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Contents Important note Degree Information Degree Aims and Objectives Degree Structure Programme summary Unit Summary: Level Four Unit Summary: Level Five Unit Summary: Level Six Assessment Teaching Methods Tutor Profiles Reference material Document control number: DHCW190515 2 Creative Writing
Important note This handbook provides you with academic information relating specifically to the BA(Hons) Creative Writing, such as the aims and objectives of the degree, the structure of the degree, a sample of tutor profiles and unit descriptions. It is important to read this in conjunction with other OCA study guides, such as: OCA Student Handbook; The Creative Writing Student s Handbook. The OCA Student Handbook provides comprehensive information about studying with the OCA by distance learning, such as how the tuition works, how to contact your tutor, how to submit your work, who to contact within the OCA management and administration team when you have queries or concerns, how to participate in discussions with tutors and fellow students on the student forums on the OCA website, and so on. Creative Writing 3
Degree Information Course Title: BA(Hons) Creative Writing Course Code: OCRWPBAH Degree Aims and Objectives The main educational aims of the BA (Hons) Creative Writing are to: 1. Widen access to education in creative writing at undergraduate level through Open and Flexible Learning; 2. Ensure you gain an experience of writing in a variety of literary forms and genres as a craft and as a tool for exploring our environment and experience; 3. Provide an intellectually stimulating programme of study based on high quality study material delivered by experienced academics and practitioners; 4. Develop your creative capacities and your ability in interpretation and application; 5. Develop your critical understanding of the theoretical and conceptual issues central to the practice of writing and the social, historical and cultural context in which it is practiced; 6. Provide an environment in which you have the possibility of changing your view of the world and your interaction with it. 7. Develop effective writing practitioners who display self-awareness, analytical and communicative skills, and a high degree of reflection. 8. To develop autonomous learners capable of applying intellectual and practical skills in a chosen area of written communications appropriate to employment, further study, or life-long learning. 4 Creative Writing
Course Outcomes On successful completion of the course you will be able to: Knowledge and Understanding 1. Demonstrate proficiency in a comprehensive range of writing styles and literary genres, including poetry, prose fiction and non-fiction. 2. Manage the learning process resourcefully and independently and make appropriate use primary sources and scholarly reviews. 3. Knowledge and critical understanding of the principles of creative writing and knowledge of emerging aspects of the discipline and those at the forefront of debate. 4. Evaluate your own work and that of others critically and objectively. Application 1. Demonstrate a breadth of inventiveness, ideas generation and techniques in the creation of written work. 2. Handle ambiguity and uncertainty effectively. 3. Communicate information and justify written work convincingly to specialist and non-specialist audiences. 4. Engage in appropriate professional practices such as marketing, self presentation and negotiation skills. 5. Demonstrate the development of a personal language as a writer. 6. A creative response to your own aims and objectives and the ability to produce a body of work to a high professional and aesthetic standard. Creative Writing 5
Degree Structure Creative Writing Level Four CW4WGS CW4AOP CW4SCW Level Five CW5WSF CW5PFE CW5WFC CW5LFW CW5SCW Level Six CW6ADA CW6ADB BA Honours Degree Creative Writing All units listed below: Writing 1: Writing Skills Writing 1: Art of Poetry Writing 1: Scriptwriting Two units from the following: Writing 2: Writing Short Fiction Writing 2: Poetry- Form and Experience Writing 2: Writing for Children Writing 2: Life Writing Writing 2: Scriptwriting Both units listed below: Writing 3: Retrospect and Prospect Writing 3: Independent Project 120 credits 40 40 40 120 credits 60 60 60 60 60 120 credits 60 60 Total credits 360 6 Creative Writing
Programme Summary This degree programme encourages you to: Read widely and deeply in the different genres covered by the degree s constituent courses. (Stressing the importance of such reading is a recurring theme embedded in the course literature.) Undertake a series of exercises designed to develop your writing skills across a range of literary forms. Critically explore key texts/writers whose work is illustrative of particular types of writing. Understand the processes of writing that lie behind work met with on the published page. Grasp some of the practicalities involved in preparing and placing work for publication. Widen your knowledge and understanding of the art/craft of writing. Become confident, critical and well informed readers. Fulfil your own creative potential as writers. Each of the constituent courses is assessed by five or six assignments. You are also encouraged to keep a self-reflective writing diary by means of which you can monitor your own learning process. You are supported throughout by one-to-one contact with tutors, who provide detailed feedback on an individual basis. OCA s creative writing courses provide you with the opportunity to gain and/or develop a suite of intellectual and practical skills that are necessary for effective writing but that are also readily transferable to other contexts where good communication, clear expression, coherent thinking, the ability to read critically etc. are valued. This innovative distance-learning degree programme has been designed to be flexible, enabling you, whatever your location to work at a pace that fits in with your particular situation and commitments. The course materials have been written by published writers with experience both of working at an appropriate level of professional excellence in the literary genre concerned, and of teaching students about it. The course tutors are likewise selected on the basis of having practical experience as writers and pedagogical experience as teachers. The number of tutors involved on OCA s creative writing degree programme means that you have access to a wide range and diversity of literary expertise, rather than being reliant on only a handful of teachers. The degree programme is sensitive to the fact that you will be enrolling at different levels of writing expertise. You may be a novice, this may be your first serious foray into creative writing; or you may already have a portfolio of published work behind you. Whatever you bring with you to your degree, studying through OCA will provide a structured and supportive context within which you may foster your formation as a writer and gain educational validation for your work. The Advanced unit at Level 6 has been designed to afford an opportunity to focus on a large-scale creative project. Moving towards its production is facilitated by a mentoring model of tutor-student relationship (and you are able to choose your tutor at this level, selecting the individual whose specialist expertise most closely matches the nature of the work envisaged). Creative Writing 7
Level Four Units: Laying the foundations Level Four units introduce key concepts and the contextual framework for the study of creative writing. They focus on equipping you with the strategies, skills and confidence to move onto the progressively independent work expected at Level Five. Level Four units offer opportunities to explore writing in a range of literary genres and forms, including fiction, prose fiction and poetry. It is an essential element of the course that you keep a continuous self-reflective record of your work to arm yourself with the disciplines you will need at levels five and six. You will be encouraged to experiment, explore and take risks. You will develop the ability to study independently, set your own goals, manage your workload and meet deadlines. On successful completion of three units at this level, you will be awarded 120 credits. If you choose to exit at this point, you will be awarded a Certificate in Higher Education in Creative Writing. 8 Creative Writing
CW4WGS Writing 1: Writing Skills 40 credits The unit offers an introduction to the basic skills needed for writing prose and poetry. The unit offers you a developmental and directed learning pathway, within a context of structured freedom. The teaching materials contain clear instruction and outlines of expectation, covering prose, scriptwriting and poetry. The exercises and assignments are designed to help you to develop your own creative style and voice and to inspire and encourage you to begin writing creatively from direct sensory experience and detailed observation over a wide breadth of genres and forms. You will develop your writing practice by creating a body of work comprising short pieces of writing. You will develop an understanding of critical models by reading, drafting, editing and presenting your creative writing and responding to constructive critical suggestions from your tutor. You will reflect on the writing process and critically appraise your own work by writing reflective commentaries throughout the unit. Indicative Syllabus Content Starting to write basic tips and techniques: keeping a writer s notebook and commonplace book; using freewriting to release your thoughts; observation and the five senses; building a poem or descriptive prose from observation. Writing about people observing and describing people in prose and poetry: your emotions, character, possessions, motivation and history. Making your characters speak: monologue, dialogue, point of view, playwriting and creating variation and balance within the text. Style and language: writing styles (formal, technical, journalistic, etc.), narrative voice and persona, using language with simplicity, economy, clarity and accuracy, using imagery. Plot and structure: getting inspiration; creating interest with character and conflict; mapping a plotline; beginnings, middles and ends; plot structures (the quest, rebirth, etc.) and themes; redrafting work. Learning Outcomes On successful completion of the unit you will be able to: Write effectively drawing on sensory experience and observation. Show development of language, style and expression within your writing. Draft, redraft and edit self-generated texts with discrimination. Reflect on your own learning experience. Creative Writing 9
CW4AOP Writing 1: Art of Poetry 40 credits The unit aims to help you write poetry with an increasing understanding of poetic techniques and traditions. It provides you with the elements of a critical vocabulary, and helps towards a flexible and informed use of language. The first part of the unit discusses essential elements of poetry, with examples, and considers what s involved in writing poems: what you need to think about, study and do. The second part of the unit aims to direct activity more specifically and lead to the production of a body of poems via project-based work that encourages the development of the relevant skills. While there is much freedom to follow personal inclination in the content of assignments, you are encouraged to focus in each on different aspects of poetic craft. Throughout the unit, you will increase your awareness of the formal requirements and on-going practice of poetry whilst developing informed and appropriate critical models, of your own and others writing. Additionally you will develop skills in drafting, editing, and presenting creative work and in responding to constructive suggestions/criticism. You will reflect on the process of writing and critically appraise your own work by writing reflective commentaries throughout the unit and at the end of it. Indicative syllabus content Getting started gathering resources and learning to use the senses. Reading and developing your ear reading and listening to poetry; sound and rhythm. Poetry form and content types of traditional and free verse; gathering material (themes, images, impressions) for poems. Language and construction poetic language; simile and metaphor; drafting a poem. Redrafting and editing title, viewpoint, tense, cutting poems. Learning outcomes On successful completion of the unit, you will be able to: Demonstrate awareness of the structure, form, limitations and specific strengths/problems of writing poetry. Draft and edit self-generated texts, demonstrating discrimination and choice in the deployment of these skills in relation to form and technique. Reflect on your own learning experience. 10 Creative Writing
CW4SCW Writing 1: Scriptwriting 40 credits This course will appeal to any student who has ever watched a film and said afterwards, I d like to do that but where do I begin? As well as plenty of exercises and analysis of scripts and films, this course will equip the student with a writer s toolbox filled with the basics, for example: how to professionally lay out a script and structure it, how to write compelling dialogue and how to breathe life into characters. It will also introduce students to film terms and techniques such as montage, the cut and flashback. On completion of the course students will not only have acquired the nuts and bolts of screenwriting but will also have penned their own 30 minute film script. Indicative syllabus content Part One : What is a screenplay? Visual storytelling versus prose storytelling The script as a set of instructions Script layout What is genre? Part Two: Creating convincing characters Building character biographies Stereotypes and how to avoid them What does my character need? Conflict and tension as the basis of a good narrative Part Three: Picture the scene Writing your first scene The dramatic arc Suspense Storyboarding and step outlines Film techniques montage, visual directions, the cut, leitmotif, flashback, fade in and fade out Part Four: Dialogue What are you saying? The purpose of dialogue Idiom and idiolect Subtext Part Five: Writing the 30 minute screenplay Ideas and approach Planning the screenplay : synopsis and treatment How to write a great opening scene Completing the first draft Re-Drafting and Editing Creative Writing 11
Learning outcomes On successful completion of the unit you will be able to: analyse and put into practice the basics of screenwriting through a series of exercises access a writer s toolbox of techniques specifically related to writing for screen write, redraft and complete a 30 minute script show judgement of your own work in response to constructive feedback. 12 Creative Writing
Level Five Units: Intermediate stage At Level Five, you are encouraged to progress to becoming an independent, self-motivated writer by developing the skills you have already gained and begin to develop your own personal voice. At this level, you can choose the direction and content of your project work by working closely with your tutor. You develop your individual research methodologies to find the material for assignments. You will be encouraged to cultivate working routines from which an independent style will evolve. You will be expected to develop proficiency in a comprehensive range of writing styles and genres. You will also need to maintain a continuous, self-reflective commentary for the recording of project and assignment work, augmented by a critical discourse on progress. Through this log you are expected to show a creative, critically informed and self-reflective approach to your writing practice including your own work and that of others. Assessment at Level Five: Coursework 80%, writing diary 10%, creative reading commentary of approx 2000 words 10%. On successful completion of two units at this level, you will be awarded 120 credits. If you choose to exit at this point, you will be awarded a Diploma in Higher Education in Creative Writing. Creative Writing 13
CW5WFC Writing 2: Writing for Children 60 credits The unit offers you a developmental and directed learning pathway, within a context of considerable individual choice and freedom. The teaching materials offer background theoretical and historical information, and also contain extracts from contemporary books for children, accompanied by analysis and process-description of the work. The teaching materials contain clear instruction and outlines of expectation. The exercises and assignments are designed to help you develop your own creative style and voice. You will reflect on the writing process and critically appraise your own work by writing reflective commentaries throughout the unit and at the end of the course. You are expected to keep a log of your research findings. The unit doesn t cover children s picture books, writing for comics or generic series, or children s poetry. You will have considerable flexibility as to the style and content of your assignments. There is no pre-set order for the units, which are intended as a flexible resource enabling you to explore aspects of the creative process in the order which seems most appropriate. The learning experience is twofold: the unit materials offering a solid framework and the tutor/student one-to-one relationship offering structure and direction. The OCA website contains interviews with writers, publishers and other key practitioners and professionals within the field, in which you reflect on your own practice and experience. Indicative syllabus content A short history of children s fiction and survey of the three main genres of contemporary children s fiction: fantasy; action/adventure; and true-life drama. Identifying and targeting an audience: writing for a particular age group and developing the ability to perceive the world through the child s eye. Structuring and plotting a story: using pace, suspense and focus to hold the reader s interest. Authorial voice and writing dialogue: developing a distinctive writer s voice, choosing the best narrative voice (first person, third person, etc.) and using dialogue to create particular effects. Learning outcomes On successful completion of the unit, you will be able to: write experimentally, demonstrating a range of styles, showing awareness of the genre synthesise contextual understanding within a portfolio of writing in this genre show discrimination and awareness in drafting, editing and presenting texts demonstrate, in terms of form and presentation, that your work is of a professional standard. 14 Creative Writing
CW5SCW Writing 2: Scriptwriting 60 credits Writing Drama for stage and radio and the small screen Part One: What is drama? How is it different to writing prose? This section will introduce the student to stage and radio drama, comparing and contrasting the two genres. Guidelines will also be provided which will help the student decide whether their idea is more suitable for stage or radio. The next section, Dialogue, will develop the knowledge base on writing good dialogue, introduced in the level 1 course Introduction to Scriptwriting. Through a rich variety of examples it will allow the student to investigate the function of dialogue in stage and radio drama, exposition and what is left unsaid subtext. Assignment 1 will ask the student to complete a dialogue exercise using the techniques in Part One plus a reflective commentary. Part Two: Writing for radio will begin with a brief history of radio drama from the recording of live stage broadcasts in the early twentieth century to the contemporary purpose-written output from broadcasters such as the BBC and RTE. The power of radio drama will be revealed through a short case study of the furore created by Orson Welles s 1937 broadcast of The War of the Worlds. Using a range of examples from radio drama this section will introduce the student to the techniques required for writing radio drama. These will include script layout with technical guidance on, for example, special effects, The Theatre of the Mind which will reveal the potential and limitations of radio drama using case studies such as Dylan Thomas s Milk Wood and The War of the Worlds, and writing for the ear: how to create a soundscape using sound effects and contrast and variation. Assignment 2 will ask students to write a 15-minute short radio play. Part Three: Writing for stage will include a brief history of the theatre from Aristotle s Poetics to Jez Butterworth s Jerusalem. By the end of this section the student will understand that dramatic action is the key difference between writing a short story or novel and writing for stage. The section will also include guidance and exercises on script layout for stage, genre in theatre from the modern tragedy eg. Death of a Salesman; the whodunit eg. The Mousetrap to the political eg. Enron to the state of the nation eg. Jerusalem, structure in the stage play from the one-act play to the five-act play, and an introduction to the different types of stages eg. the proscenium arch; setting and locations; props. For Assignment 3 the student will complete a 15-minute one-act play for stage or a 15-minute extract from a longer play plus a reflective commentary. Part Four: Narrators, Soliloquies and monologues will give students an opportunity to broaden and flex their range of dramatic techniques (especially in terms of dialogue) using a range of case studies and exercises. The student will discover the various roles of the narrator in drama eg. help tell the story, reveal information, comment on the action. It will also offer guidance on the pitfalls and advantages in using a narrator for stage and/or radio. The Soliloquies section will introduce students to the soliloquy: a speech of extended length and internal coherence, delivered by a single speaker, that does not include another s response. Examples of soliloquies will range from Shakespeare to contemporary playwright Martin McDonagh. In the Monologues section the student will be given Creative Writing 15
examples from plays written entirely as monologues such as Alan Bennett s Talking Heads and Willy Russell s Shirley Valentine. They will also discover how to bring other characters into the monologue and the use of the confidant. Assignment 4 asks students to complete a dramatic exercise of approximately 10 minutes duration using a narrator, a soliloquy or a monologue plus a reflective commentary. Part 5: Adaptation, planning, drafting and editing, the markets will include the art of adaptation for stage and radio. The student will study some examples of successful adaptation e.g. The Woman in Black and serialisations of classic novels on BBC Radio 4, planning, crafting and fine-tuning a piece of stage or radio drama, and the markets and outlets for stage and radio drama. Assignment 5 will ask students to complete a 30 minute full-length radio or stage drama plus a reflective commentary. Indicative syllabus content Exercises, projects and assignments in unit materials Formative assessment comprising written feedback and interaction with tutor via email, phone and/or webcam Pre-assessment review Summative assessment Peer support through engagement on student forums and critiques on blogs Documentation of the learning journey through a learning log or blog and reflective commentary Independent research A critical review Learning outcomes On successful completion of the unit you will be able to: Use the primary skills of narrative - story, character and dialogue by analysis and practice. Demonstrate an understanding of the demands of differing specific media for script (stage, screen, radio). Edit and redraft your narrative and dialogues texts. Show judgment of your own work in response to constructive feedback. 16 Creative Writing
CW5WSF Writing 2: Writing Short Fiction 60 credits The unit aims to inspire and encourage you to practise independent creative writing within the genre of the short story. The unit offers you a developmental and directed learning pathway, within a context of considerable choice and freedom. You will develop an understanding of the formal requirements and on-going practice of this genre by creating a body of work that demonstrates diversity and understanding. The teaching materials contain clear instruction and outlines of expectation. The assignments are designed to help students to develop their own creative style and voice. You will have considerable flexibility as to the style and content of your assignments. You will reflect on and critically appraise your own work by writing reflective commentaries throughout the unit. You are encouraged to develop informed and appropriate critical models to engage with your own writing and the writing of others and to develop higher level skills in reading, formulating, researching, drafting, editing and presenting creative work and in responding to constructive suggestions/criticism. Indicative syllabus content Narrative techniques: and how these are integrated to create a whole work of short fiction. Writing and drafting short fiction. The evolution and development of short fiction to the present day. Learning to craft short fiction through reading the work of contemporary and earlier authors and authors commentaries on writing. Learning outcomes On successful completion of the unit you will be able to: demonstrate in a creative body of work an understanding of the structure, form and techniques in relation to short fiction. show discrimination in drafting and editing self-generated texts and in your commentary in response to the tutor s critical feedback. show evidence of wide and critical reading in practical and theoretical work. critically review a contemporary work/movement or a writer. Creative Writing 17
CW5PFE Writing 2: Poetry Form and Experience 60 credits Poetry Form and Experience looks at a wide range of poetic forms, from the short lyric poem to the epic narrative poem, as well as providing a short history of poetry and encouraging you to practice writing in a variety of forms. You choose to build up a folio of writing which has undergone critical appraisal and revision. You may choose to pursue a personal writing goal -- anything from writing a sonnet to completing a sequence of poems. Indicative syllabus content A short history of British poetry from Celtic/Viking times to the present day. A survey of modern and contemporary poetry and the development of free verse. Poetic structure: the diversity of classical poetic forms (the sonnet; terza rima, villanelles and terzanelles; ballads, ballades and odes; blank verse, syllabics and long poems) and ways in which poets have modified these forms to create particular poetic effects. Learning outcomes On successful completion of the unit, you will be able to: produce creative outputs which demonstrate awareness of form, structure, historical context, limitations, and specific strengths/problems of a range of poetic forms draft and edit self-generated texts learning discrimination and choice in the deployment of these skills in relation to form, language, creativity and technique reflect on and shape the direction and design of your own learning experience write a creative reading commentary on a contemporary work/movement or a poet. 18 Creative Writing
CW5LFW Writing 2: Life Writing 60 credits The unit aims to inspire and encourage you to practise independent creative writing within the genre of life writing (creative non-fiction). The unit offers you a developmental and directed learning pathway, within a context of considerable choice and freedom. You will increase your awareness of the formal requirements and on-going practice of this genre by creating a body of creative nonfiction work (approximately 20,000 words in total) that demonstrates diversity and understanding. The teaching materials offer background theoretical and historical information, and also contain extracts from examples of the genre, accompanied by analysis and process-description of the work. The teaching materials contain clear instruction and outlines of expectation. The exercises and assignments are designed to help you to develop your own creative style and voice. You will reflect on the writing process and critically appraise your own work by writing reflective commentaries throughout the unit and at the end of the course. You are expected to keep a log of your research findings. You are encouraged to develop informed and appropriate critical models to engage with your own writing and the writing of others and to develop higher level skills in reading, formulating, researching, drafting, editing and presenting creative work and in responding to constructive suggestions/ criticism. You will have considerable flexibility as to the style and content of your assignments and will be encouraged to develop your own individual voice as a writer. Indicative syllabus content The history and different types of creative non-fiction (autobiography, biography, narrative nonfiction). Writing strategies reconciling truth and imagination, finding your voice, deciding what to write and how to structure it, dealing with sensitive issues. Imaginative journalism and the internet personal and professional blogging; writing personal essays and imaginative and feature articles. Research skills, including interview techniques, research tools (reference and other books, official records, museums, the internet) and collating research findings. The process of writing planning, character development, using emotion, drama and humour, and creating balance in your work. Preparing your work for publication and ways of publishing. Learning outcomes On successful completion of the unit, you will be able to: draft and edit self-generated texts using a range of writing techniques reflecting a developed understanding of the genre of life writing take greater responsibility for the direction and design of your own learning experience prepare your work to the standards required for publication in terms of form and presentation write a creative reading commentary on a contemporary work/movement or writer demonstrating a diverse range of research skills. Creative Writing 19
Level Six Units: Becoming an independent practising creative writer Your horizons will expand in Level six to embrace the practical, theoretical and conceptual issues which are central to the practice of writing. You will be encouraged to demonstrate a breadth of inventiveness, ideas generation and techniques in the creation of your creative work. You will gain an understanding of the professional considerations with which you need to be equipped in order to pursue this professionally, including an understanding of the vocational context within which the discipline sits and in particular personal initiative and responsibility and decision making in challenging contexts. Society is in constant change nationally and internationally and it is important to become and remain aware of the social, political and economic issues which affect creative writing. For your personal project and extended essay, a body of work on an issue of significant topical importance of your own choice will complete your studies at this level. You should, at this level, make appropriate use of primary sources and scholarly reviews, including those at the forefront of debate. You must demonstrate an underpinning understanding of literary theory and concepts and show that you can articulate and comment upon through debate, and devise and sustain arguments. You should carefully consider the selection of a theme for your project in consultation with your tutor. Through your project, you will be asked to demonstrate your ability to communicate information and justify your work convincingly. Assessment at Level 6: Coursework 80%, Writing Diary 10%, Creative Reading Commentary of approx 3500 words 10%. On successful completion of two units at this level, you will be awarded the BA (Hons) Creative Writing. 20 Creative Writing
CW6ADA Writing 3: Retrospect and Prospect 60 credits The unit offers opportunities to build on the skills and knowledge gained from the previous writing units and increase awareness of the formal requirements and on-going practice of the chosen genre. Students can choose from the following genres: poetry, script, novel, or short story, and will work upon an extended piece of work in your chosen genre. It allows students to negotiate, plan and complete your own programme of work, and to design and implement your own learning strategies. As well as generating your own writing, students undertake an extended research project on a subject of your choice culminating in a 3,500 word creative reading commentary. The unit is based on a mentoring/supervision model. Students select a tutor from OCA Portfolio of Advanced Course tutors. Here tutors introduce themselves and offer in general terms the sorts of writing and learning approaches you are prepared to work with. Students must submit samples of your work to the chosen tutor. Indicative syllabus content The specific content of the course is negotiated between the student and the tutor. For example, students might choose to direct your work towards the development of a long poem or poems and back this up with a project researching and analysing T S Eliot s The Waste Land. A student might choose to write a series of short stories around a common theme, complemented by an analysis of contemporary short story practice. Students reflect on the writing process and critically appraise your own work by writing assignment commentaries throughout the unit and a reflective commentary at the end of the course summing up the student s experiences and achievements. Learning outcomes On successful completion of the unit, you will be able to: organise the research, preparation and production of an extended body of creative writing, showing an understanding of the form organise materials and plan realistic schedules for writing and redrafting reflect critically on drafts and edit your own work in relation to responses to it demonstrate an understanding of the structure, form, historical context and technical challenges of your chosen genre, as revealed by other writers. Creative Writing 21
CW6ADB Writing 3: Independent Project 60 credits The unit offers opportunities to build on the skills and knowledge gained from Retrospect and Prospect. It helps to induct you into the practice of professional writers, by leading you to further review, revise, and restructure existing work, and to continue to build upon it. You will continue with the genre-specific work generated in Retrospect and Prospect, to generate a larger, more polished and more marketable body of work. You will further revise/redraft earlier work and add to it, paying particular attention to the structure of a longer complete work. The unit is based on a mentoring/supervision model. Working with your chosen tutor, you will negotiate, plan and complete your own programme of work, which will be an extension of the work achieved in Retrospect and Prospect. The mutual agreement of the plan of work by both student and tutor will in effect form the syllabus. For example, a student working on a novel might decide to revise and restructure the chapters submitted for Retrospect and Prospect, in a such a way as to radically improve the work: or he/she might decide to build on the work achieved in Retrospect and Prospect by adding a further 15,000 words (5 assignments x 2,500-3,000 words each) to the novel. A student working in script might develop work from Retrospect and Prospect into a complete radio, screen, or theatre script. A student working in poetry might focus on thorough revisions of work from Retrospect and Prospect, with the aim of submitting it to magazines and competitions, or might chose to write an additional body of poetry, towards a collection. A student working in short story might rewrite and revise stories from Retrospect and Prospect, or might draft new ones, thinking about the links and structure needed for a collection of short stories. As well as generating your own writing, you will examine contemporary writing and criticism in the genre of your own practice, focussing particularly on what contemporary writers have to say about your own working practice. This study will culminate in a 3,500 word creative reading commentary. You will reflect on the writing process and critically appraise your own work by writing assignment commentaries throughout the unit and a reflective commentary at the end of the course summing up your experiences and achievements. Learning Outcomes On successful completion of the unit, you will be able to: plan and structure the continuation of an extended body of creative writing, showing an understanding of the form. organise materials and plan realistic schedules for writing and redrafting a longer work demonstrate thorough research and organisational skills. form sound judgments incorporating on your own work and on responses to it, and incorporate that criticism in polished redrafts and revisions of your work. sustain informed arguments on ideas and techniques at the forefront of critical debate. 22 Creative Writing
Assessment Assessment methods: There are no examinations. Assessment is through the examination of personal development planning and continual reflection in your writing diary, practical projects, creative reading commentaries and essays. Assessment tasks are linked to the objectives of each unit. As you progresses through the unit the assessment increasingly encourages autonomous learning and self-evaluation. Tutors provide feedback during the unit, with constructive criticism, and assessment takes place once you have completed a unit in full. You are assumed to be planning to enter for assessment unless it is identified at the beginning of the unit that you do not have this aspiration. The personal tutor works with you to advise them on the assessment process. You use OCA guidelines to prepare a portfolio to send to OCA for assessment. This submission includes the summative assignments of each section of the unit. Assessment criteria The Creative Writing degree has adopted overarching assessment criteria, these trace the development of the work as outlined in the units. Presentation and technical correctness Grammatical accuracy, punctuation, layout, spelling, awareness of literary conventions, and the ability (where appropriate) to play with these conventions and fit them to your needs. Language Its appropriateness to genre, subject matter, and characters. Avoidance of cliché, employment of a wide vocabulary, awareness of the rhythmic powers of language, and an ability to make appropriate use of imagery. Above level 4, we are looking for the development of an individual voice. Creativity Imagination, experimentation, inventive exploration of subject matter, originality, and empathy. Contextual knowledge Evidence of reading, research, critical thinking and reflection. Engagement with contemporary thinking and practice in the specific genre (e.g. Poetry). Craft of writing Technical competence in your chosen genre (e.g. in prose, in areas such as narrative, plotting, setting, voice, tense, characterisation, etc; in poetry, in areas such as phrasing, idiom and rhythm.) (20%) (20%) (20%) (20%) (20%) Creative Writing 23
Learning, teaching and assessment strategies The Open College of the Arts offers all students the same quality of learning experience. There are also added value aspects to study which all students are entitled to access, but are not part of the core offer. The core offer consists of: Learning materials. One to one feedback and support from a named tutor. Support materials (such as guides on aspects of study). Access to dialogue with peers via the OCA student website. Learner support for any difficulties with the practicalities of studying. Library resources. In addition to the core aspects of study, you may access the following on an ad hoc basis: Study visits (to exhibitions, readings) in different parts of the country and occasional workshops. Current creative arts reviews and discussion via the OCA blog. Independent learning Through the OCA model of distance learning units, providing projects and research activities, you learn to study independently, while backed up by tutor support and learn to work with others by interacting with them, providing and receiving support and exchanging ideas on the OCA forum. Communications Communication between OCA, tutors and students is predominantly via email. In a small minority of cases, where students do not have internet access, communication is by post and telephone. We are encouraging the use of Skype for tutorials, as this can enliven the interaction between tutor and student. Peer communication takes place in the student forums, or via comments on the WeareOCA blog or other student blogs. Delivery Open tuition: You work from the course materials and send regular assignments to your tutor, normally by post but sometimes by email in the case of digital submissions. Tutors then review each assignment and provide written feedback. There are typically 5 assignments for level 1 courses and 6 assignments for level 2 courses, supplemented by projects. Tutor reports are copied to the OCA head office and subject to periodic review to ensure standards are being maintained. You are also able to contact tutors informally between assignments (subject to reasonable limits). Course materials: The written course materials have been specifically produced for distance learning delivery and are designed for individual self-study. You consist of subject-specific learning content and a series of learning projects each culminating in an assignment, the results of which are discussed with the tutor. The course materials contain a balance of practical exercises and large scale projects and research points. 24 Creative Writing
Tutor profiles All the creative writing tutor profiles are available on www.oca-uk.com. Reading lists Reading lists are made available on a course by course basis on the OCA student website. www.oca-student.com Creative Writing 25
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