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Writing Seminar: Comics of the Self “When I was a little kid,” writes Scott McCloud, “I knew exactly what comics were. Comics were those bright colorful magazines filled with bad art, stupid stories and guys in tights.” With these words, McCloud launches into his exploration of the art-form of comics—a form whose potential and “hidden power” we will explore in this writing seminar. Using McCloud’s Understanding Comics as our starting point, we will examine how several contemporary graphic artists/writers—Art Spiegelman, David B., Alison Bechdel, Marjane Satrapi, Howard Cruse and others—combine words and pictures to create narratives of their lives, “to leave,” as Craig Thompson says, “a mark on a blank surface. To make a map of [our] movement—no matter how temporary.” We will be writing about all of this in several formats: in-class exercises and shorter assignments leading up to one 8-10 page research paper. Peer response workshops, writing conferences, and in-class work on style, revision, and editing will alternate with our class discussion of the text. And, of course, . . .we will write. During this semester, we will explore writing as an activity that we learn by doing, with some coaching. For this reason, our class time will be spent generally doing, not listening to lectures about writing. The way we will work toward our goal is through lots of practice in writing, critiquing, and rewriting. A long distance runner improves her or his times by running faster, more frequently, and through good coaching. A painter spends long hours in the studio, reworking line and color—getting it just right. This class will be your writing studio. You will work on your craft, rewriting, revising, rethinking, polishing; and I will be your coach, your advisor, and your supporter, but not the only coach. All of your writing will be read by other students, and each of you will become a coach. We will take seriously the opening line of Patricia Hampl’s book, I Could Tell You Stories: “A writer is, first and last, a reader.” More specifically we will try to accomplish these goals:
We will work toward our goal through lots of practice in writing, critiquing, and rewriting.
The above texts are available at the College Bookstore. All secondary materials will be in the form of handouts. Well, first off and of most importance—keep up with the readingand writing. Since each discussion and assignment will grow from the preceding one, it is important that you attend class regularly and come prepared to share your ideas. Papers: You will be writing three papers—two 5-6 page personal/critical essays on class texts and one 8-10 page research paper. Each of these essays will be revised at least twice, and my comments as well as your peers' comments will provide reader response that leads to revision. Since I am concerned with the process you move through to reach your final version, I am asking you to attach to your completed work all preliminary notes, drafts, diagrams, and outlines leading to your final copy. Since other students in class will come to depend on your writing and feedback, being on time with drafts is crucial. Paper grades will go down by half a grade if they are received late. If you are unable to attend class the day a draft is due, please make sure someone brings your paper to class or puts it in my mailbox. If you are late with more than one draft, I will ask you to drop the class and take it when you are better prepared for it. You will also be writing a 1 single-spaced response to each week's readings. These will be due at the beginning of Wednesday’s class and will provide a foundation for class discussion. Though I may, at times, assign a topic, most often the responses are open; you may choose to comment upon a theme, characters, plot, narrative style—what you respond to as a reader and what seems important, confusing, entertaining, or problematic at the time of your reading. Since the purpose of these writings is to express your ideas prior to class discussion, they will not be accepted late. Daily responses will be assessed on a check-plus-minus system. In addition to your essays, each of you will be responsible for peer reviews of other students’ papers. I will be looking at these peer reviews for enthusiastic, honest, and constructive criticism. We will be discussing helpful ways in which to do this in class. Attendance: Because of our workshop format, attendance is extremely important. Three absences from class can be tolerated--no effect on your grade and no questions asked. More than three absences will affect your final grade. (In extraordinary cases of proven emergency, this provision will be modified). Whether or not you are absent, you are still responsible for the work covered and essays are still due on the date requested. Chronic lateness will also affect your grade. Conferences: Three or four times during the semester. classes will be cancelled and each of you will meet with me for a conference. These conferences will provide individual time for each of you to discuss your writing. A missed conference is considered an absence. Evaluation: In assessing your writing I look for the following qualities: (1) Competence: how thoroughly you introduced your topic, and developed and supported your ideas; (2) Creativity: how much you exerted yourself in being inventive, in taking a risk and trying something new or difficult, in approaching the assignment as more than just an assignment, in making what you write interesting to your readers; (3) Clarity: how clearly you were able to get your ideas across to your readers by focusing your topic and using effective organization, sentences, and words: (4) Correctness: how well you followed grammatical and mechanical conventions (punctuation, syntax, spelling), and how clearly you documented your footnotes and bibliography; (5) Care: how well you incorporated suggestions and comments from your colleagues and instructor, and to what extent you presented a neat, readable paper. Don't let this overwhelm you. I guarantee that it is not as much as it sounds. The writings will be fun, thought provoking, and even entertaining. And, in addition to our class’s community of writers and readers, you have two other great sources for help: check out the Writer's Block, and also look up Marlboro's clear writing page on the web. CALENDAR (all dates subject to change) The following is a list of our readings for the semester. All essays and poems are in the form of handouts. The reading must be completed by the date listed.
***SPRING BREAK***
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