Creative Writing Institute

MWF

6:00 -7:30 PM

Writing for Mass Media

Sharpen your media and public relations skills with a crash course in multi-platform journalism. Learn to write powerful press releases, public service announcements, product jingles, ad copy, web blogs and basic news stories. Learn the essentials of graphic design. Apply your skills to the web. Explore new trends in social media and "citizen" journalism.

Section 2:
Olin Physical Science 140

MWF

Section 1:
1:30.-3:00 PM

Section 2:
6:00-7:30 PM

Poetry Writing

This class will focus on the various poetic elements: sounds, images, figures of speech, rhythm, line and form. We will write new poems and workshop them, as well as reading the works of contemporary poets.

Section 1:
Olin Engineering 118

Section 2:
Shepard 108

MW

6:00-7:30 PM

The Long Poem: Print and Performance

Writing longer-than-usual poems allows you to keep your poetic license AND indulge in a little excess to explore ideas and emotions. In this interactive workshop we will study examples of contemporary and classic long poems, from narrative to noisy. Participants will write long poems to share and discuss with the group: let's come up with a few contenders for the Friday poetry slam.

MWF

10:30 AM-Noon

Scriptwriting

An overview of writing for the screen and stage. We'll work on the fundamentals of concise descriptions, sound structure, crackling dialogue, and suspenseful pacing.

MWF

1:30-3:00 PM

Fiction

An introduction to the main strategies and genres of writing narrative prose. From the imaginative adventures of everyday life to the fantastic journeys of imagined worlds, we'll work through the most effective ways of telling your stories.

MWF

6:00-7:30 PM

Beginning Fiction

Do you have a story to tell, but don't know how to start? Learn the tools of the writer: exposition, description, dialogue, action and monologue, plot, pacing, scene, Point of view, theme, and the differences between the forms of short story, a short-short, novel, and novella.

MWF

7:30-9:00 PM

Advanced Fiction

A painting is pigment suspended in medium, applied to a canvas giving the illusion of three dimensions. A story attempts to create a realistic world through words. This class deals with the processes involved in honing the story at the paragraph and sentence level through revision.

MWF

7:30-9 PM

Introduction to Writing for Children: Beginner-intermediate

This course will review genres, story development, methods for revision and critiquing, publication and marketing. Each session will include hands-on activities, discussion and feedback.

MWF

Section 1:
10:30AM-Noon

Section 2:
6:00-7:30 PM

Mystery Writing

Mystery I (Monday)
Workshop will discuss the anatomy of a mystery/thriller and study the subgenres. Learn the plotting and pacing of a mystery novel. Learn the development of the characters of the detective, villain and the victim.

Mystery II (Wednesday)
This workshop is geared to writers who want to intensify the level of suspense in their writing. It contains nuts and bolts applications to increase the nail-biting quality of each scene. Current or classic movies are used as examples.

Mystery III (Friday)
Workshop will discuss plotting using Vogler's THE WRITER'S JOURNEY as a blueprint for building a successful story arc. Learn the basics of selling the mystery/thriller and the mechanics of putting together a proposal for agents and editors.

Section 1:
Shepard 107

Section 2:
Skurla 116

MWF

9:00.-10:30 AM

Writing for Roleplaying Games

Roleplaying and You! Do you have what it takes to write for a tabletop rpg or computer game company? Learn the principles behind roleplaying design while creating your own short module.

MWF

6:00.-7:30 PM

Screenwriting

So you want to write a screenplay? Truth is, anybody can do it. Learn the basics of industry-standard formatting, structure, character development, dialogue and breaking into Hollywood. You'll leave class with the first ten pages (or more) of your masterpiece.