Department of English

 This workshop-style seminar serves as an introduction to reading and writing poetry and short fiction. During the first half of the course, we will focus on storytelling techniques, including narrative voice, character development, dialogue, and imagery; then we will turn to poetry's uses of sound, syntax, repetition, rhythm and meter. In our diverse sampling of 20th-century and contemporary authors, we will also encounter work that disrupts the boundary between poetry and prose. Students will craft their own original pieces in this writing community, reading and commenting on each other's work. Thoughtful participation in class discussions, in-class writing exercises, and peer responses are required; *prior creative writing experience is not.* In place of an exam or essay, students will submit a final portfolio of original work.