Flash Forms

The most compelling creative nonfiction usually balances two things on a scale: looking inward and looking outward. The writer usually commands the attention of the reader with personal fixation, urgent inquisition, and/or evocative occurrence before allowing the self to move beyond and observe, digest, and/or criticize the world with a keen eye. To learn how to do so, we will be reading diverse works of nonfiction that center an honest, complex, and incredibly porous narrative, each combining the reflective and the analytical in its distinct style. We will also approach major genres of nonfiction, including memoir and personal essay, and other miscellaneous forms such as diary and writing with archival materials. There will be voluntary in-class and take-home exercises that encourage students to practice techniques exemplified by assigned texts, while weekly writing assignments will give students opportunities to adopt these skills to fit their own language and style.