This advanced level discussion course is best suited to fiction writers who are familiar with the workshop model. Students will be expected to write and substantially revise two new short stories for peer critique. We will read short fiction by contemporary masters of the form, including Alice Munro, Edward P. Jones, Lesley Nneka Arimah, and others. We will analyze and discuss this reading as a writer would, asking ourselves not just whether something works, but why or why not, and how we might apply this type of thinking to our own work. We will revisit the elements of fiction, discussing them in the context of both the assigned reading and student submissions. We will learn to think of revision not as a matter of tweaking and refining, but as a process of discovery—very often, the real work of writing.  By the end of the semester, writers will have written two stories, revised a portfolio of new fiction, and expanded their understanding of the possibilities inherent in their work.

Important: Students will need to print and distribute copies of their work on workshop days. Students will be expected to read and thoroughly comment on 3 peer stories per week, in addition to assigned readings (usually 1-2 short stories).

Students will write and revise two short stories over the course of class.  Final project will be their revised portfolio of this work.

Note: Students who are declared creative-writing minors or English sub-concentrators will receive alternative enrollment instructions in an email before registration begins. Creative-writing minors and English sub-concentrators are not required to submit a writing sample for review.

To enroll in this course, non-creative writing minors and sub-concentrators need to:

Step 1:  Submit a writing sample to: englishcwsubmissions@umich.edu. Writing samples are generally between 5-15 pages of original relevant work (short stories, excerpts, poems).  For priority consideration, writing samples should be submitted no later than 5pm on Thursday, March 31, 2022. Students should receive notification of their acceptance (or not) no later than Monday, April 18, 2022. Students may continue to submit writing samples after the priority deadline until seats are full.

Step 2:  Complete the course section preference form no later than 5pm on Thursday, March 31, 2022.  Students are encouraged to consider second and third choice sections (where available) as potential back-up options. The back-up options should be times that will actually work with your schedule.