Since I LOVE planning more than I probably like doing the actual work, here is my very intense plan for my first course of the DIY MFA. I don’t know that I’ll follow the 15-week plan, but I want to go in optimistically, thinking I will dedicate 2 days a week to this project. I want this to be fun as well as informative. While my original plan was to treat this like a standard curriculum and expect a certain number of credits, I think I’m going to start with one class (this one) and work my way from there.
The “workshop” piece of this for me will come through my participation in the critique group I’m a part of on a twice-monthly basis. I’m lucky to have an amazing writing community in my life, and I’m hoping that can keep me going on this journey.
Leave me a comment on what short stories I should read during my coursework! I’d love to hear some suggestions.
Course Description:
This course will serve to further develop the craft of Fiction writing. The course will focus on short stories and novelization. Revision will be a key element later in the course to ensure that writers can not only conceptualize their stories but also polish them to be ready for publishing.
To accomplish this, the student will focus on reading and analyzing techniques to understand how writers handle different aspects of story: character, plot, setting, and theme. The second half of the course will be fully dedicated to writing and workshopping stories.
Requirements & Assignments:
Final Portfolio Expectations:
- 2-3 pieces of original short fiction, at least 1 revised and ready to submit
- Annotated Bibliography of Reading
- 2-3 page book reviews for two books
- 6-8 literary journal responses
- 4 cultural activities
Texts:
- The Art of Short Story by Dana Gioia
- Words Overflown by Stars: Creative Writing Instruction and Insight from the Vermont College of Fine Arts M.F.A. Program (Amazon) edited by David Jauss
- The Scene Book by Sandra Scofield
- How to Write a Sentence and How to Read One(Bookshop.org) by Stanley Fish
Calendar:
Open MIT – Writing and Reading Short Stories (free)
Masterclass – Margaret Atwood Teaches Creative Writing (paid)
Subtle Stories 