tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67881661576743990.post1739217042788532290..comments2024-03-25T20:48:20.863-05:00Comments on Uncanny Valley: A few notes on teaching intro to creative writingUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67881661576743990.post-26271942499670194012015-08-26T04:22:15.363-05:002015-08-26T04:22:15.363-05:00Hard to teach creative writing... You can explain ...Hard to teach creative writing... You can explain main principle and ideas, to show great examples to follow and inspire and get zero results. Teacher cannot teach, actually. He or she is in power to propel and cheer. Strong desire and hard work of trainee - that's what's important.write my essayshttp://writemyessay4me.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67881661576743990.post-83191259573998081112010-07-28T15:48:57.991-05:002010-07-28T15:48:57.991-05:00Definitely #2. My best writing/reading classes fea...Definitely #2. My best writing/reading classes featured reading lists that, although spotted with a few misses, were comprised mostly of underknown but brilliant books. Students will get the canon anywhere, but they're less likely to get the weird, independent, etc. anywhere but in a writing course.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67881661576743990.post-69709884167083224892010-07-28T14:09:07.819-05:002010-07-28T14:09:07.819-05:00Thanks for your comments, Sophie! I appreciate the...Thanks for your comments, Sophie! I appreciate them.<br /><br />One thing to keep in mind here is that this is an hour and fifteen minute class. I've taught fifty-minute classes up until now, and in my experience getting students to talk about a book or other reading for that long even when we have a clearly established critical framework and goals is extremely difficult. What I'm imagining will happen here is that we'll spend as much of the first fifty minutes as possible on any given day (with some variation) talking about the book, and that this will gradually shade into discussions of our own work, with 25-40 minutes of class being devoted to group and individual discussion of our writing exercises. And the discussion of the works will always be about writing them. So I think there's more emphasis here on writing than is immediately obvious.<br /><br />I think you're right there is a risk of crippling students with fear that they'll never be as good as what they read. Here I hope my personality will help -- I don't have any fears of the sort for them or myself (at least in the classroom) and hopefully that will help them feel safe.<br /><br />It's true that they will want authority. Probably I'll end up giving in and giving them too much, if anything. It's a tendency I have to watch in myself.<br /><br />I'll consider your point about the grading. My experience has been that students feel safer when they know their creative output won't be graded for quality, but maybe I'll ask them if that's really true.Mike Meginnishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10445063490812318140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67881661576743990.post-61718371206828173032010-07-28T12:29:39.647-05:002010-07-28T12:29:39.647-05:00Hi Mike, I came across your blog from HTMLGIANT (I...Hi Mike, I came across your blog from HTMLGIANT (I'll be adding it to my blogroll). I read this post before I read Roxane's. You have a lot of great ideas here, but I have to agree with Roxane. If I was a student in a creative writing class (and I have been), I would feel a bit peeved if the focus wasn't writing. Of course, reading is essential, but I don't think a class should be more about reading than writing.<br /><br />For an Intro class, I would think that the most important thing would be to encourage writers, and give them some general information. If I hadn't studied creative writing before, I might be slightly crippled by studying in depth how good published writers are. I would probably just end up thinking 'My God, I'll never be this good!'<br /><br />As Roxane says in her post at HTMLGIANT, I think getting new writers into the habit of writing, without fear, is more important that making them good readers.<br /><br />I really like your idea of joining in with the exercises and positioning yourself as a collaborater rather than a lecturer. I also like that you're going to try and teach new writers to trust their own judgement. I'd be careful, though, as if they are new writers, they are going to want some level of leadership and authority from you. I'm sure it will be a tricky balance to get, and I'd be very interested to follow your teaching through this blog.<br /><br />I'm also not sure about the grade being soley about effort. From a student point of view, I'd still like to know if I wrote well. Perhaps you could introduce a weighted mark on these two things? That's what I would do if I were to teach.<br /><br />Anyway, these are just my thoughts. I've been a student of creative writing, and I'm interested in teaching it one day, too. I'll follow your blog with interest.<br /><br />And good luck!Sophie Playlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14937622260333202138noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67881661576743990.post-53421330979604912762010-07-28T03:04:03.968-05:002010-07-28T03:04:03.968-05:00This is a great post, Mike. It inspired me to writ...This is a great post, Mike. It inspired me to write about it on HTMLGIANT because I think I disagree with your prioritizing reading over writing. Still, you say great things all around and gave me a lot to think about this evening.R. Gayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00005379821276342931noreply@blogger.com