Course Description

Throughout the semester, we will return regularly to the writer’s workshop model. Students will several times distribute their own writing for a read-aloud. We will all respond to each other’s work both conversationally and more formally, in writing. Formal classroom lecture/ discussion will be shaped by the particular strengths and deficiencies that evidence themselves in your writing.
I will come to class many days with lecture notes prepared. As many of you know, I prefer the rich exchange of student-motivated discussion to more traditional methods of “disseminating” truth. On the other hand, much has been written about scriptwriting, and there are many basic tools that I am confident will benefit you, so occasionally I will have very clear goals about what IS valuable for you to learn. Even on such days, I prefer that students feel free to involve themselves in the ideas through questions, elaborations, and activities.
Together we will read a number of plays & screenplays, view a play and a movie, participate in regular writing exercises, pitch ideas to each other, and give each other honest feedback. These are necessary and sometimes difficult prerequisites of belonging to a writing community.
While there is no course fee, you are expected to pay for your tickets to the theatre and the cinema, however because there are no mandatory textbooks in this class, these costs should be manageable. Please plan for them at the outset. As the semester progresses, I will give you strong recommendations of books which are worthwhile for your purchase.