Narrative Non-fiction Short Courses
This course follows the stages of a writing project - whether short reports, features, articles or full-length books - from planning through writing to editing the typescript ready for publication. The course begins with an outline of the various genres (biography, memoir, travel, history, science writing and politics) and then looks at each stage in detail, from first thoughts on how to construct a narrative to the writer's toolkit, portrait-painting, character-building, the importance of endings and beginnings and the difficult business of finding your voice. The aim is to encourage and inspire, through group discussion and individual exercises. There is no assessment, but the course aims to teach students how to edit and judge their own work. Guidance will also be given on now to prepare a book proposal.
Course Information
| Start Date | Start Time | Duration | Cost | Course Code | Apply |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday 2 October 2012 | 18:30 - 20:30 | 10 weekly classes | £220.00 | CE1220 | Course Full |
| Tuesday 22 January 2013 | 18:30 - 20:30 | 10 weekly classes | £220.00 | CE1220 | Apply Now |
| Tuesday 14 May 2013 | 18:30 - 21:00 | 8 weekly classes | £220.00 | CE1220 | Apply Now |
Tutor Info
Peter Forbes is a science writer with a special interest in the relationship between art and science. He initially trained as a chemist and worked in pharmaceutical and popular natural history publishing, whilst writing poems, and articles for magazines such as New Scientist and World Medicine. He has written numerous articles and reviews, many specializing in the relation between the arts and science, for the Guardian, Independent, The Times, Daily Mail, Financial Times, Scientific American, New Scientist, World Medicine, Modern Painters, New Statesman, and other magazines.
He was editor of the Poetry Society's Poetry Review from 1986-2002 and played a major role in the rise of the New Generation Poets. He has edited three anthologies: Scanning the Century: The Penguin Book of the Twentieth Century in Poetry (Viking, 1999), We Have Come Through (Bloodaxe, 2003) and The Picador Book of Wedding Poems (Picador, 2012). The Gecko's Foot, a book on the new science of bio-inspired materials, was published by Fourth Estate in 2005 and was long-listed for the Royal Society Prize. Dazzled and Deceived: Mimicry and camouflage (Yale University Press, 2009) won the 2011 Warwick Prize for Writing. He was Royal Literary Fund Fellow at Queen Mary, University of London (2004-7), and at St George's, University of London (2010-12).
English Requirements
Good written and spoken English is needed for the narrative non fiction course
What will I learn?
- To identify your appropriate non-fiction genre.
- To analyse critically your own and others' work.
- To initiate, research and compose a piece of narrative non-fiction.
- To begin drafting a book proposal.
Teaching and Assessment
There is no assessment, but the course aims to teach students how to edit and judge their own work through exercises, both individual and in small groups, where reading aloud encourages group discussion. The aim of this course is to encourage students in their writing and offer them the chance to improve their skills. Guidance will also be given on how to prepare a book proposal. Guest speakers may include Julie Wheelwright, director of the MA in Creative Writing (Non-fiction) at City University London, and also an editor/publisher with tips on how to get published.
Recommended Reading
Suggested Reading:
Katherine Boo, Behind the Beautiful Forevers - a documentary account of a Mumbai slum, written novelistically.
Edmund de Waal, The Hare with the Amber Eyes - a personal quest memoir.
Jeanette Winterson, Why be Happy When You Could be Normal - personal memoir.
Robert MacFarlane, The Old Ways - rhapsodic, highly literary nature writing.
Rebecca Skloot, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - the story behind a dramatic and terrible medical story and much more, the writer's relationship with one of the family coming centre-stage.
Tom Wolfe, The Right Stuff - pioneer text of the New Journalism that spawned creative non-fiction as a genre.
Robert Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance - philosophic polemic/personal narrative intertwined.
James D. Watson, The Double Helix - pioneering work of telling science like it is.
SOME BOOKS ON LANGUAGE AND WRITING
Guy Deutscher, The Unfolding of Language (Arrow Books). Revelatory book on the evolution of language. It will never look the same again.
John Whale, Put it in Writing (out of print but available very cheap from Amazon if you're quick).
Keith Waterhouse, Waterhouse on Newspaper Style (Revel Barker). Don't be put off by the title. All writers will enjoy Waterhouse's pithy take on language.
Lynne Truss, Eats, Shoot and Leaves (Fourth Estate). The classic that manages to make punctuation entertaining.
Leads To...
Narrative Non-fiction - Part 2
Career Outcome
You will learn to write with clarity and confidence; and will gain confidence in group discussion.