7 SANJNA SINGH – INTRO TO CNF – FALL 2021

Introduction to Creative Nonfiction: Exploding the Genre

Instructor: Sanjna N. Singh

Fall 2021

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Creative nonfiction is a broad genre encompassing memoir, humor, journalism, cultural criticism, biography, history, and more. In this course, we’ll look at work by writers across these subgenres to understand all that creative nonfiction can be and to situate your work within it. Being a writer is as much about reading as it is about writing, so we’ll also discuss what it means to read as a nonfiction writer. And you’ll experiment with various nonfiction forms in your own writing.

We will mostly be talking about “essays” in this class. A literary essay is a piece of nonfiction that shows a writer working through something. The word “essay” in French literally means “to try,” and that is what we will be doing: making attempts at creating meaning using writing tools we typically associate with fiction (like plot, character, scene, etc.) to tell true stories. So, in the spirit of the essay, I want you to think of the work you do in this class as experiments. I want you to push yourself outside your comfort zone and see what happens when you try something weird and new.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

In this course, you will learn how to:

• Read like a writer.
• Give and receive critical, constructive, and respectful feedback on a piece of writing.
• Write regularly and with discipline.
• Conduct basic research, interviews, and reporting as a nonfiction writer.
• Revise your work.
• Use different modes of nonfiction writing: personal essay, history, cultural criticism, and biography.

COURSE MODALITY

Your class will be asynchronous, online. We will be using the ICON Discussion Board every week for our discussion posts, and all work for it will always be due Sunday at 11:59 p.m. More on this in Course Requirements below.

REQUIRED TEXTS

I will post most of the readings on ICON, with one exception: you will select a nonfiction book to read on your own and present on. More on this assignment below in Course Requirements.

OTHER REQUIRED MATERIALS

• A notebook that you will keep exclusively for this course. Think of it like your artist’s sketchbook. Use it for reading notes, reporting notes, brainstorming sessions, and journal entries. Try to write in it every day.
• All readings and course documents will be on our course ICON site. The most up-to-date version of our schedule will always be on our ICON site, too. You will also be posting to the Discussion Board and submitting all your assignments on ICON.

GRADING

• Participation 30%
• Book Report Presentations 20%
• Mini Essays 20%
• Major Essay #1 10%
• Major Essay #2 20%

I grade based on the university’s A-F grading scale (see below). Grading creative writing is hard but I am most interested in effort and growth. I want you participate regularly and thoughtfully, come to my office when you need help, and put real effort into your drafts and revision and my grading will reflect that.

Some students assume that creative writing classes are an easy way to fluff a GPA. Do not make that mistake. I am asking you to work and to push yourself, and you will be graded according to how well you do this. Trust me: I can tell when you are phoning it in!

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Participation—30% (Broken up as : Discussions – 15%,  and Workshop letters to classmates 15%)

Discussion: Your participation grade consists primarily of an assessment of your engagement in the weekly discussions on ICON and the letters of feedback you write to your peers on their workshop essays. To prepare, you should take notes on the day’s reading(s), to share in the weekly discussion posts, and carefully read and respond to your classmates’ posts. I’m looking more for the quality of your contribution to the discussion over a quantity of comments.

WHAT I EXPECT FROM A DISCUSSION POST :

1. One post (at minimum) responding to a question in the week’s reading (either a question I present or a question that the discussion leaders present) – of a minimum 300 words. This response is graded on (a) How thoroughly the post addresses all aspects of the question with analysis, and makes a novel claim (b) How well the post uses evidence to support their claims and (c) How logical and readable the post is, and whether it clearly makes its argument

2.One post (at minimum) responding to one of your classmates posts. This can be shorter and is graded on whether it meaningfully furthers the conversation with some original thought and analysis put in.

Your class will occur asynchronously on ICON, which means you will be able to manage your participation according to your schedule. However assignments and discussion posts will have deadlines. Each week, you’ll answer a few of the questions I’ve posed by Sunday at 11:59 p.m CST (Central Standard Time, US) Then, by the following Tuesday at 11:59 p.m. CST (Central Standard Time, US) you’ll respond briefly to a classmate’s comments. Every due date is clearly marked on our schedule, the most up-to-date version of which will always be on ICON.

Each reading and discussion after the first week will have a discussion leader. Details on that provided in the Announcements. Participating in the discussion post forum and leading discussion when its your turn is worth 15% of the grade.

Workshop: Each of you will be workshopped twice. Your workshop essays are due to me via email one week before your workshop. Timeliness is very important; you need to give your peers enough time to formulate useful and coherent thoughts on your piece. So, failure to send me your piece in time will result in you forfeiting your chance to be workshopped and the loss of participation points unless you’ve made prior arrangements with me.

On workshop days, you will post to the discussion board a minimum of two paragraphs, no less than 300 words, of thoughtful commentary and feedback on your classmate’s essay. This will be worth 10% of your grade.

In workshop you are expected to be critical and constructive but kind and respectful. Try to understand what the writer wants to accomplish and focus your notes on how they could do that better, not what you would do or change if it were your piece.

Conferences: I will meet with each of you individually on zoom to discuss your writing at least once, after your first workshop. These conferences will last approximately 20 minutes and are meant to be more formal and structured than drop-in office hours visits. I will talk to you about scheduling these after your workshop occurs. Please feel free to come to these meetings with specific questions! Note that this is how you will receive feedback from me: I will not be sending you written notes on your workshop drafts, so it is important that you make time for these.

Attendance: You may miss two ICON discussion board posts without penalty. Points will be deducted from your participation grade for each missed post after that. I will not be docking points per this policy until the very end of the semester, when I’m assessing final grades. Please keep this in mind when keeping track of your participation grade.

Book Report Presentation & Discussion leading- 20% of grade:

Book Report Presentation: Because we aren’t reading any full texts as a class, we’re at risk of missing a vital part of the essay and literary nonfiction conversation, and that is: How can I turn my seemingly small idea into an entire book? Though we won’t be reading any together, full essay collections and other book-length works of literary nonfiction are very much worth our reading time, too.

So, you will be selecting a book-length work of literary nonfiction to write about (3-5 pages) at the end of the semester. Your book choice will be up to you; I’ll have a large list to give you some ideas in the FILES tab, but don’t feel like you have to use a book on that list. I want you to follow your interest and have some more freedom in choosing. That said, you will need to clear your selection with me to ensure that no one else is planning on doing the same book. More robust assignment guidelines are on ICON.

Discussion leading: Once during the semester, you and a partner will introduce the day’s readings with a brief presentation on the discussion board. In this you will provide the writer’s personal bio, an overview of their major works/themes/literary influences/critical reception, and at least three guiding questions about each reading for our discussion.

WHAT I EXPECT FROM DISCUSSION LEADING:

This is done in pairs. You should discuss together which reading from that week you will take, and take one each from the readings (of course you should definitely read them all!) From that reading, please provide the writer’s personal bio, an overview of their major works/themes/literary influences/critical reception, and at least three guiding questions about each reading for our discussion. You don’t need to post images.

Mini Essays – 20% of grade: Most of the writing you do in this course will be in the form of short essays—aim for 300-600 words (1-2 pages), double spaced, in 12-point standard font—in response to specific prompts. There are five total. They will be due Sundays at 11:59PM (CST). When you submit your Mini Essays, please include a few sentences about a craft choice you made and explain why you made that choice.

Major Essay 1 + Reflection – 10% of grade: An essay on any topic of your choice. Please make this an essay that is whole in itself, so, not an excerpt or the beginning of a longer piece but a piece that can stand on its own. It should be a minimum of 1000 words, maximum 1,500 words, double spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman font. You can take one of your Mini Essays and expand it for your Major Essay, but you don’t have to. Like with your Mini Essays, this will also include a brief reflection on some of your craft choices. Please pay attention to when you are up for workshop; you will submit by noon the week before.

Major Essay 2 + Reflection – 20% of grade: An essay on a topic of your choice. Please make this an essay that is whole in itself, not an excerpt or just the beginning of a longer piece but a piece that can stand on its own. It should be a minimum of 750 words, maximum 1,500 words, double spaced, in 12-point standard font. You can absolutely take one of your Mini Essays and expand it for your Major Essay, but you don’t have to. Like with your Mini Essays, this will also include a brief reflection on some of your craft choices. Please pay attention to when you are up for workshop; you will submit by noon the week before.

LATE WORK POLICY

I will accept late Mini Essays no later than the following Sunday. You will lose half a point for every day it is late. In case of an emergency, please make arrangements with me. Extensions will not be granted on the day an assignment is due. I will not accept late Book Report Presentations unless you make arrangements with me well in advance. I will not accept any late Major Essays or Final Portfolios.

ATTENDANCE POLICY

Students are responsible for attending class and for contributing to the learning environment of a course. Students are also responsible for knowing their course absence policies, which will vary by instructor. All absence policies, however, must uphold the UI policy related to student illness, mandatory religious obligations, unavoidable circumstances, or University authorized activities. See the CLAS Academic Policies Handbook Students may use this absence form to aid communication; the instructor will decide if the absence is excused or unexcused.

You may miss two live meetings and two ICON discussion board posts without penalty. One point will be deducted from your participation grade for each unexcused absence and/or missed post after that, unless you are absent because you are ill. If this is the case, please email me.

NONDISCRIMINATION + PRIVACY POLICY

The University of Iowa is committed to making the classroom a respectful and inclusive space for all people irrespective of their gender, sexual, racial, religious or other identities. Toward this goal, students are invited to optionally share their preferred names and pronouns with their instructors and classmates. The University of Iowa prohibits discrimination and
harassment against individuals on the basis of race, class, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, and other identity categories set forth in the University’s Human Rights policy. For more information, contact the Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity at diversity.uiowa.edu.

The bottom line: Be respectful. We will cover difficult subjects in this course that should be tackled sensitively, and this may, at times, be awkward on the Discussion Board. Plus, having your creative work picked apart can be challenging and requires vulnerability, trust, and respect from both the writer and their readers. To combat this, we should all approach our classmates and all the material we encounter with curiosity and kindness.

Hate speech is not an “opinion,” and I will not tolerate hate in any form, in writing or in class discussions. This space is not welcome to racism, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia, sexism, Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, classism, ableism, or other hate speech or action that attempts to silence, threaten, or degrade others. This goes for all conversations related to this class, and this also includes the work you submit to me and to workshop.

I want you to feel comfortable sharing your thoughts and opinions, and that means everyone should be committed to being respectful and to assuming the best of each other. Part of developing our literary sensibilities—and of developing our beliefs that guide us through the world—is learning how to express our opinions and learning how to accept and learn from criticism. So, we are not here to pass judgement on each other. We are here to support each other’s learning, and my goal is that you will all feel comfortable speaking up if someone (including me!) writes that feels harmful to you or someone else or an entire group of people.

This policy is not here to silence you, nor to encourage a negative environment where we’re all calling each other names constantly. Just remember to assume the best of each other. We’re all on the same team, and we’re all here to grow.

In all the writing you do in this course, I want you to balance experimenting and pushing boundaries with exploring the kind of writing that most interests you. That said, I do have some guidelines to follow in order to be a good citizen of this class:

• In order to foster a supportive classroom environment, I will not accept any work that contains graphic violent images, graphic sex, hateful speech (as defined above), or other content intended to offend me or your peers. I’m not going to put a moratorium on violence or sex as a whole; in fact, we will be reading some published examples of this kind of work done particularly well. But when writing scenes or descriptions most readers would consider violent or sexual, ask yourself: Is this vitally important to the purpose of my project (Is my essay fundamentally critiquing violence or sex? Could my essay succeed without it?), or am I just including it to shock my reader? If you answer “yes” to the latter, it is not welcome in this class. This policy is not intended to get you to write about only happy things. I want you to create work that is complicated and that challenges you and your readers. But there is a difference between complicated work and work that intends to shock and/or express hate. The latter will not be tolerated. And note that if I read material that threatens harm to yourself or to others, I am required to report it.
• Please do not submit work about me, your classmates, or this class.
• Lastly, but very importantly – do not share or discuss your peers’ work with anyone who is not enrolled in this class.

OFFICE HOURS: M-Th 4-5pm on Zoom and by appointment (but please make an appointment regardless just so I don’t have to look at my own face on zoom for an hour)

You can drop into my Zoom office hours if you have general questions about our course readings or other academic matters, but conferences about your writing are scheduled by appointment. I’ll contact you to schedule your post-workshop conferences; beyond that, it’s up to you to schedule meetings with me. And please note that the English department does not allow me to comment on writing that you didn’t do for this class.

CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS

Since this is an online, asynchronous class, many of these expectations are not applicable. But here they are anyway for your general information!

Students are expected to comply with University policies regarding appropriate classroom behavior as outlined in the Code of Student Life. This includes the policies and procedures that all students have agreed to regarding the Steps Forward for Fall 2020 in response to the Covid- 19 pandemic. Particularly, all students are required to wear a face cover when in a UI building, including a classroom. In addition, the density of seats in classrooms has been reduced. In some instances, this will allow 6 feet or more of distance while in other cases, it may be less. Regardless, wearing face coverings and maintaining as much distance as is possible are vital to slowing the spread of Covid-19. In the event that a student disrupts the classroom environment through their failure to comply with the reasonable directive of an instructor or the University, the instructor has the authority to ask that the student immediately leave the space for the remainder of the class period. Additionally, the instructor is asked to report the incident to
the Office of Student Accountability for the possibility of additional follow-up. Students who need a temporary alternative learning arrangement related to Covid-19 expectations should contact Student Disability Services: (https://sds.studentlife.uiowa.edu/fall-2020/covid-19-temporary- learning-arrangements).

ON PRIVACY AND SHARING

Students may not share essays, reflections or any other material from other students within our class, with those not in the class. Doing so could violate Code of Student Conduct and, in some cases, the Federal Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY + PLAGIARISM POLICY

All CLAS students have, in essence, agreed to the College’s Code of Academic Honesty: “I pledge to do my own academic work and to excel to the best of my abilities,” upholding the IOWA Challenge: “I promise not to lie about my academic work, to cheat, or to steal the words or ideas of others; nor will I help fellow students to violate the Code of Academic Honesty.” Any student committing academic misconduct is reported to the College, resulting in suspension or other sanctions, with sanctions communicated to the student through the UI email address.

Submitting work that is not your own in a workshop-based course is a waste of everyone’s time—including yours! If I have identified a plagiarized assignment, it will receive a zero. If this ever applies to you, we will meet on zoom to discuss it. Note that reusing an assignment you did for another course is considered plagiarism. All work you submit for this course should be completed specifically for this course. Also note that the University has specific software designed to identify plagiarism called and that I will be using this software.

ACCOMMODATIONS FOR DISABILITIES

The University of Iowa is committed to providing an educational experience that is accessible to all students. A student may request academic accommodations for a disability (which includes but is not limited to mental health, attention, learning, vision, and physical or health-related conditions). A student seeking academic accommodations should first register with Student Disability Services and then meet with the course instructor privately in the instructor’s office to make particular arrangements. Reasonable accommodations are established through an interactive process between the student, instructor, and SDS. See https://sds.studentlife.uiowa.edu.

EMAIL POLICY

University policy specifies that students are responsible for all official correspondence sent to their University of Iowa email address (@uiowa.edu). Faculty and students should use this account for correspondences. (Operations Manual III.15.2. Scroll down to k.11.)

I welcome you to email me (sanjna-singh@uiowa.edu) questions and concerns you have throughout the semester. However, you will also have a “Frequently Asked Questions” discussion board on our ICON site. If you have a question that might apply to everyone in the class, post it there, and either I or one of your classmates will respond within a day or two.

Only email me with your university (@uiowa.edu) email address. I will not respond to emails from non-@uiowa.edu email addresses. Though I will often respond sooner, please allow me 48 hours to respond before checking in again. If it is an urgent matter, say so in your subject line. And check your email regularly to make sure you don’t miss any messages from me about class meetings.

SCHEDULE: This schedule is subject to change. The most accurate, up-to-date calendar will always be on our ICON site. We will workshop student pieces on the days indicated. I will assign workshop and presentation dates Week 2 to allow for fluctuations in our class list.

***All timings – deadlines etc. are U.S. Central Standard Time (CST)***

Week One | Introducing Ourselves and The Essay

Monday August 23rd

• Introductions
• Syllabus Q&A

To Read:

• “What Makes Nonfiction Creative” by Dinty W. Moore (craft)
• Excerpts from The Pillow Book by Sei Shonagon
• “The Importance of Angsty Art” by Jenny Zhang (craft)
• “Goodbye to All That” by Joan Didion

To write: (On Discussion Boards)

• Post responses to readings to discussion board by Sunday at 11:59 p.m CST
• Write an introduction to yourself, and answer any or all of the questions asked. Post to discussion board by Sunday at 11:59 p.m CST

Week Two | Writing from Memory

Monday August 30^th

To read:

• Letting Go by David Sedaris
• “Against Catharsis: Writing Is Not Therapy” by T Kira Madden (craft)
• Girl by Alexander Chee
• Lecture on Against Catharsis
• A Blues for Fred by Samantha Irby

To write:

• Reply to a classmate’s Week 1 post on the readings, by Tuesday at 11:59 p.m. CST
• Write new post to Discussion Board by Sunday at 11:59 p.m. 
• Discussion led by Discussion Leaders 1 & 2. Discussion leaders 1&2 – please post about that week’s readings on the discussion board by Thursday Sept 2
• Mini Essay 1: Write the story behind a photograph of you. Due Sunday at 11:59 p.m.

Week Three | Writing Our Obsessions

Monday September 6^th

To read:

• Spinning in Space by Elena Pasarello

• On Keeping A Notebook by Joan Didion
• Transom by Latif Nasser
• The History of Loneliness by Jill Lepore

To watch:Nonfiction Craft Capsule: Elena PassarelloLinks to an external site.

To write:

• Locate a document or source of that you might want to use to inspire an essay.
• Reply to a classmate’s Week 2 post by Tuesday at 11:59 p.m. CST
• Write new post to Discussion Board by Sunday at 11:59 p.m.
• Discussion led by Discussion Leaders 3&4. Discussion leaders 3&4 – please post about that week’s readings on the discussion board by Thursday Sept 9
• Mini Essay 2: Write the story behind your source. Due Sunday at 11:59 p.m

Week Four | Writing Others

Monday September 13^th

To read:

• All About My Mother by Brandon Taylor
• Michaela the Destroyer by E Alex Jung
• Habitus by Jordan Kisner

To write:

• Reply to a classmate’s Week 3 post by Tuesday at 11:59 p.m. CST
• Write new post to Discussion Board by Sunday at 11:59 p.m.
• Discussion led by Discussion Leaders 5 & 6. Discussion leaders 5&6 – please post about that week’s readings on the discussion board by Thursday Sept 16
• Mini Essay 3: Write about a friend. Due Sunday at 11:59 p.m

Week Five | Writing the Culture Around Us

Monday September 20^th

To Read:

• Craft Essay – TBD
• Malfunctioning Sex Robot” by Patricia Lockwood

To Write:

• Post to Discussion Board by Sunday at 11:59 p.m.
• Discussion led by Discussion Leaders 7 & 8 Discussion leaders 7&8 – please post about that week’s readings on the discussion board by Thursday Sept 23
• Workshop essays from classmates 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 due Sunday at 11:59 p.m.

Week Six | Workshop

Monday September 27^th

To read:

• Workshop Essays from classmates 1,2,3,4,5,6

To write:

• Feedback letters on Workshop essays submitted by classmates 1-6.
• Workshop essays from 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 due Sunday at 11:59 p.m.

Week Seven | Workshop

Monday October 4^th

To read:

• Workshop Essays from classmates 7,8,9,10,11,12

To write:

• Feedback letters on Workshop essays submitted by classmates 7 -12
• Workshop essays from 13,14,15,16 due Sunday at 11:59 p.m.

Week Eight | Workshop

Monday October 11^th

To read:

• Workshop Essays from classmates 13,14,15,16

To write:

• Feedback letters on essays submitted by classmates 13-16

Week Nine | Writing Home + Away

Monday October 18^th

To Read:

• “Upon this Rock” by John Jeremiah Sullivan
• “On Writing Young” by Lucas Mann (craft)
• “The Finger of God” by Melissa Faliveno

To write:

• Post responses to readings to discussion board by Sunday at 11:59 p.m CST
• Discussion led by Discussion Leaders 9 & 10. Discussion leaders 9&10 – please post about that week’s readings on the discussion board by Thursday Oct 21
• Mini Essay 5: Write about your hometown, in two sections: the first from your own familiar perspective, and then from the perspective of an outsider. Due Sunday at 11:59 p.m.

Week Ten | Writing Unlikely Forms – The Lyric Essay

October 25^th

To Read:

• “Self-Portrait with Parts Missing and/or Smeared” by Michael Wasson
• “Spill Split” by T Fleischmann
• “Funny, You Don’t Look Like (My Preconceived Ideas of) An Essay” by Chip Livingston

To write:

• Workshop Essay 2 from classmates KATIE CLARK QIDONG LOUIS AND COURTNEY due Sunday 10/31 at 11:59 p.m.
• Mini Essay 4: Steal a strange form and write into it. The content of your essay can be anything, but it should connect or speak to your form in some way, and vice versa. For example, if you’re using the form of a wedding announcement, maybe you’ll use that form to write about relationships, or, to turn it on its head, a breakup. You could do all sorts of how-to guides, but how can you take that form and make it an essay? 
• Post responses to readings to discussion board by Sunday at 11:59 p.m CST
• Discussion led by Discussion Leaders 11&12. Discussion leaders 11&12 – please post about that week’s readings on the discussion board by Thursday

Week Eleven | Workshop

November 1^st

To Read:

• Workshop Essay 2 from classmates KATIE CLARK QIDONG LOUIS AND COURTNEY

To write:

• Feedback letters on Workshop essays submitted by KATIE CLARK QIDONG LOUIS AND COURTNEY
• Workshop Essay 2 from INAYA TRAVIS AUDRA AND JENI due Sunday 11/7 at 11:59 p.m.

Week Twelve | Workshop

November 8^th

To read:

• Workshop Essay 2 from classmates INAYA TRAVIS AUDRA AND JENI

To write:

• Feedback letters on Workshop essays submitted by INAYA TRAVIS AUDRA AND JENI
• Workshop Essay 2 from ABBY KARL AND CAITLYN due Sunday 11/14 at 11:59 p.m.

Week Thirteen | WORKSHOP

November 15^th

To Read:

Workshop Essay 2 from ABBY KARL AND CAITLYN

To Write:

• Feedback letters on Workshop essays submitted by ABBY KARL AND CAITLYN

Week Fourteen | THANKSGIVING – No Class

Monday November 22^nd – no class this week

Week Fifteen | Writing Crime Stories

Monday November 29th

To read:

• “Outside the Manson Pinkberry” by Rachel Monroe
• “The Enduring, Pernicious Whiteness of True Crime” by Elon Green (craft)

To write

• Post to Discussion Board by Sunday at 11:59 p.m.

• Discussion led by Discussion Leaders 13&14. Discussion leaders 13&14 – please post about that week’s readings on the discussion board by Thursday  Dec 2
• Book presentations from ALL classmates due by Sunday  at 11:59 p.m.

Week Sixteen | Writing Unlikely Forms: Audio + Graphic Nonfiction

Monday December 6^th

To read:

• “How to Draw a Horse” by Emma Hunsinger
• Ghetto Life 101 by LeAlan Jones, Lloyd Newman, and David Isay

• “We Forget That Everything Will Become No Longer Ours” by Kristen Radtke

To write

• Post to Discussion Board by Sunday at 11:59 p.m.

• Discussion led by Discussion Leaders 15&16. Discussion leaders 15&16 – please post about that week’s readings on the discussion board by Thursday Dec 9

Finals Week – Try and relax!