CRWR 20413/40413 Technical Seminar in Nonfiction: Dramatizing the Moment
How do we convincingly recreate important episodes from our life? How do we help our readers inhabit those moments that continue to live so urgently within our memory? How much invention are we allowed to employ, and how do we ensure that such accounts remain “truthful”? In this technical seminar in nonfiction, we will explore the craft of dramatization in personal essay and memoir. We will discuss many tools that are familiar to the fiction writer, including scene-building, characterization, and dialogue, as well as aspects unique to the art of nonfiction, such as the incorporation of testimonials, research, and letters, all in the service of dramatizing significant moments from our lived experience. Students will produce reading responses, craft analyses, and short creative exercises putting learned skills into practice.
Contact the instructor for a spot on the waiting list.