English Composition and Creative Writing

3 semester credits. This course adds a critical dimension to writing skills through analysis and advocacy. Students will examine language from the perspectives of logic, induction/deduction, facts, inference, judgements, and formal and informal fallacies of written expression. Reasoning and argumentation approaches are covered and exercised through the writing projects required by the course. Critical writing is also examined according to the awareness of diverse contexts and audiences and developing persuasive claims through reasoning and evidence. Prerequisites: At least one college writing course or equivalent.

3 semester credits. This course is based on an introduction to fiction writing. Topics cover the technical elements of fiction writing through lectures and in-class writing exercises that develop dialogue, voice, plot, image, character development, point of view, scene, structure, and other prose skills. Coursework will be further enriched with assignments that students will use in writing more substantial pieces of fiction. Students will learn to critique work from a writer's perspective. Prerequisites: Foundational writing skills are not covered. Students are expected to apply a strong command of syntax, structure, and style according to the course topic.

3 semester credits. This is a course for those students interested in autobiographical writing as a means of clarifying their own perception of the world, as an instrument to improve writing skills, and as a source of potential material and ideas for creative writing in both poetry and prose. Students will learn the use of narration and reflection and the distinction between private and personal. Students will regularly share writing exercises with the class for critique and discussion. Reading and analyzing the autobiographical work of major writers will play an integral role in the course. Prerequisites: At least one college writing course or equivalent.

3 semester credits. This class is based on the craft of poetry writing. An important element is the discussion of student poems and the debate on assigned readings featuring major poets. Course topics will be paced to help students to balance the necessary technical skills (rhythm, sound, diction, and shape) with finding their own voice as poets. Students will be required to write and revise a body of original poems and present them for class critique. Prerequisites: Creative Writing, a 300-level writing course, or equivalent.

3 semester credits. This course provides students with the fundamental skills of academic writing for undergraduate studies. The aim of the course focuses on the process of writing and how to organize and structure an essay. Students will learn about the phases of preparing (brainstorming, mapping, outlining), drafting, reviewing and revising, and editing papers that successfully analyze topics as required by academic courses and research. Topics also include strategies for improving coherence, discourse, summarization, as well as introductory awareness of source credibility, in preparation for the citation and research work covered in Fundamentals of Academic Writing and Literacy.

3 semester credits. This creative writing course will guide students in finding their own voice as a result of their experiences within the city of Florence. Florence and Tuscany have historically provided inspiration for a substantial number of Anglo-Saxon writers - poets ( Percy Bysshe Shelley, Elizabeth Barrett Browning), novelists (George Eliot, D.H. Lawrence, E.M. Forster, Thomas Harris, Sarah Dunant), and travel writers/memoirists (John Ruskin, Mary McCarthy, David Leavitt). After reading and discussing their work, assignments in the form of short stories, poetry, and non-fiction will focus on finding an individual voice, developing ideas, and refining them through drafting and revision. Emphasis will also be placed on the students' ability to evaluate and critique their own work and that of their peers. Visits within the local community will be an important part of the course. Prerequisites: At least one college writing course or equivalent.

Cross-listed from Journalism

Cross-listed from Publishing

Cross-listed from Publishing

Cross-listed from Publishing

Cross-listed from Photography

Cross-listed from Fashion Communication and Publishing