CRWH and CPWH In House Module Catalogue - Feb 2019-1 (1)

Creative & Professional Writing

Module Handbook 2019-20

You have in front of you the BA Creative Writing and Creative & Professional Writing programme

student module handbook for academic year 2019-20. It has been created by the staff team at

Winchester to assist you in making module choices for your next year, whether that is Year 2 or

Year 3, of your studies.

This handbook should be seen as a supplement to the more formal module catalogues that are

produced by Registry that are specific to your pathway; you will still need to get hold of copies of

those (in fact both the Creative Writing, English Literature module catalogues produced by Registry

if you are to fully appreciate the choices that are available to you) but the idea of this particular

handbook is to provide you with additional information on the Creative Writing modules written by

the tutors who actually teach them. By utilising the Registry catalogues in conjunction with this

handbook we hope you will be able to make more informed choices about your future studies.

As such, this handbook contains all you (should) need to know about modules. That said, if you

have further questions to ask you can e-mail any of the relevant module tutors or else sign up for

tutorials with them (or with me, as Programme Leader).

As a final note, please be aware that you are not always guaranteed your first choices (so choose

your ‘reserve modules’ wisely) and that certain modules may not run due to lack of interest. If a

module needs to be cancelled, we will contact you at the first opportunity.

Best,

Glenn Fosbraey

Programme Leader,

BA Creative Writing / BA Creative & Professional Writing

19/20 MODULE RUNNING ORDER

Semester 1:

Level 5:

CW2201 Re-writing and Adapting

PW2009 Publishing 2: Self-publishing, the Indie

Author and E-publishing

CW2104 Composing Song Lyrics

CW2105 Creating Short Screenplays

CW2219 Poetry: Making it New

CW2226 Myths, Dreams and Creative Writing

PW2003 Telling True Stories

PW2007 Volunteering for Creative & Professional

Writing

CW2215 Writing and the Environment

PW2213 Media Writing

Semester 2:

Level 5:

CW2207 Creative Voice II

PW2000 Professional Writing 2: Rewriting and

Revising

CW2102 The Short Story

CW2103 Fiction for Children

CW2109 Playwriting 1

CW2210 Scriptwriting for Mainstream Television

CW2220 Fairy Tale Fictions

CW2224 Horror Fiction

PW2002 Travel Writing

PW2008 Professional Placement Module

PW2218 Life Writing & Biography

PR2000 Exploring teaching as a Career

Level 6:

Level 6:

CW3002 Extended Creative Project (30 credit

module)

PW3007 Extended Professional Project (30 credit

module)

PW3009 Publishing 3: Small Press Publication

CW3204 Creative Voice III

CW3206 Scriptwriting: Innovation

CW3207 Creative Non-fiction for Children

CW3212 Writing Comic Books and Graphic Novels

CW3214 Advanced Fictional Writing (occurrence

A)

CW3220 Adapting Crime Fiction

CW3224 Poetry: Writing for Publication

PW3216 Creativity: Writing and Teaching

CW3002 Extended Creative Project (30 credit

module)

PW3007 Extended Professional Project (30 credit

module)

PW3000 Professional Writing 3: copy editing

CW3214 Advanced Fictional Writing (occurrence

B)

CW3217 Creative Visions

CW3102 Creative Vigilance - fictions and

metafictions

CW3221 Science Fictions & Fantasies


PW3008 Script to Screen

PW3222 Writing for Radio

Semester 1

Year 2

Level 5

Modules

CW2201 Rewriting and Adapting

ASSESSMENT: 1 essay + 1 script

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Andrew Melrose

Mandatory for CW students, Optional for C&PW students

This module will introduce you to a variety of texts that all broadly fall within the same genre category. You

will examine these texts in order to understand genre, such as: Gothic, Crime and Romance.

You will also address the genre features of the texts themselves. Then you will consider the various ways in

which writers can rewrite/adapt/extend/echo texts of the past, at a theoretical level, before embarking on

your own process of adapting or rewriting one of the focus texts within the context of a specified genre. This

could mean that you change the form of the piece, extent or play with its genre features, or else change its

genre entirely in an attempt to focus on or privilege a particular element of the original text that they decide

merits attention. Thus practical creative writing will be informed by (for example) discussions as to the

boundaries of genre and historical era, about the motivations for adaptation and rewriting, and of the

cultural relevance and longevity of certain genres.

PW2009 Publishing II: Self-Publishing, the Indie Author and E-Publishing

ASSESSMENT: 1 e-book plan + 1 e-book creative piece

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Lisa Koning

Mandatory for Professional Writing Students, optional for others

Publishing electronically has become a serious contender for writers looking to become published authors

and a rival to traditional hard-copy formats. As the industry continues to evolve with the growth of online

platforms, more and more authors are appearing in both forms, some becoming very successfully solely via

the online market.

In this module, students will produce their own e-book to present themselves to the wider world as an indie

author. Through gaining an understanding of e-publishing and learning new skills, students will also develop

a ‘product’ or ‘brand’, to promote the writer and their talents. This is a very practical module, where

students utilise the variety of writing and copy-editing skills they have learnt to this point in their studies,

and combine these with the design, production, marketing and advertising techniques required of writers

who self-publish. We’ll also look at a wide range of applications and tools available to the indie author,

enabling them to create a unique and professional image for their e-publication, without having to become

graphic design experts.

CW2104 Composing Song Lyrics

ASSESSMENT: 1 creative submission + 1 essay

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Glenn Fosbraey

The module will be concerned with introducing students to the basics of song lyric composition. It

will focus in particular upon the nature of the relationship between form, melody and rhythm.

Students will be introduced to a broad survey of the history of the song lyric, and will discuss the

role of lyrics as social commentaries, personal accounts, and political statements. As well as

offering an opportunity to master the basics of song-writing in its various forms, students will be

involved in discussion of the changing nature of the content of this traditional form as it has

developed over time. Artists discussed will include (among many others): Bob Dylan, The Beatles,

Eminem, The Smiths, NWA, Joni Mitchell, Tori Amos, Nine Inch Nails, Eels, Kanye West.

CW2105 Creating Short Screenplays

ASSESSMENT: 1 essay + 1 script

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Nick Joseph

Short films are a recognised ‘way in’ to filmmaking. Hundreds are made each year, all over the

world, popular, not least, because they’re relatively cheap to make, but at the same time provide

an opportunity to showcase talent and innovation in writing/directing/camerawork. Like the wellcrafted

short story, one-off short films can create extremely effective visual and aural narratives,

and are certainly different to feature films, just as short stories differ from novels.

In ‘Creating Short Screenplays’ you’ll have the opportunity to study this medium, and write a

short film script of your own. In the module:

‣ we’ll view and deconstruct several short films, identifying narrative structures and

devices, and delving into the myriad visual/aural options available to screenwriters of this

medium. At the end of this process, you’ll write your own narrative analysis of a chosen

short film (the first assignment)

‣ we’ll look at film scripts, to further develop skills in writing in script form

‣ we’ll work collectively, as a group, to map and write (from scratch) a short screenplay.

‣ you’ll write your own short screenplay (the second assignment)

CW2215 Writing and the Environment

ASSESSMENT: 1 creative piece + 1 essay

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Mark Rutter

“The field trips were great fun and really helped to put things in perspective”

On this module we will study and respond to the environment itself. We will read examples of all

the major forms of contemporary environmental writing, ranging from closely observed nature

essays and poetry to eco-dystopian speculative fiction. But we don’t simply want to sit in the

classroom and write – we want to actively engage with our environment, from fields and forests,

to dockyards and shopping centres. Three seminars will be spent in the field, with one field trip to

the Winchester water meadows, one to the New Forest, and the other to Southampton city

centre.

One of the assignments will be based on the field trips, and students will use journals and

photographs to record any interesting things they see or experience, keeping track of any ideas

for stories, poems, etc, that arise. We will look at examples of environmental art and film, to

explore the ways in which environmental themes have been tackled in non-literary forms of

expression. And of course we will discuss the great environmental and ecological questions of our

time.

“I got a lot out of the time we spent workshopping”

CW2219 Poetry: Making it New

ASSESSMENT: 1 portfolio of poems + 1 recorded performance or rationale

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Julian Stannard

“Poems explained and de-mystified, it helped me write poetry too!”

This module is for those of you who completed the ‘Poetry and Poetic Expression’ module at Level 1 and

who now want to pursue your studies in poetry and improve your skills as a poet.

This is where things start spicing up and the module begins

with the Modernist crisis when Ezra Pound is talking about

smashing up the iambic pentameter and Eliot is writing The

Waste Land. Nothing can ever be the same again! No more

poems about mossy banks, unless they’re faux translations

from the Chinese. This is the age of manifestos and revolutions

and international movements! Hold on tight, enjoy,

experiment. Discover ventriloquism!

In post war England, there’s a reaction to all of this. Philip

Larkin (‘They fuck you up, your mum and dad’) is calling for a

return to poetic sanity and no more putting your hands in the

myth-kitty, thank you! Poets of his ilk are trying to restore the

English line after that earlier European/American hammering, so it all gets profoundly melancholic and

English and there’s talk about pies.

Later twentieth century poets take a pitchfork to the toadish Larkin and just start fooling round really, but in

a seriously ludic way; so lots of poems about mad cows and yon golden clitoris and the summer of 1572 and

more reasons why you shouldn’t keep a gun in the house.

WHAT HAPPENS IN THE TEACHING SESSIONS?

Well, life-changing experiences really and lots of lively talk; talk about the work of key poets and talk about

your poems and your reactions to poems and a chance to show your poetic hand in the workshops and

writing poems there and then and beginning to realise that your own voice is changing and expanding and

taking off !

“Relaxed and comfortable atmosphere, I suddenly realized I actually enjoy poetry!”

CW2226: Myths, Dreams and Creative Writing

ASSESSMENT: 2000 word creative piece (complete short story, any genre) + 2000 word essay

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Matt Elphick

‘Course content was very interesting. I enjoyed the texts

on the reading list very much.’

‘This was great fun and I’ll miss doing it.’

‘Really helpful preparation for assessments.’

This module explores the structures, symbols and archetypes of stories to see how we can be inspired as

writers and how we can use these underlying elements in our own writing. We will look at Carl Jung’s

theories of archetypes, dreams and the collective unconscious, as well as Joseph Campbell’s work on myth

and the hero’s journey, to see how these ideas are reflected in writing, films and games that we enjoy today.

We will ‘map’ key features of different myths and explore how contemporary writers, such as Neil Gaiman

and Jeanette Winterson, have reworked those ideas in their fiction.

Campbell said that: ‘dream is the personalized myth, myth the

depersonalized dream’ and this module invites you to focus on dreams

and myths as inspiration for your own writing. You can either use your

own dreams or choose a mythical story (from any culture) as the basis

for your assignments. As part of preparing for the creative piece we’ll

have informal (and relaxed!) presentations – in which everyone tells

the group what they’re working on, and what they’ve found out about

a myth or dream, and gets help and feedback for how to develop their

ideas from the group and the tutor.

In later sessions we will work in small groups to give feedback on workin-progress.

The first assignment is the creative piece (60%) and the

second assignment is an essay (40%) about using myth or dream as an

inspiration for writing.

PW2003 Telling True Stories

ASSESSMENT: 1 creative piece + 1 research/pitch document

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Stephen Thompson

No longer the poor relation of fiction, creative nonfiction is a

growing genre that provides many writers with their first

opportunity for publication, in newspapers, magazines and

online. In recent times one of the most exciting and expanding

areas of this genre has been the ‘true-life’ narrative; true

stories brought to life by modern writers and told with all the

skill of a novelist or practiced teller of tales. These narratives

are the subject of this module.

We will begin by examining stellar examples of the form published in some of the leading creative nonfiction

magazines and anthologies. We will also look at extracts from recent publishing successes in ‘novel’ form

before moving on to your own attempts to bring a true story to life. With the guidance of your tutor, you will

choose a real-life person, event or scenario to research, produce a document of your research to ‘sell’ your

idea to a publisher and, ultimately, write the story itself. There also will be an opportunity to submit your

writing for publication towards the end of the module to give you experience of this important aspect of the

process.

‘The entire subject matter was both enjoyable and engaging.’

True stories touch readers in a compelling way and allow for experimentation in voice, style, subject matter

and structure. You cannot make stuff up and the writing has to be top notch, so we will spend time honing

your research skills and considering the practical and ethical implications of writing ‘true story’ narratives,

before work shopping your writing until your chosen subject is a story that captivates and crackles.

‘I love all the possibilities there are for the creative assignment.’

PW2007 Volunteering for Creative and Professional Writing

ASSESSMENT: Prospectus + Portfolio

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Vanessa Harbour

This module allows students to take up a placement in a voluntary sector body either in the UK or overseas.

The aim is that you will make a positive and personally rewarding contribution to the community whilst also

reflecting critically upon your experience and developing skills which will enhance your employability and

personal development.

PW2213 Media Writing

ASSESSMENT: 1 essay + 1 piece of media writing


From tabloid articles to celebrity-gossip snippets, from radio to television broadcasts, to web-writing and

blogging, this module will allow you to develop your own writing skills in relation to an array of media genres

and forms. The key concern will be with the various ways in which you can get your writing ‘out there’ whilst

at the same time better understanding these media contexts and outlets. The emphasis will be very much on

students taking the initiative and developing their own media-related writing projects, using their newlygained

knowledge of the contemporary media as they conceive, design and develop their own work.

“Everything seemed challenging and fast-paced - in a good way”

‘I found this module very exciting and intriguing.’

Semester 2

Year 2

Level 5

Modules

CW2207 Creative Voice II

ASSESSMENT: 1 personal evaluation + 1 creative piece


ONLY for Creative Writing Single Honours Students (for whom it is mandatory)

“I feel that I have improved as a writer”

The three ‘creative voice’ modules that form part of the single honours pathway within the BA Creative

Writing degree are smaller group modules in which students are given the chance to work creatively whilst

at the same time developing writerly skills and knowledge that will help them in the future. As such there

will be group sessions in which you can workshop ideas and writing, as well as others when you will be asked

to reflect on your own skills and abilities.

“Teaching was awesome, lessons a lot of fun, covered a lot of ground, good workshopping”

PW2000 Professional Writing II

ONLY for Creative and Professional Writing Students (for whom it is mandatory)

ASSESSMENT: 1 creative piece + 1 essay + 1 presentation

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Lisa Koning

Building upon the editing skills gained in Professional Writing I, this module focuses on the application and

best use of writing and editing skills in a professional environment. It's one thing learning Professional

Writing skills, quite another developing an appreciation of how and when they should be best used. Building

on basic techniques and knowledge learnt in year 1, students gain real-world experience working as project

teams with specific project briefs to produce pieces of work to a "professional" standard. As such, whilst

further enhancing their writing capabilities and techniques, they will be applying them in practical ways that

all have a workplace/employment focus. For the duration of the module, students may be working as media

managers, editors, copywriters, designers, PR assistants and other roles as appropriate, gaining practical

experience on real-world projects.

CW2102 The Short Story

ASSESSMENT: 1 creative piece + 1 essay

POSSIBLE TUTOR(s): Kass Boucher

‘… the perfect balance of writing exercises, class discussions and workshops.’

Due to its compression, along with its focus on the fleeting and fragmentary, the short story is

arguably the modern literary form par excellence. It has attracted writers as different as Franz

Kafka and Junot Diaz, Alice Munro and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and has proved to be flexible

enough to accommodate every style from the realistic to the gothic, from high-modernism to

post-modern, cyber-punk and avant-pop writing. Through a combination of seminar discussions

and writing-workshops this module offers students hands-on experience of this most exciting and

exacting of literary forms.

‘I liked the range of texts.’

‘Discussion points were plentiful and engaging.’

‘We did a lot of analysis of the texts and it really helped.’

CW2103 Fiction for Children

ASSESSMENT: 1 presentation + 1 creative piece

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Judy Waite

Fictional writing for children isn’t about any of those things. Well it might be, if you decide at the end of the

module that that is the way your ideas are leading you – but that will be after you’ve had the chance to

study and discuss the very best (or most successful) contemporary fiction for children and young adults.

You’ll analyse what makes them work. And how the market currently operates – alongside how it is still

evolving.

You’ll learn to understand and meet the needs of a ‘target reader’. What works for a seven year old will

probably be a turn off for a ten year old. You’ll develop skills in adapting your ideas and writing style to meet

very specific criteria.

You’ll discuss morality and authorial responsibility. Should literature for fourteen year olds be explicit about

drugs? What about eleven year olds?

You’ll have the chance to have in-depth contact with a contemporary author – someone for whom the ink

hasn’t yet dried on their recently published book. You’ll enter into a dialogue with this author, review the

work and present their ideas, and your responses, to the group.

There will still be a focus on writing skills and technique. Good writing is good

writing – regardless of whether it’s the latest ‘Horrid Henry’ or this year’s

Booker Prize. All the teaching will be underpinned by maintaining awareness of

setting/dialogue/show not tell/plot/structure.

And weaving through this will be your own developing creativity. You’ll be

given chances to explore where your ideas come from, how to access original

thinking, encouraged to take risks and to think ‘ahead of the game’.

And after all this, it’s POSSIBLE that your bunnies will be anything but fluffy.

Your smugglers and pirates will have morphed into bug eyed space invaders. And you’ll have no interest at

all in re-writing what’s already been done.


ASSESSMENT: 1 essay + 1 play script

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Kass Boucher

In this module you will be introduced to conventions of naturalistic/realistic stage writing to develop your

understanding of both the demands and potential of this exciting performance medium. You will then put

this into practice by developing and writing your own play-script.

In this module:

‣ we look at examples of naturalistic/realistic plays

‣ the focus is on plays with clearly identifiable central characters and stories

‣ we identify key elements of stagecraft and how these operate in good stage writing

‣ we look at the particular demands of writing for the stage, such as an awareness of

theatrical space and its possibilities

‣ we explore how, as playwrights, we might look to ‘build’ a naturalistic/ realistic play

In the latter stages, you will work together to develop your ideas into workable play-scripts that are, in

theory, ready to be staged. This will involve sharing your scripts in progress with the group and hearing them

read aloud to work shop dialogue, action and staging possibilities. If you’ve never acted or directed before,

the experience can be a valuable insight into what does and doesn’t work on stage. It’s not an acting class

and no one is required to ‘perform’ but we aim to replicate the writer’s role in what is increasingly a

collaborative medium. Ultimately, we are aiming, as writers, to understand what producers, directors, actors

and, of course, an audience, are looking for in a stage-worthy play script.

There will be two submissions for this module. The first is an academic analysis of an existing play, and the

second c.15 minutes of original play-script, which can be either a short play in its entirety, or the opening 15

minutes-or-so of a longer, hypothetical piece.

CW2210 Scriptwriting for Mainstream Television


POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Bernard McKenna

“Interaction in class was great, it inspired me to try really hard and not slack off”

The module is designed to introduce students to the major features of writing for mainstream

television. Students will be introduced to the key issues concerning such writing and be made

aware of the particular problems related to successful TV production. Examples studied will come

from contemporary British television, taking account of developments over the past fifty years. It

will focus on applying the basic principles and conventions to the creation of structured story and

character development within particular television genres. Students will have the opportunity to

work as part of a script devising team as well as individually.

“It helped me gain a new confidence to share scripts and script ideas”

CW2220 Fairy Tale Fictions

ASSESSMENT: 1 essay + 1 creative piece


This module will explore the ways in which authors have re-imagined, re-appropriated and re-presented

fairy-tales over time, culminating in you writing your own ‘fairy-tale’ creative piece. In the first part of the

module, works by Perrault and the Brothers Grimm will be explored, alongside more contemporary reimaginings

by authors such as AS Byatt, Angela Carter and Kazuo Ishiguro, with particular focus on the

interesting and noteworthy ways that these writers have altered style, theme and stance in their modern

‘fairy-tale’ stories.

After, the module will focus on the writing that you would like to submit for assessment at the end of the

semester. Assessment will be via an essay (circa halfway through the semester) and a 2,500-word creative

piece – an invitation to you, having studied these wide-ranging literary approaches to the genre, to write

your own 21st century ‘fairy-tale’.

This module includes study of Angela Carter’s The Bloody Chamber, and therefore sections of material which

are frank and graphic in their exploration of sexual politics.

CW2224 Horror Fiction

ASSESSMENT: 1 piece of creative writing + 1 personal blog


This module aims to introduce students to horror fiction and compare and contrast the nature of fear in

contemporary and past cultures. This will include looking at psychological theories of fear and anxiety.

Students will read a range of past and present horror fictions and then utilise these as the basis for

developing their own creative ideas which will then be workshopped during the later weeks of the module.

PW2002 Travel Writing


POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Kass Boucher

‘Class discussions on specific travel pieces led to in depth exploration of travel writing as a craft.’

Travel Writing is not only about the exotic, the extraordinary, or the very expensive. Being a travel writer is a

state of mind, a state of mind that enables you to appreciate the details of all manner of journeys and

destinations – whether overseas or on your doorstep. It’s not so much where you go, but how you look at

where you go that is important to the contemporary travel writer. Your mission is to enable the reader to

see both the strange and familiar in a different light through your eyes.

Travel writing can be a hobby, a matter of purely personal interest and exploration. But, it can also be a

career and there are many opportunities to be published in this medium. From personal travel narratives

that cover journeys of self-discovery and keenly felt passions, to journalistic offerings that provide the reader

of a newspaper, magazine or travel website with inspiration for their next trip.

We will look at examples of both these forms to help you find the right medium for the story that you want

to tell. A presentation will help you organize and focus your research in preparation for writing up your

travel piece so that wherever, and whatever, you write about jumps from the page into the heart and mind

of the reader.

‘Because of the presentation you got to know everyone’s work so you could help them. It made me engage

with my own work more.’

PW2008 Professional Placement Module

ASSESSMENT: A 1500 word essay, with accompanying 1500 word work log


The Professional Placement module provides an opportunity for a student to undertake meaningful and

relevant work experience - a great way to add to your CV and to learn new skills.

We can be flexible (within reason) to try and make the placement work for you and your studies; it might

take place within Semester 2 of your second year, or during the Easter break or assessment weeks. Current

students have organised placements in record companies, libraries and publishers. The length of placement

is negotiable but on average is for two weeks.

ALL STUDENTS ARE EXPECTED TO FIND AND ORGANISE THEIR OWN PLACEMENT. We can advise you

through the process but much of the responsibility will fall to you - if you do not think that that sounds like

something you could manage please DO NOT select this module as part of your module choices.

By the end of Semester 1 students will have to have confirmed their placement and had it signed off by the

module leader; this includes meeting all the University Health & Safety requirements - this may take some

time to organise so students are advised to start as soon as possible after their place on the module has

been confirmed. There will be meetings early in Semester 1 to discuss.

Any student who signs up for the module and has not had their placement signed off by the module leader

by the end of week 12 of semester 1 will be de-registered from the module and will have to select a

replacement. There are no exceptions to this at all.

PW2218 Life Writing & Biography

ASSESSMENT: 2000 word piece of Biographical writing + 2000 word research project

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Richard Kelly

Everyone’s life is a story worth telling. The module offers students the chance to work in the mode of

autobiographical/memoir writing, drawing on their own life or that of someone in their family; and in

biography, researching and developing their own study of a public figure, past or present. They will study the

writing techniques that enable real lives to be recreated on the page. They will look at a range of the finest

writings in both genres, and will analyse these in terms of form and also cultural/historical context, in order

to develop sensitivity to how life narratives are represented differently at different times. The ethical

dilemmas and psychological dimensions of writing a life – one’s own or someone else’s – will be explored

carefully. The assessed stages of the module will see students refining their own work into a sustained piece

of life-writing, as well as practising sophisticated research, planning and development skills for the structural

outline of a longer life-writing project.

PR2000 Exploring Teaching as a Career

ASSESSMENT: 3000 word reflective report

POSSIBLE TUTORS: Keith Smith, Laura Clarke, Sue Luke, Sandy Stockwell, Paul Key, Nicki Baker, Julie Wharton

The module will introduce students to the nature and purpose of education with a focus on the role of the

teacher in educational settings. Historical perspectives will be considered alongside the types of schooling

that are currently available in the UK and further afield. Students will discuss and debate some of the current

social and political tensions faced by individuals working in educational settings. Ahead of undertaking a

learning activity with school pupils, students will be directed towards what to look for in their chosen

context and guided towards preparing a reflection on this.

By the conclusion of this module, a student will be expected to be able to:

(a) Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of different educational settings and the role of a

(b) teacher within these settings

(c) Have engaged with and critically evaluated some of the current issues facing the education

profession and considered the impact of these on learning and teaching

(d) Have planned and delivered a learning activity with pupils from one of the following school

settings: Foundation Stage, Key Stage 1, 2, 3 or 4 and reflected on this experience

(e) Demonstrating an understanding that education can help create a more sustainable, equitable

and/or peaceful world

Semester 1

Year 3

Level 6

Modules

CW3002 Extended Creative Project (ECP) [double module: semesters 1 and

2]

ASSESSMENT: 1 creative piece + 1 rationale

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Supervisor drawn from staff team

The ECP can be produced in your favoured genre, whether that be poetry, fiction, non-fiction or

script. Working with a supervising tutor, you will develop a piece of work of around 8,000 words,

which will be accompanied by a 2,000 critical reflection on how you might get your work ‘out there’

to waiting audiences.

PW3007 Extended Professional Project [double module: semesters 1 and 2]

ASSESSMENT: a piece/portfolio of professional writing + 1 rationale

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Supervisor drawn from staff team

Available only to Creative and Professional Writing Students (who may choose between this and the ECP)

This double module is designed to enable students to work independently to produce a

piece of professional writing, in whichever form(s) they choose. This will be accompanied

by a critical rationale/contextualisation and supporting bibliography. The total product is

typically 8-10,000 words. The intention is that students should seek to write a piece that

is in keeping with third year level work, and a rationale/contextualisation that embodies

year 3 critical reading/interpretation/evaluative skills.

CW3204 Creative Voice III

ASSESSMENT: 1 portfolio

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Drawn from staff team

COMPULSORY for Creative Writing Single Honours Students (optional for others)

“This is clearly an important module for our development as writers”

The three ‘creative voice’ modules that form part of the single honours pathway within the BA Creative

Writing degree are smaller group modules. This module is designed as a final opportunity (building on the

previous Creative Voice modules) for students to reflect on their own development as writers and specific

writerly skills that will be important as they go out into the world of work and writing beyond the University.

Part of the module will be focused on skills development, such as how to write to publishers and agents,

how to apply for jobs and produce a CV, and how to create a personal web presence and to present

themselves to the wider world, whilst the rest will be about mapping each student’s personal development

across the programme and how that has shaped the writer and the person they are now. Ultimately

students will produce a portfolio of work that they can take with them after graduating as the basis for

beginning relationships with publishers and employers.

Please note this module is divided into four strands and you will do an assignment for each strand and will

have four separate tutors.

.

“The sessions with the professional editor were especially useful”

PW3009 Publishing 3: Small Press Publication

ASSESSMENT: A self-reflective essay + individual publication strategy

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Mary Chamberlain

Mandatory for Professional Writing Students, optional for others

This module is the third of three ‘publishing’ modules across the course of the programme, and in

this case students will work together as a publishing team contributing to the production of a

hard-copy publication. As such they will work through the various stages of submission, reader

evaluation, editing, proofing, layout design, and eventual printing and publication. They will also

work on creating a strategy for maximising the readership of said publications. By the end of the

process students will have utilised a significant number of publishing skills, widened their

understanding of the practicalities of publishing, as well as broadened their knowledge of the

publishing industry per se.

CW3206 Scriptwriting: innovating within popular forms

ASSESSMENT: 1 script presentation + 1 pitch document


Scriptwriting for mass audiences can be a rewarding experience, in a variety of ways. Those with a keen ear

for the populist ‘next big thing’ can have great success by taking advantage of this. This module, whilst

focussing on Biographical films or Biopics, allows students to explore the interesting intersection between

the popular and the avant garde, and to attempt to deliver exciting, contemporary scripts that can be both

radical whilst appealing to popular audiences. Biographical films or biopics are still a popular form of

scriptwriting both in feature films and television. The Head of Drama at ITV has said that the words ‘based on

a true story’ in front of a screenplay are guaranteed to get an audience. This is an opportunity to research

and write a script featuring a hero/heroine of yours or just someone whose story you’d like to tell.

Recent biopics include: The Walk Invisible a TV film about the Bronte sisters and their struggle to get

published. The feature film Jackie tells the story of President JF Kennedy’s wife’s life after his assassination.

Tina & Bobby from CH4 covers the problematic relationship between World Cup footballer Bobby Moore

and his wife Tina. Stan & Ollie about the late years of Laurel & Hardy featuring Steve Coogan as Stan Laurel.

Not forgetting: Schindler’s List, The Social Network, Lawrence of Arabia, Bridge of Spies, Lincoln,

Downfall………..

“Working in groups certainly helped as it allowed us to spring ideas off one another”

CW3207 Creative Non-fiction for Children

ASSESSMENT: 1 book proposal + 1 creative piece

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Judith Heneghan

Can you:

• Design a quiz?

• Think in pictures?

• Turn science into poetry?

• Make a ten year old laugh?

• Animate the past?

• Recognise the big issue?

• Write a real story?

Children’s creative non-fiction is one of the fastest growing areas of publishing for children in the UK. Gone

are the days of fusty books of facts, tortuous ‘true-life’ stories and textbook layouts. The emphasis is on

‘creative’ to bring learning and the world to life for children and young people.

It’s not just about flashy gimmicks, though these do have a place. At the heart of creative non-fiction for

children lies story and structure for a highly discerning and critical audience– readers who won’t put up with

second-rate or ‘boring’ and won’t move beyond the first line unless they are captivated and engaged.

If you want to develop stimulating narratives that inspire your readers and open up new worlds from the

past, from the natural environment, or that deal with current issues and the lives of young people as they

are experienced today then come and learn how to write creative non-fiction for children.

Refine your research skills, get to know your audience, ‘picture’ your subject and present your proposal to a

real, live editor...

“The feedback from the editor was excellent - it makes the publishing world feel more within reach”

CW3212 Writing for Comics and Graphic Novels

ASSESSMENT: 1 comic book script + 1 essay


Zap your readers with amazing super-writing powers!

Say goodbye to any preconceptions you might have about the comic book and the graphic novel – this is one

of the most vibrant and exciting fields of contemporary literature. From household names like Superman

and Catwoman, to cult and underground figures like Flaming Carrot and Wonder Warthog; from the big

publishing names of Marvel and DC through to small and experimental presses, this is quite simply one of

the most varied and exploratory areas of expression today. Seminar discussions and workshops will offer

students direct experience of inventing and developing comic book/graphic novel characters, settings, and

scripts, and show students how to pitch their ideas to publishers – or self-publish their own samizdat

commix. These are the forms of the future: let’s make them our own.

“A different and exciting module”

CW3214 Advanced Fictional Writing (Occurrence A)

ASSESSMENT: 1 creative submission + 1 rationale

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Andrew Melrose and Mary Chamberlain

This module gives us the chance to really get our teeth into writing fiction. It aims to build on the skills

you've gained over the first two years and to develop a new understanding about what it takes to write good

fiction. What makes this course different from any you've studied on before is that it focuses in more depth

on the models and theories of writing and applies these ideas in a really practical way. In other words we're

asking much more searching questions about what we're doing when we tell stories and how we can

improve the way we write.

The overall aim of the module is for you to produce a quality piece of writing – to see the creative process

through from prewriting to writing to rewriting to thinking about sending your work to an agent. You could

work on a short story or the first chapters of a novel; you could develop a piece you’re already working on or

a new piece that is inspired by the exercises and discussions in the early weeks of the module. Whatever it is,

we’ll focus attention on this piece again and again in workshops as you rewrite and polish it to your highest

standard; and in our discussions about genre and the publishing market, we’ll aim to give you a professional

understanding of the business end of writing at the same time.

“A really enjoyable module”

CW3220 Adapting Crime Fictions

ASSESSMENT: 1 Creative Piece + 1 Self-Reflective Essay

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Richard Kelly

The module begins with an introduction to detective and crime story forms and tropes, from Dostoyevsky to

Poe to Conan Doyle; from the American hard-boiled style of Raymond Chandler to the psychological crime

thrillers of Patricia Highsmith; and the contemporary forensic crime story exemplified by Thomas Harris.

These and related authors and texts will be examined as possible subjects for the student’s adaptation, and

there will be close study of film and television versions and offshoots of the works under discussion.

Students will consider the particular conventions of the various types of crime story, and how these can be

varied (by plotting, setting, characterisation etc.) There will be discussion of various theories about the

practice of adaptation, and the students will first write an analytical piece on this subject; then choose a

crime/detective form or character to adapt, and produce their own piece of creative work in this vein.

CW3224 Poetry: Writing for Publication


POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Julian Stannard

“A good course that generates plenty of stimulating ideas”

The starting point for the module is Robert Lowell’s Life Studies (1956). This is a key post-war poetic text that

heralded that rather slippery term ‘confessionalism’ – namely a poetry of candour which breaks taboos and

hovers between the supremely crafted and the revelatory. Lowell was for a

while the tutor of Sylvia Plath. Confessionalism is, at least historically,

profoundly American in its dynamic but the module will be looking at poets

who put themselves at the centre of their writing on both sides of Atlantic.

This will give you the chance to measure up British and American poetic

voices and allow you to explore such approaches in your own writing.

WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO?

As well as writing poetry, engage with and write about a poetry magazine that you have become familiar

with, encouraging you to get to grips with the poetry market and the wider world of editors and publishers.

WHAT HAPPENS IN THE TEACHING SESSIONS?

Engage with the work of several contemporary poets and share your own

work with the group. This will provide a challenging and stimulating

experience yet it also calls for a serious commitment on your part. Sessions

are also dedicated to how we can get our work published as the module looks

at the poetry market.

PW3216 Creativity: Writing & Teaching

ASSIGNMENT: 1 essay + lesson plans and self-reflection

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Judy Waite

A cottage in the country? Roses round the door?

Or maybe that damp basement: one tired candle sputtering its thin light through the lonely

hours?

The writer as a solitary soul.

Not anymore – at least not for any professional writers I’ve ever met.

Authors nowadays often need to project their work and ideas publicly. They may be called to

deliver performances within a range of settings. And very often, they need to be able to teach

others who aspire to write themselves.

This module taps into all of the above – it offers a grounding in creative theory, instilling an

awareness of how creativity works, both for themselves and others.

It draws out ideas and energy to help students project that awareness in both commercial and

educational situations.

Students will be expected to use their creative initiative, developing confidence in approaches that

will help them support and inspire others.

And even for the so far unpublished, the teaching of creative writing is an expanding market -

there may be opportunities within education, writers groups, conferences, industry, and a whole

variety of other institutions and situations.

Warning – always read the small print: ‘The meek’ might have many good qualities and

attributes, but they’ll need to be prepared to speak out and be heard on this module. Students will

be expected to work in groups and also present ideas individually.

In short, you don’t necessarily need to ooze confidence yet -, but you do need to be willing to

engage at all levels, to learn to grow, to risk looking ‘silly’ and to find a voice and style that will

serve you with all the demands a creative soul might encounter in the Big Wide World.

Semester 2

Year 3

Level 6

Modules

PW3000 Professional Writing III

ONLY for Creative and Professional Writing Students (for whom it is mandatory)

ASSESSMENT: A piece/pieces of professional writing + a 2-minute oral presentation of the writing submission

+ a self-reflective professional portfolio

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Mary Chamberlain and Lisa Koning

Designed as the third and final component to the Professional Writing modules, PW3000 provides students

with the opportunity to explore freelancing as a potential writing career. Using their skills in various forms of

writing, students will produce professional copy and learn how to create a freelancer profile, find

opportunities for freelance writing and learn the principles of how to bid for work. Students will be

supported throughout, from producing and editing copy, to creating a professional image through to

negotiating and managing the bid process in theory. On completing the module, each will have an online

profile.

This module is very practical, designed to get students ready for the workplace after university. Students will

learn how to promote their skills on freelancing websites and how in the future they might bid for small

writing opportunities, such as press releases, print media, website copy, reports etc. The aim is to provide

students with practical knowledge, which they will be able to apply themselves in the outside world.

CW3102 Creative Vigilance: fictions and metafictions

ASSESSMENT: 1 creative piece + 1 reflective essay


For centuries the debate about the relationship between the creative and the critical impulses has

raged. This fiction-based module looks at many of these ideas of creativity and criticality as voiced

by writers and critics such as Oscar Wilde, Sigmund Freud, T. S. Eliot, and Roland Barthes, and then

road-tests these in relation to specific works of modern fiction. The nature of creativity, authorship,

writing, language, and inspiration are all debated so as to inform the development of individual

pieces of creative work as well as informed reflections on these pieces. We will examine throughout

the boundaries between fiction and reality, and the ways in which modern authors can ‘play’ with

their readers in order to achieve desired effects: walking into the fictional frame of their texts,

showing off their skills of manipulation and control, and cross-referencing their own work with that

of other writers in attempts to blur the distinctions between texts and contexts.

“A great, challenging module”

CW3214 Advanced Fictional Writing (Occurrence B)


POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Andrew Melrose and Mary Chamberlain

This module gives us the chance to really get our teeth into writing fiction. It aims to build on the

skills you've gained over the first two years and to develop a new understanding about what it

takes to write good fiction. What makes this course different from any you've studied on before is

that it focuses in more depth on the models and theories of writing and applies these ideas in a

really practical way. In other words we're asking much more searching questions about what

we're doing when we tell stories and how we can improve the way we write.

The overall aim of the module is for you to produce a quality piece of writing – to see the creative

process through from prewriting to writing to rewriting to thinking about sending your work to an

agent. You could work on a short story or the first chapters of a novel; you could develop a piece

you’re already working on or a new piece that is inspired by the exercises and discussions in the

early weeks of the module. Whatever it is, we’ll focus attention on this piece again and again in

workshops as you rewrite and polish it to your highest standard; and in our discussions about

genre and the publishing market, we’ll aim to give you a professional understanding of the

business end of writing at the same time.

“A really enjoyable module”

CW3217 Creative Visions

ASSIGNMENT: 1 reflective piece + 1 creative piece

POSSIBLE TUTOR(S): Glenn Fosbraey and Mel Newman

“One of my favourite modules”

“Very enjoyable”

“This module was great … it messed with my head and I’m not sure it will recover.”

We are living in extraordinary times. The world is changing and many people are asking what our

lives will be like in 2050 and beyond. This module tackles that question head-on. It asks you to

engage with some of the most challenging issues of our time (climate change, population growth)

and some of the more controversial ones too (conspiracy theories, multi-world theory). We will

watch you tube videos, read novels (such as Cormac McCarthy’s The Road and Dave Eggers’ The

Circle) and discuss, debate and write about these ideas. We’ll be thinking about how these issues

affect us and the way we live. The first assignment (2000 words) will give you the chance to

reflect on these ideas, either creatively or critically, and is designed to be as flexible as possible to

allow you to respond in your own way. You’ll be ask to reflect upon the way we live now and can

do this through writing fiction, poetry, a song, a play, etc. or you may choose to write a journal,

article or essay. The first assignment is submitted in week 12 and is 40% of the module mark.

The second assignment is a 2500 word creative piece (60%) and is a future vision (in any genre) of

the world beyond 2050. It is submitted in week 13. The final weeks on the module are dedicated

to workshopping the assignments. Before that, you will be taught by all the different tutors on the

module, who all bring their own interests and views to you to help you to broaden your own ideas

and perspectives.

CW3221 Science Fictions & Fantasies

ASSESSMENT: 1 creative piece + 1 essay/rationale


Multiple universes, artificial intelligence: let’s face it, the world we live in now is far too

strange to be encompassed by realism. The only literature to truly recognise how

fantastically weird things have become is science fiction and fantasy. Not only are they

among the most popular literary genres in the world, but they are among the most vital

and metamorphic too. Steampunk, retrofuturism, sword-and-sandal: by the time you

finish this sentence they will have already morphed into some amazing new form. In this

module students will consider the emergence of science fiction and fantasy in the

writings of H.G.Wells and J.R.R. Tolkien and then move on to the work of more recent

writers such as Philip K Dick and Trudi Canavan. We will look at the interrelationship

between literature and film in these genres, and explore the ways in which they comment

on our changing world, our changing, multiple realities. But most of all we will read some

great books and do a lot of writing and imagining.


ASSESSMENT: 5 minute playscript + 10 minute revised version


In this module, we’ll explore, intellectually and practically, stylistic approaches to playwriting that look

beyond naturalism towards non-naturalism and modernism. Seminal works by practitioners such as Beckett,

Brecht and Ionesco will be explored, leading to creation of your own short play and the development of this

material via informal, practical investigation of acting, directing, rehearsal and performance.

Assessment will be via (i) a short play-script, (ii) a revised and developed version of this play-script after

informal, practical workshopping (acting, directing, staging) and (iii) an accompanying rationale.

PW3008 Script to Film

ASSESSMENT: Practical exemplification of one element of the film-making process + Journal


In this module students will learn about the various processes of turning of filmscript into a film.

Students will be consider the roles of producers, executive producers, directors,

cinematographers, editors, sound technicians etc. and then exemplify one aspect of the process

themselves. The module will be assessed on (i) each student’s engagement with, observation of

and contribution to an ongoing understanding of the filmmaking process, and (ii) her/his ability to

assess and critically analyse this process. They will be encouraged to think about the experience

of a script ‘coming to life’ on screen and how a writer can be intimately involved in the processes

therein.

PW3222 Writing for Radio

ASSESSMENT: 1 recorded radio script + 1 rationale


The League of Gentlemen, Little Britain, Alan Partridge, and Miranda all have one thing in

common: they started out on the radio. It may be the oldest form of in-home entertainment, but

the radio is still going strong, and continues to be one of the best ways to begin a career in

writing. This module will allow students to familiarise themselves with different aspects of the

medium, and to write, perform, record, and edit their own radio scripts.

CRWH and CPWH In House Module Catalogue - Feb 2019-1 (1)

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