WRIT 177 Nonfiction Writing IThrough workshops, draft revisions and analysis of major nonfiction prose writers, this course covers basic techniques in nonfiction. Prerequisite: ENGL 123.
WRIT 205 Writing for the Arts I By exploring various styles and genres of writing that are commonly used in the art world, students learn about writing for the arts including how to write grants, find appropriate funding sources, work with commercial exhibitions, catalog works, and compose short bibliographies of artists. Students also write articles in the style of contemporary art journals and engage in peer collaborations. Prerequisite: ENGL 123.
WRIT 210 Promotional WritingWith a broad immersion into the study and practice of promotion management, students develop and write a complete promotion plan, including a press release, press kit and brochure. Through a variety of written and oral communication exercises, students develop their communications skills to better promote themselves and their work. Topics include the study of promotional positioning strategies, promotion tool development and creation, and measuring promotional effectiveness. Prerequisite: ENGL 123.
WRIT 220 Writing for the WebIn today's Internet-dominated society, people ascertain much of their information from the Web. In order to improve the readability of Web materials, writers need to understand and gain confidence in using this rapidly emerging form of communication. In this course, students enhance their knowledge of writing in a scannable format, as well as other writing and editing techniques that enable them to compete in this increasingly sophisticated world of online publications and services. Prerequisite: CMPA 100 or CMPA 110 or ELDS 205 or ELDS 225.
WRIT 225 Writing for TelevisionUsing the sitcom as a model, students examine the three-act structured genre by writing an adaptation to a show now on television to create their own original sitcom. Students learn to analyze and address issues discussed in class regarding originality and successes in writing for television, as well as applying those skills as they develop their own original show. Students develop skills in character development, dialogue, plot, timing and visual writing techniques. Prerequisite: WRIT 177.
WRIT 247 Nonfiction Styles and GenreFrom Shakespeare's plays to Norman Mailer's The Executioner's Song, students explore creative nonfiction from a fresh perspective, while developing a criteria from which to understand this genre's development to today's current bestseller status. Prerequisite: WRIT 177.
WRIT 255 Business and Professional WritingWorkplace writing???including memos, proposals, pamphlets and instructions???is examined and practiced in this introductory course. Students gain real-life writing experiences that help prepare them for the professional world. Prerequisite: ENGL 123.
WRIT 277 Nonfiction Writing IIThis course offers an intense focus for students interested in publishing their work, covering elements of nonfiction writing such as tone, unity and thematic development. Students produce manuscripts for group readings. Prerequisite: WRIT 177.
WRIT 305 Writing for the Arts IIA focused study of one artist provides the basis for students to practice and master extensive researching, writing, and presentation skills. The essential relationship of writer/reader/subject is explored. Students produce a portfolio of documents based on the artist's life and work, to include promotional pieces, scripts for docent tours, analysis of work, creative responses, requests for funds, annotated bibliographies, catalog entries and/or reviews. Prerequisite: WRIT 205.
WRIT 307 Writing for Decorative Art and DesignThis course provides a critical study of major 19th- and 20th-century British and American manuals of art and design, including works by Charles Eastlake, Ogden Codman and Edith Wharton, and Elsie deWolfe. Students examine these as expressions of a given era's style and taste and, thus, a reflection of that culture's values, as well is critically assessing them as literary works of art. Students write essays in response to these manuals, do comparative analyses, participate in group presentations, and produce an original quarter-length project of their own art and design writing. Prerequisites: ARTH 110, WRIT 277.
WRIT 309 Travel Writing and AutobiographyThis course is a critical study of the genres of American travel writing and autobiography. Students read seminal texts of each form spanning the 18th-20th centuries, including works by Benjamin Franklin, Mark Twain, Frederick Douglas, Zora Neale Hurston, Edith Wharton and Bill Bryson. The issues of genre, gender and representations of the self are interrogated, as are the conventions and blending of the boundaries separating these forms. Students write critical analyses of these texts and produce a quarter-length creative essay reflective of the generic considerations discussed. Prerequisite: WRIT 277.
WRIT 310 Editing and ManagementAs a blend of intensive study and hands-on applications, this course leads students through the fundamentals of editing and its function in technical, trade and academic publishing. This course allows students to develop the primary skills necessary in publication management with an emphasis on journal production, newsletter production, and book publication. Prerequisite: WRIT 210.
WRIT 325 Advanced Writing for TelevisionStarting with the pilot developed in Writing for Television, students further develop dialogue and characters to complete the work by writing two complete scripts for their original pilot. Students build a team of writers from peers in class and write and develop the show's creation story that forms the basis for future episodes. This advanced level of study is designed to push students to create in a more professional setting, including working as a writing team, creating a fully pitchable show and all the required elements. Prerequisite: WRIT 225.
WRIT 345 News Writing and EditingThrough lectures, workshops and discussions, students focus on the skills of news reporting and editing, including the ethical aspects involved in journalism. Students discuss the media coverage of contemporary news stories, participate in group brainstorming meetings to generate story ideas, and experiment with workshop-style critique sessions. Prerequisite: ENGL 123.
WRIT 350 Writing the Critical ReviewContemporary writing includes the art of criticism in magazines, newspapers, online 'zines, television and radio reviews, publishers' and liner notes, as well as Web sites and blogs. These demand of the writer a sharp critical faculty, and the ability to put critical thought into words. Prerequisite: ENGL 177.
WRIT 355 Writing and New MediaAs ease of production, storage and distribution of information increases, opportunities exist for writing in new media venues, including the personal computer, computer networks, digital mobile devices, ubiquitous computing and even virtual realities. From the everyday to the unusual, this course examines all aspects of new media and the related writing processes. Students explore the history of new media and gain experience writing about new media and writing with new media tools and technologies. Prerequisite: WRIT 255.
WRIT 377 Nonfiction Writing IIIPrimarily for writing minors, this course helps students polish their work for publication, providing advanced training in techniques of nonfiction writing through workshops and revisions. Students produce work for a public forum. Prerequisite: WRIT 277.
WRIT 410 Literary JournalismThis course uses fiction writing techniques to tell nonfiction stories. Students review the history of this new, exciting, and popular genre by reading the work of its most accomplished writers. Students research their topics, conduct successful interviews, and structure the information they have gathered into compelling narratives. Prerequisite: WRIT 177.
WRIT 480 Professional Writing Portfolio This course focuses on portfolios and their place in the world of writing. Each student creates a portfolio that focuses on a specific area of interests dictated by the students individual career goals. Lectures, readings, and field trips help prepare students for professional writing situations. Prerequisite: WRIT 345 or WRIT 350.
Courses
The film rights to "Mine All Mine," the new novel by professional writing professor Adam Davies, have been sold to Touchy Feely Pictures, and Davies is under contract to write the screenplay. Vanity Fair said of the book, "Inspired by the [real-world] looting of artifacts from museums in the war-torn Middle-East, Davies addresses the politics of art and ownership while hanging on to his trademark eccentricity and sharp-edged comedy." Other reviewers call the novel "a rollicking, rocking good read" (David Benioff), "laugh-out-loud funny" (People), "unabashedly fun" (Entertainment Weekly), "raving mad…manic, frantic, deranged and insane" (USA Today) and "a comic thriller composed with literary refinement" (Troy Patterson, National Public Radio).
