Reading for Writers classes focus on a given literary style, genre, or aspect of craft through the consideration a representative selection of readings. Writing and discussion in these classes discovers the subtle techniques used by authors to achieve aesthetic and expressive goals. Rather than engaging primarily in interpretation, these courses illuminate the formal properties of a genre as defined by its practitioners: the bricks, mortar, and architecture of writing. The goal of this inquiry is to enrich our writing, therefore these insights are put into practice through short creative assignments. Since aesthetic and social philosophies often play a role in the development of literary styles, students will master the ideas that informed the works under consideration. The goal, as the name suggests, is for writers to obtain usable knowledge through careful reading and bring this knowledge to their own work. This course fulfills the Reading for Writers requirement.

READING FOR WRITERS FICTION: EXPERIMENTS IN FORM AND STYLE: In this course we will read a variety of texts that venture unconventional methods and forms of literary expression. Fiction writers such as Denis Johnson, Patricia Lockwood, Toni Cade Bambara, Martin Amis, Kazuo Ishiguro, and others—will also be included. Students will respond critically and creatively to these readings as they investigate the relationship between form, style, and meaning. There may be required textbooks or materials associated with this course. This course fulfills the Reading for Writers requirement.

READING FOR WRITERS FICTION: AMERICAN GOTHIC - In this course, we’ll explore a range of works exemplifying the well-crafted, cruel, and often comedic elements of American Gothic fiction, a subgenre revealing the dark underpinnings of a nation that aspires to greatness—yet every day falls short. By delving into a range of authors, we’ll study the evolution of American Gothic from its Southern roots in the 19th Century to contemporary reevaluations of who is allowed to write it. By reading various stories and essays about process, and legendary authors like Edgar Allan Poe and Flannery O’Connor, to writers that explode the canon, like Mary Gaitskill, Percival Everett, George Saunders, and Toni Morrison, students will gain literary insights that will bolster their own writing practices. There may be required textbooks or materials associated with this course. This course fulfills the Reading for Writers requirement.