ENCW 2600-002: Fiction Writing

The Architecture of Storytelling

Spring 2023 | MWF 10:00-10:50am | The Rotunda Room 150

Instructor: Coby-Dillon English | ptb3sq@virginia.edu

Office Hours: Mondays 11:00am-12:30pm at Bryan Hall 423 or by appointment

Overview

In this course we will explore the vast and nebulous terrain of writing and reading fiction. We will be approaching this work first and foremost as an art form, and accordingly, this class will entail different challenges than your other courses. Our goals are simple and impossibly vast: to write, to read, and to grow as artists. Our methods are communal inquiry, collaborative discussion, and above all, reading and writing. In addition, we will examine the many rules and regulations of the Western literary canon, and together, being the inquiry into how we might subvert them.

We will begin by reading and discussing the work of established writers, move through writing exercises, and then write and examine our own longer work. The workshop is at the core of this course, during which you will be asked to engage thoughtfully and critically with your own work as well as that of your fellow writers. Throughout this semester, you will participate in in-class writing exercises as well as graded assignments exploring various craft and/or revision aspects.

You will emerge from this course thinking more deeply about your creative practice, armed with a completed portfolio of creative works & a broader understanding of reading and writing fiction.

Required Texts

There will be a required course packet available at UVA Readers Printing.

We are lucky in our chosen artistic pursuit; we do not need to spend much money on fancy paints or expensive equipment. However, the act of writing does often require writing utensils. I would like each of you to have a dedicated notebook for this class, to carry with you to and from class, as well as a writing utensil of your choosing.

Major Assignments & Grading

I am intending to de-emphasize grades in this course; we are working in a subjective medium and what is far more important is your engagement with the texts, development as a writer, and freedom to experiment.

Nonetheless, I must submit grades and you must receive them. Completion of the assignments and abiding by the attendance requirements will guarantee you a grade of a B+. To receive a higher grade, I will be looking to the depth of your self-reflections as expressed in our check-ins, conferences, as well as your effort in revision.

Your grade will be determined using the following breakdown:

• 30% Final portfolio
• 30% Workshop stories
• 15% Writing/Revision exercises  
• 15% Analytical essay
• 10% In-class/workshop participation & attendance of class and conferences

You are expected to turn in five short writing exercises, two longer pieces of fiction that you workshop, a form analysis essay, and a response letter to each classmate’s submitted story for workshop. At the end of the course, you will turn in a final portfolio that consists of a significantly revised story from workshop, notes of future revision for your other story, and a writer’s statement.

Attendance

This class makes no distinction between “excused” and “unexcused” absences. Students may miss up to one week’s worth of classes (two sessions in MW or TR sections: three sessions of MWF sections) without penalty. After that, a discussion will be prompted with the instructor. I do ask that you at least keep me informed about your absences, as you are human beings and I worry.

Responsible Employee

As a graduate instructor, I am a “responsible employee” at the University of Virginia. This means there are times when I must report student disclosures of sexual assault, relationship violence, stalking, the potential for self-harm or harm to others, and some incidents in violation of UVA’s Preventing and Addressing Discrimination and Harassment (PADH) policy. In general, you can explore these topics in your art—as writers have often done. But as we get into in-class and out-of-class discussions, you need to remember that I am not a confidential resource and that I sometimes have reporting obligations. A list of UVA’s confidential resources appears at https://eocr.virginia.edu/chart-confidential-resources.

Honor Code & Privacy

The Honor Code still very much applies to this course, even as a creative class. The work in this class must be original work of your own creation. No excuses.

Please also remember that the stories/poems we workshop in this class are the property of the writer. Do not redistribute the work to people outside of our class without author permission. Also, like Las Vegas, what happens in workshop stays in workshop.

Course Schedule

Introduction to Fiction Writing

• Week 1:
  • 1/18 – First day of class/syllabus overview
  • 1/20 – Why We Write
    • Reading: “Reflections on Writing” by Henry Miller and “33 writers on why they write” by Walker Caplan

Unit 1: Foundations of Storytelling

• Week 2:
  • 1/23 – Craft: The Occasion of the Story/Exposition
    • Reading: “The Husband Stitch” by Carmen Maria Machado and “Burn” by Morgan Talty
      • Assignment: Writing Exercise #1: Why You Write due before class
  • 1/25 – Craft: Living Characters
    • Reading: “Five Wounds” by Kristen Valdez Quade and “Boys Go to Jupiter” by Danielle Evans
  • 1/27 – Craft: Dialogue and Storytelling
    • Reading: “What We Talk About When We Talk about Anne Frank” by Nathan Englander and “Why Were They Throwing Bricks?” by Jenny Zhang
• Week 3:
  • 1/30 – Craft: Point of View – First vs. Third
    • Reading: “The City Born Great” by N.K. Jemisin and “Omakase” by Weike Wang
      • Assignment: Writing Exercise #2: Dialogue due before class
  • 2/1 – Craft: Point of View – The Power of You
    • Reading: “Welcome to Your Authentic Indian Experience” by Rebecca Roanhorse and “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid
  • 2/3 – Craft: Point of View – Collective
    • Reading: “St. Lucy’s School for Girls Raised by Wolves” by Karen Russell and “Come Japanese!” by Julie Otsuka
      • Assignment: Writing Exercise #3: POV due before class

Unit 2: Building Our Own Worlds

• Week 4:
  • 2/6 – Craft: Setting
    • Reading: “The Dirty Kid” by Marina Enriquez and “The Last Thing We Need” by Claire Vaye Watkins
  • 2/8 – Craft: World Building
    • Reading: “Speech Sounds” by Octavia Butler and “The Trouble with Happiness” by Tove Ditlevsen (trans. By Michael Favola Goldman)
  • 2/10 – Craft: Only a Matter of Time
    • Reading: “Pet Milk” by Stuart Dybek and “Reverting to a Wild State” by Justin Torres

Unit 3: Workshop 1

• Week 5:
  • 2/13 – Mock Workshop
    • Reading: “Sleeping Bear” by Coby-Dillon English
      • Assignment: Workshop 1.1 stories due before class
  • 2/15 – Workshop 1.1
    • Writer: Seonbin Song
      • Assignment: Workshop 1.2 stories due before class
  • 2/17 – Workshop 1.2
    • Writer: Bennett Lamb
    • Writer: Grace Caramanis
      • Assignment: Workshop 1.3 stories due before class
• Week 6:
  • 2/20 – Workshop 1.3
    • Writer: Max Van Zandt
    • Writer: Carter Opperman
      • Assignment: Workshop 1.4 stories due before class
  • 2/22 – Workshop 1.4
    • Writer: Vera Woody
    • Writer: Rebecca Avallone
      • Assignment: Workshop 1.5 stories before class
  • 2/24 – Workshop 1.5
    • Writer: Taylor Wreath
    • Writer: Harrison Miracle
      • Assignment: Workshop 1.6 stories due before class
• Week 7:
  • 2/27 – Workshop 1.6
    • Writer: Caitlin Winston
    • Writer: Nick Garrone
      • Assignment: Workshop 1.7 stories before class
  • 3/1 – Workshop 1.7
    • Writer: Tyler Glenn
    • Writer: Shaun Gu
  • 3/4 – Workshop Reflection
    • Writer: Marina Wang
    • Reading: “Write Till you Drop” by Annie Dilliard 

SPRING BREAK (3/6 - 3/10)

Unit 4: Form Focus and The Analytical Essay

• Week 8:
  • 3/13 – Form Focus: The Shape of the Story & The Meandering Story
    • Reading: Intro to Meander, Spiral, Explode by Jane Alison and “Recitatif” by Toni Morrison
  • 3/15 – Form Focus: Fractals & Radials
    • Reading: “The Fifth Story” by Clarice Lispector and “desire homes” by aureleo sans
  • 3/17 – Form Focus: Spiraling Stories
    • Reading: “Diem Perdidi” by Julie Otsuka and “The Breeze” by Joshua Ferris

• Week 9:
  • 3/20 – Form Focus: Cellular Stories
    • Reading: “Difficult Women” by Roxane Gay and “Ten Deals with the Indigo Snake” by Mel Kassel
  • 3/22 – Writing Day
    • • Assignment: First draft of essay due by 11:59pm
  • 3/24 – Peer Review

• Week 10:
  • 3/27 – No class (Conferences)
  • 3/29 – No class (Conferences)
  • 3/31 – No class (Conferences)
  • Final Draft Essays due Sunday, April 2^nd by 11:59pm

Unit 5: Revising through Reading and Cross-Genre Writing

• Week 11:
  • 4/3 – Revision: Economy of Language
    • Reading: “Why Don’t You Dance?” and “Viewfinder” by Raymond Carver, and “School Principal,” “The Hachiro Lottery,” and “Falsification” by Hiromi Kawakami (trans. by Ted Goossen)
  • 4/5 – Revision: Sensorial Writing
    • Reading: “Under the Jaguar Sun” by Italo Calvino and “Inventory” by Carmen Maria Machado
  • 4/7 - Revision: Voice
    • Reading: “Sweetness” by Toni Morrison and “Crazy They Call Me” by Zadie Smith
      • Assignment: Revision Exercise #1: Necessary Language due before class
• Week 12 - UPDATED
  • 4/10 – Cross Genre Writing: Metafiction & Poetry
    • Reading: “Café Loup” and poems by Ben Lerner *Poems can be found in Resources > April 10 Readings, "Café Loup" in course packet*
      • Assignment: Revision Exercise #2: Sense Scan due before class
  • 4/14– Cross Genre Writing: Autofiction & Poetry
    • Reading: “Ghosts, Cowboys” by Claire Vaye Waktins and “The Last Mohave Indian Barbie” by Natalie Diaz
  • 4/14 – Cross Genre Writing: Creative Nonfiction
    • Reading: “A History of My Brief Body” by Billy-Ray Belcourt and “Listen,” “Breathe,” and “Remember” by Alexis Pauline Gumbs (from Undrowned: Black Feminist Lessons from Marine Mammals)
  • • Assignment: Workshop 2.1 stories due before class

Unit 6: Workshop 2 & Portfolio Prep

• Week 13
  • 4/17 – Workshop 2.1
    • Writer: Vera Woody
    • Writer: Grace Caramanis
      • Assignment: Workshop 2.2 stories due before class
  • 4/19 – Workshop 2.2
    • Writer: Rebecca Avallone
    • Writer: Taylor Wreath
      • Assignment: Workshop 2.3 stories due before class
  • 4/21 – Workshop 2.3
    • Writer: Harrison Miracle
    • Writer: Caitlin Winston
      • Assignment: Workshop 2.4 stories due before class
• Week 14:
  • 4/24 – Workshop 2.4
    • Writer: Carter Opperman
    • Writer: Tyler Glenn
      • Assignment: Workshop 2.5 stories due before class
  • 4/26 – Workshop 2.5
    • Writer: Shaun Gu
    • Writer: Bennett Lamb
      • Assignment: Workshop 2.6 stories due before class
  • 4/28 – Workshop 2.6
    • Writer: Seonbin Song
    • Writer: Nick Garrone
      • Assignment: Workshop 2.7 stories due before class

• Week 15:
  • 5/1 - Workshop 2.7
    • Writer: Marina Wang
    • Writer: Max Van Zandt

• Final Portfolios due: Sunday, May 7^th by 11:59pm