated poetry and the short story, respectively. Thus the module
not only teaches students these sudden prose genres but also
strengthens their understanding of lineated poetry and short fiction more
generally.
Outline Syllabus
Prose poetry
Nin Andrews
Revision techniques
Revision techniques
Portfolio
Assessment Scheme Weighting %
Formative:
Summative:
development 50%
The Flash: A Flash Fiction Anthology, Peter Wild, ed., Social Disease,
2007. ISBN 0955282934.
Nin Andrews. Sleeping with Houdini. BOA Editions, 2007. Prose poetry.
811.6 AND.
Nin Andrews. The Book of Orgasms. Cleveland State University Poetry
Center, 2000. Prose poetry. (In processing).
Margaret Atwood. Murder in the Dark: Short Fictions and Prose Poems.
Library location: F ATW. Short-short stories and prose poems by the
renown novelist.
Killarney Clary. Who Whispered Near Me. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1990.
Library location: 811.54 CLA. The first collection of one of the best
American prose poets (I own other prose poetry collections by her as
well).
Russell Edson. The Tunnel: Selected Poems. Oberlin College Press, 1994.
Library location: 811.54 EDS. Edson is widely considered the best living
American prose poet.
Lesle Lewis. Landscapes I & II. Alice James Books. Prose poems. (On
order)
Robert Shapard and James Thomas, eds. Sudden Fiction: American Short
Short Stories. Gibbs Smith, 1987. Library location: 813.5408 SHA.
James Thomas, ed. Flash Fiction Forward: 80 Very Short Stories. Norton,
2006. Library location: 813.6 THO.
Learning Resources
BSU Library (see above), VLE Minerva, and where appropriate the
Artswork lab resources.
Code CS5022-20
Level 5
Credits 20
Excluded
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
From the Bards to the Beats, performance poetry has been an important
part of poetry. However, the majority of literary criticism considers poetry
as merely a textual entity. Is our experience of poetry ever just textual?
How do our experiences of poetry expand when we consider orality and
performance? How are traditional notions of poetry expanded by current
movements such as rap, hip hop and poetry slam?
The thirteen weeks teaching will introduce the students to some of the
historical influences on current performance poetry and the work of some
of its leading practitioners. Students will produce their own poetry in
response to these themes and perform their work in front of their fellow
students. Workshops will explore and develop the skills involved in
writing poetry for a live audience. Students will engage in a rigorous
analysis and appraisal of their own and each others work and learn to
develop their writing in response to such appraisal.
Presentation
Summative:
Learning Resources
Code CS5031
Level 5
Credits 20
Pre-requisites CS4001
Excluded
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
Using informal lectures and seminar workshops we will learn how to read
and interpret a text and how to understand the writers craft. We will
produce creative work in response to the texts studied and workshop these
pieces with fellow students. We will experiment with writing for different
genres and begin to understand the expectations and demands of certain
reading audiences. Throughout the module students will be produce their
own examples of genre writing and demonstrate their willingness to
experiment.
Learning outcomes:
Students will:
Portfolio
Summative:
Learning Resources
Pathway Single/Major/Joint/Minor
Level 5
Credits 40
ECTS 20
Pre-requisites None
Core/Optional Optional
This module will allow students to develop their film-making knowledge and skills in both
theoretical and practical forms. It will follow the development and production of a short film or
video project, from initial idea to final screening. It will cover development, pre-production,
production and post-production techniques of filmmaking.
Through lectures, seminars, workshops and filming projects, students will look at a range of production
techniques and processes and their implications on scripts and storytelling.
Drawing on production experience students will develop engaging and producible short film
scripts. They will then develop these in teams and produce them.
Each week students will attend 3 hours of workshops and seminars, using practical exercises
and tasks to demonstrate the main elements of the production process.
The workshops and seminars will:
offer constructive feedback on student projects at every stage of the production process.
offer practical exercises to allow students to gain technical and creative skills which they
may then feed through into their own writing and productions.
offer (where possible) seminars by professionals in their field to further elaborate elements
of the production process.
Students will:
Pre production
2. Be able to breakdown a screenplay for a short film
Evaluation
Formative:
Summative:
Flinn, D. M. (1999). How Not to Write a Screenplay: 101 Common Mistakes Most
Screenwriters Make. New York: Lone Eagle.
Moritz, C. (2001). Scriptwriting for the Screen (Media Skills). New York: Routledge.
Sijll, J. V. (2005). Cinematic Storytelling: The 100 Most Powerful Film Conventions Every
Filmmaker Must Know. Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Productions.
Thompson, R. (1993). Grammar of the Edit (Media Manuals). London & Boston MA Focal
Press.
Thompson, R. (1998). Grammar of the Shot (Media Manuals). London & Boston MA: Focal
Press.
Irving, D., & Rea, P. (2006). Producing and Directing the Short Film and Video, Third Edition.
London and Boston MA: Focal Press.
Vineyard, J. (2000). Setting Up Your Shots: Great Camera Moves Every Filmmaker Should
Know. Studio City CA: Michael Wiese Productions.
Learning Resources
BSUs newly built studios a dedicated production centre, equipped with editing
workstations for post-production etc. The studios have full technical support and offer a
range of practical workshops on production equipment and software. (Students have access
to a wide range of production equipment, bookable via Minerva.)
Library all recommended books are available along with other suitable sources. There are
a wide variety of DVDs, videos and audio CDs too.
Code CS5041
Level 5
Credits 20
Pre-requisites
This module gives students the skills needed to begin writing features,
articles and reviews for newspapers and magazines. Practical, step by
step exercises are given in seminars, supported by special workshop
sessions of intensive one-on-one examination of student writing by a tutor
and/or peer.
This module will use seminar, workshop and individual active learning.
On-line quizzes
5, 6
Workshop Part.
1,2,6
The Greatest Feelance Writing Tips in the Word, Linda Jones, 2007, GIL
ltd.
Learning Resources
Code CS5042-20
Level 5
Credits 20
Excluded None
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
This module takes you through the various possibilities of writing for new media.
New technologies challenge us to redefine the writing process, the "texts" we
produce, and their reception by audiences. New media is both the creation of texts
through the use of new technologies and the new use of older technologies and
forms of media.
"Never in my college life, have I taken a class where the course name
itself has brought about such discussion, confusion, conflict, and
debate." (US Student) By its very nature this module will be operating at
the frontiers of communication, introducing you to new methods and
media, and challenging you to experiment.
1 and 2
1. Learn about the various possibilities of writing for
new media
2. Understand issues of copyright
1 and 2
3. Be able to write a variety of pieces suitable for
particular outlets 1.
4. Understand the difficulty of getting paid for this
kind of writing
2.
Formative:
Summative:
Andrew Bonime and Ken C Pohlmann, Writing for New Media: The
Essential Guide to Writing for Interactive Media, CD-ROMs, and the Web
http://www.writingnewmedia.com
Learning Resources
This module will make use of the SECS Artswork labs, as well as BSU
library, VLE Minerva, and other on-line resources.
Code CS6001-40
Level 6
Credits 40
Excluded
combinations
This is a module in which students take their subject knowledge into the
wider world in student-led projects. The students are supported to:
Project
submission
Summative;
Set text:
Learning Resources
Students on this module have the support of the Broadcast and
Publishing Labs, with the various opportunities for using equipment,
learning new skills and creating artefacts that the labs allow. They will
also be supported to enter competitions and apply for funding, including
funding competitions from the Business Support Office, and get feedback
from Business Support staff on their plans.
Code CS6002
Level 6
Credits 40
Excluded
combinations
Students will
Formative:
Summative:
10%
4. Market Analysis Folder (1,000 words)
10%
Learning Resources
Code CS6003-40
Title POETRY AS SYNTHESIS
Level 6
Credits 40
Excluded
combinations
This module is run over two semesters, back-to-back, with such a strong
progression from one to the other that it would be difficult for a student to
take on the second half of the module if he/she had not taken on the first.
It will give students who have gained a technical foundation from CS4003
and an understanding of form and address from CS5003 to put them
together in one mix, one creative synthesis.
The first Semester will bring all previous study together in considering the
Anatomy of a Poem. Each session will include a short sharp treatment
from the tutor on one aspect of this: the choice between lyric and
narrative, irony, the work of the line, the work of the sentence, and so
forth. Each student will be expected to bring at least one new poem along
to every session. Alongside this, the module will give serious attention to
the protocols of the poetry publishing market, mainly concentrating on
UK, but also looking at the US market. Students, in pairs, will be asked to
deliver a presentation on one magazine/journal in particular. This will
become the basis for a Target Magazine Paper in the final submission.
In the second Semester, and the second half of the module, students will
still be expected to bring a new poem to every session. But the strongest
emphasis throughout this module will be on the question of Sequencing:
why these poems, why in this order, why this one first, why this one last?
Students will be introduced to the science of collection building; they will
be encouraged to put together a facsimile of their first collection.
FIRST SEMESTER
SECOND SEMESTER
Target
Magazine
9. Be able to understand the mechanics of poetry Paper
sequencing
10.Be able to put own poems in cohesive and Reading Paper
coherent sequence
11.Be able to understand the importance of titling a
collection and put that understanding into practice
12.Be even better equipped to judge whether a poem
is finished or not
13.Be able to select best poems for submission
(minimum of eight to ten poems word limit 1500 Creative Folder
words)
14.Be able to write an in depth analysis of an
individual chosen collection (word limit 1000
words) Creative Folder
15.Show in practice what has been learnt from that
analysis
16.Have even stronger knowledge of the current
publishing market in UK (and, to a lesser extent, Creative Folder
US)
17.Show fundamental understanding of the Creative Folder
importance of reading and be able to analyse it
with precision and distil results into work (word
limit 2500 words). Long bibliography compulsory,
Creative Folder
and expected to include books, websites and
relevant poetry readings attended
Chosen
Collection
Paper
Creative Folder
Reading paper
Reading Paper
Websites
www.uk.poetryinternationalweb.org
www.poetrymagazines.org.uk
www.poetrysociety.org.uk
www.poetryarchive.org
The Waste Land, Prufrock, and Other Poems (Dover Thrift S.), T.S. Eliot,
1998
Learning Resources
Tape recordings
Videos
DVD
Code CS6004-40
Level 3
Credits 40
Excluded
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
After some introductory plenary sessions, the group may be divided into
smaller groups for regular sessions on a rotating basis. Part of these
sessions will be devoted to individual tutorials, and part to workshop
discussion in which students will be encouraged to make informed and
practical criticism of each others work (and working methods). As well as
encouraging high literary and academic standards, the tutor will advise on
professional aspects of the work, and on ways of getting students work
out there.
invite students to read and discuss each other's work in large and
small groups
Intended Learning Outcomes How assessed*
Students will:
Formative:
Summative:
5%
5%
4. Class Participation:
There are no set texts. Students will need to compile their own reading
and viewing list, appropriate for their individual project, and submitted at
assessment time. They will share their reading and watching experiences
- both the good and the bad - with others on the course.
Learning Resources
Level 6
Credits 40
Excluded
combinations
8,000 word
first draft and
2. Learn to plan and write a sustained manuscript final ms.
Final ms and
1500 word
sample
3. Learn to rewrite, rewrite and polish a text, and to
edit others' work
Annotated
4. Locate, read and respond to a wide variety of bibliography
relevant literature
Formative:
Summative:
Learning Resources
Code CS6006-40
Level 6
Credits 40
Excluded CS3020YP
combinations
After some introductory plenary seminars, the group may divide into small
groups for regular sessions on a rotating basis. Part of these sessions will
be devoted to individual tutorials, and part to workshop discussion in
which students will be encouraged to make informed and practical
criticism of each others work (and working methods). As well as
encouraging high literary and academic standards, the tutor will advise on
professional aspects of the work, and on ways of getting published.
1,3,4
8. give a helpful critical response to each others
work, developing their responses from stage to
stage of the project
1,2,3,5
5) Class Participation 5%
Other key texts will vary depending on the individual project. Students
are expected to compile their own reading list and produce an annotated
bibliography.
Learning Resources
Code CS6014-40
Level 6
Credits 20
Excluded combinations
Core/Optional Optional
The Writing For Broadcast module will be a step-by-step guide to writing for the
broadcast media, its main purpose being to give students the practical skills
needed to produce a well structured television or radio script. The module will
examine the features and possibilities of television and radio drama, using a
variety of television and radio plays to illustrate points of technique. Writing
exercises will enable students to practise specific aspects of television and radio
drama, and to develop their own choices of voice and subject matter. Editing,
redrafting and discussion will be important parts of the process. Students will
learn how to tell a good story and present it in a script appropriate for the
broadcast media.
invite students to read and discuss each other's work in large and small groups
encourage students to research, draft and complete a play for both television
and radio
Formative:
Summative:
Notes on assessments:
1. The Creative Folder will contain selected pieces of
creative work done during the module up to a
maximum of 4, including a finished television and radio
script.
Fay Weldon The Hearts and Lives of Men, (her dramatization of her novel in 5
x 30 episodes) (tape, script and streamed online at
http://www.soundplay.co.uk/programmes/programme_list.asp?category_link=dr
ama)
Australia Episode 13
Learning Resources
Code CS6020-20
Title Reading as a Writer
Level 6
Credits 20
Excluded None
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
Literature
5. An understanding of how to evaluate the worth Survey
and usefulness of a variety of sources
Lecture
Summative:
A 2000 word essay which argues either for the inclusion 50%
or retention of a specific author in the canon. Attached
to the essay will be an appendix of student creative work
which has been influenced by the author.
Excerpts will be read from the following texts, which cover a broad range
of approaches to the Creative Writing essay:
Dillard, Anne; Living By Fiction, 1982, New York, Harper and Row
Prose, Francine; Reading Like A Writer, 2006, New York, Harper Perennial
The above texts will be available as library resources and excerpts will be
provided. However, students should allow a reasonable budget to
photocopy and to apply to interlibrary loan other texts.
Learning Resources
Level 6
Credits 20
Excluded None
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
Writing is just one element of the contemporary writer's life. This module
will enable us to learn a portfolio of skills to transfer to our working lives.
From reading aloud, to presentation skills, running a workshop, giving
lectures, interviews and organising events for literary festivals, we will
begin to understand the diversity of a contemporary writers life and its
challenges. This module will require us to step outside of our comfort
zone and to be hands on and proactive!
Each week we will examine one aspect of a writers life and understand
the skills behind it. By studying examples and using informal lectures and
discussion we will take part in activities that mirror the activities of a
contemporary writer. Outside of class students will create further
exercises and chart their progress with a project diary. The students will
be encouraged to engage in public activities by professional writers, such
as talks, lectures and workshops and to attend events at literary festivals.
Students will
plan
Poets - historic readings from the British Library Sound archive (BBC CD)
Learning Resources
Code CS6022-20
Level 6
Credits 20
Excluded None
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
Copywriting:
Writing concisely
Writing accurately
Audience
Brand identity
Text editing:
Different types of editing: appropriateness of tone, level, content; word
length (i.e. cutting); structure.
Following a stylesheet
Proof reading
Web content
Structure
Prioritisation of content
Audience
Powerpoint
Portfolio
Project management
T&L:
Formative:
Summative:
Baverstock, Alison, Carey, Steve, and Bowen, Susannah, How to Get a Job
in Publishing: A Really Practical Guide to Careers in Books and Magazines
A & C Black Publishers Ltd, 2008)
Copywriting
Periodicals etc
Text editing
Ritter, R. M., Stevenson, Angus, Brown, Lesley (eds), The New Oxford
Dictionary for Writers and Editors (2nd edn) (Oxford University Press,
2005)
Marsh, David, Guardian Style, (Guardian Books, 2007) (2nd revised edn):
Learning Resources
Code CS6025-20
Level 6
Credits 20
Acceptable for
Core/Optional Optional
Module Co-ordinator Ms Lucy Sweetman
Description
Formative:
Summative:
Ryan, L. and Zimmerelli, L. (2006) The Bedford Guide for Writing Tutors. 4th
Ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins.
Learning Resources
Minerva VLE
Code CS6060-20
Level 6
Credits 20
Excluded None
combinations
Core/Optional Optional
Description
Aims
Journal and
1. demonstrate their ability to initiate, plan, pitch for Project
and produce an independent creative project
2. demonstrate their ability to think creatively and
independently
3. demonstrate their ability to edit and present their
work in a professional manner
4. write clearly and coherently with due regard for
purpose, audience and context
5. use structure and style to emphasise meaning
6. respond appropriately to tutorial feedback in a way
that deepens, extends, or in any other way
improves the finished work
7. use secondary material, where relevant, for
research or creative purposes successfully
8. effectively organise and manage their own learning
Formative:
Learning Resources