33 ILANA BEAN – WRITING AND READING IN A DIGITAL WORLD – FALL 2022
Art and Craft of Nonfiction: Writing and Reading in a Digital World
Instructor: Ilana Bean
12:30-1:45 TTh
Fall 2022
Course Description
From social media to virtual realities, new forms of media are revolutionizing the way people tell stories about their lives. In this class we’ll ask questions like: can reality TV be called creative nonfiction? What about a Twitter thread? How do video games add a new frontier to second-person storytelling? Over the course of the semester, we will discuss the role of new media in creative nonfiction, and consider how our understanding of the genre in 2022 is formed and altered by the current cultural and technological climate we live in. We’ll investigate how different platforms push the limits of what has historically been considered an essay and question who establishes the boundaries of the category. We’ll listen to podcasts, watch video essays, consider procedural narrative, and examine the electronic publishing ecosystem. Students will read and write essays engaging with these questions and telling their own stories using multimedia tools—whatever they decide an essay means.
This course meets twice a week. During about half the classes, students will engage in an open-ended discussion about the short weekly readings (the term “readings” is loose: this may refer either to traditional texts or to video essays, podcast episodes, narrative games, etc) and consider the broader context of the digital essay. The other half of classes will focus on student work—these class periods will be reserved for either generative prompts and creative work, or workshopping student pieces. During workshops, students are expected to be respectful and constructive, and to follow community guidelines set in class.
Students will produce four-five short essays using different forms of digital media. Each student will be workshopped by the class at least twice, and will receive feedback from me on each assignment. Each student will also participate in a short one-on-one conference with me once during the semester.
Course Objectives
- Learn to become more conscious consumers of digital media
- Experiment with different formats of narrative media
- Learn different forms of creative nonfiction, strengthen individual writing voice
- Give and receive useful constructive feedback
Course Materials
Notebook for in-class
Access to a computer for readings
Texts
All readings + essays will be uploaded to ICON. Students are expected to have access to a laptop and smartphone or equivalent technologies.
REQUIREMENTS
Writing
This semester, students will focus on developing their narrative voice in a digital space.
Students will produce four or five short digital essays using different mediums:
1) Internet-focused text essay
2) Short-form audio-visual narrative
3) 5-10 minute audio essay
4) Essay in game format
5) Essay in the student’s form of choice
Students should revise at least one piece by the end of the semester.
Readings
Students will be assigned reading material weekly. Students will be expected to write at least 250 words per week on these readings, and to participate in class discussion.
Workshop
Roughly half the class will be devoted to discussing writing produced by you and your classmates. The student-produced pieces will be distributed over ICON. You are responsible for bringing your own device or copy of student work.
As a group of young adults, we will spend enough time with our classmates’ essays to give thoughtful, meaningful and useful feedback (that means reading each piece at least twice). We will always be honest, but never pejorative. We will highlight, vibrantly, what we love, and we will give equal love and attention to what is not working. Every piece requires a minimum of 250 words of written feedback (typed) from each member of the workshop.
We will have enough time for everyone to be workshopped at least twice.
Evaluation
Writing will only be graded on completeness — an essay that fails to launch is a welcome friend to our workshop. Your essays must be proofread, but you will never be docked for faulty mechanics.
Revision (think: re-imagine, see again, rethink) will be graded on size and severity. A large, messy revision that could potentially collapse a piece will help your grade more than a small, tidy one that irons out a few wrinkles. After all, it makes little sense to fix the storm door of a house that is still missing its windows.
Feedback will be graded (critically, by me) on a qualitative scale. Usefulness of feedback is up to the writer, but you must demonstrate close, thoughtful, and precise examination of your peers’ essays.
Your task is to demonstrate that you are engaging the material thoughtfully, critically and creatively.
Your grade breakdown will look something like this:
Assignments: 65%
Revision: 10%
Participation: 25%
I don’t personally feel that creative writing translates well to numeric assessment, and so most of your feedback will be qualitative in nature. If your grade is ever in danger of falling below a C, I will make sure to let you know.
Attendance and Participation
Attendance to this class is mandatory. Making your voice heard is mandatory. I will be taking attendance at the beginning of every class period, and part of attending class is contributing to daily discussions. With this in mind, any time you show up to class and do not participate, I reserve the right to mark it as an unexcused absence.
Students will be allowed two unexcused absences; any absences beyond two result in the lowering of your overall grade by one-third (upon your third absence, your B goes to a B- and so forth).
I realize that things happen — that some of you will have to miss class for one reason another — and letting me know will lead to speedy resolution.
Plagiarism
You know you’re not supposed to do it. I don’t have to tell you not to, but I am. Don’t plagiarize. If you are caught plagiarizing, you will lose credit for the assignment, and you will be passed to the powers-that-be at the university (they have fangs, you know). Furthermore, I will be disappointed in you.
Cell Phones and Pagers
If you text or (so help me…) call someone during class, I reserve the right to confiscate the phone until the end of day. You can pick it up from my office after class, where you will receive a stern talking to. Like any good flight, I expect that they are in the off position before takeoff each day. The whole pager thing is a joke. I think people stopped carrying those.
Academic Policies
This course is given by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Class policies on requirements, grading, and sanctions for academic dishonesty are governed by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Students who wish to add or drop this course after the official deadline must receive approval of the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Students with Disabilities
A student with a disability seeking academic accommodations should register with Student Disability Services and meet privately with me to make particular arrangements.
Concerns
If you have any questions or concerns about this course, I would be happy to work with you. If the two of us can’t work it out, Professor Bonnie Sunstein is also here to help.
I also will accept and encourage anonymous feedback at any point during the course, which can be delivered to my mailbox. Write it or type it — just don’t put your name on it.
Schedule (subject to change)
Week 1, Aug 22:
What do we mean by creative nonfiction? What do we mean by digital essay?
Read: D’Agata, Miller, Gay, and the Video Essay
Introductions, syllabus, micro essay
Week 2, Aug 29:
How do we write on the internet?
Read: Samantha Irby, Kevin Killian, Tolentino, Sherry
Assign first essay
Week 3, Sept 5:
Are videos essays?
Readings: How to with John Wilson, How to Be Alone, Assorted TikToks
Miniature workshop
Week 4, Sept 12:
Are games essays?
TikTok unit continued
Disco Elysium, Procedural Narratives, Chuck Klosterman
Guest visit
Week 5, Sept 19:
Essay 1 workshop:
Workshop:_______________________
Week 6, Sept 26:
Workshop:_______________________
Workshop:_______________________
Week 6, Oct 3:
Jeet Heer’s Twitter Essay, Kardashian Kolloquim, ContraPoints
Week 7, Oct 10:
Conference all week
Week 8, Oct 17:
Reading TBD
Workshop:_______________________
Week 9, Oct 24:
Workshop:_______________________
Workshop:_______________________
Week 10, Oct 31:
Horse Essay by Jessie Kraemer, Heavyweight
Final Essay Assigned
Week 11, Nov 7
Guest Visit
The Moth, Codeswitch
Week 12, Nov 14:
Work on final project in class
Week 13, Nov 21:
Thanksgiving break
Week 14, Nov 28:
Workshop:_______________________
Workshop:_______________________
Week 15, Dec 5
Workshop:_______________________
End of Semester