Find Your Voice 1 (10 credit points)

Pre-requisites for enrolment

No prior knowledge required.

Content of Course

1. Introductory exercises on the arts of lying and thieving; and prompts for writing for Week 2

2. Guided discussion of students’ work presented each week. Bring two printed copies. The aim is to share at least one piece from each student per week. Focus is on adopting and adapting narrative, poetic and dramatic ‘voices’ beginning with building and developing characters (or ‘personae’ in poetry). We look at using all our senses; at developing first and third person narrative in prose (short stories) and the development of a contemporary voice – a voice for today – in poetry. We look at dramatic monologue as a way of developing character and voice and we work on dialogue in fiction. Free experimentation in poetry emphasising the use of imagery as well as looking at some established ‘forms’ in poetry. Prompts are always open-ended to allow students to develop their own interests or creative endeavours. Guidance on credit portfolio; on publication and performance.

Teaching method(s)

Interactive classwork / tutorial discussion between tutor and class; individuals within the class; tutor and student. Reading and peer criticism will play its part as well as group work.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course students will be able to:

• Have a better understanding of their own abilities;

• Be more confident in what they choose to write;

• Understand better why they wish to write, as well as what they choose to write;

• Hopefully, go on to publish.

Sources

Core Readings

There are many ‘guides’ and ‘handbooks’ to creative writing which you may choose to read from. In general, you should read widely, as you wish, in different genres (novels, stories, scripts and modern/contemporary poetry). You are encouraged to register with the University Library, the National Library of Scotland, the Edinburgh Central Library and the Scottish Poetry Library; and to make use of information and advice on book publishing, literary magazines etc. to be found through the Writers and Artists Yearbook and the Scottish Book Trust. Reading writers’ autobiographies is particularly recommended. Among such, we could include:

• Bennett, A., 1997. Writing Home. London: Faber & Faber.

• Dylan, B., 2004. Chronicles. London: Simon & Schuster.

• MacDiarmid, H., 1972. Lucky Poet. London: Jonathan Cape.

• Neruda, P., 2004. Memoirs. London: Souvenir Press.

• Miller,A., 1999. Timebends. London: Methuen Publishing.

• Milosz, C., 1992. Native Realm. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

• Muir, E., 2008. An Autobiography. Edinburgh: Canongate Classics.

Web Sources

www.writersandartists.co.uk

www.scottishbooktrust.com

Class Handouts

Handouts and reading recommendations. Exercises and themes (sometimes seasonal) will be open-ended and/or cross genre as far as possible.

Assessments

10 credit courses have one assessment. Normally, the assessment is a 2000 word essay, worth 100% of the total mark, submitted by week 12. To pass, students must achieve a minimum of 40%. There are a small number of exceptions to this model which are identified in the Studying for Credit Guide.

Studying for Credit

If you choose to study for credit you will need to allocate significant time outwith classes for coursework and assessment preparation. Credit points gained from this course can count towards the Certificate of Higher Education.

Queries

If you have questions regarding the course or enrolment, please contact COL Reception at Paterson's Land by email COL@ed.ac.uk or by phone 0131 650 4400.

Student support

If you have a disability, learning difficulty or health condition which may affect your studies, please let us know by ticking the 'specific support needs' box on your course application form. This will allow us to make appropriate adjustments in advance and in accordance with your rights under the Equality Act 2010. For more information please visit the Student Support section of our website.