Eastern Illinois University

Caldwell, Melissa

ENG 2901-003 Structure of the English Language

Whittemore, Amie

ENG 3062-600 Intermediate Poetry Writing

Fredrick, Terri

ENG 5500-001 Practicum in Writing Center Theory and Practice

Honey, Minda

Craft Talk: Minda Honey

Germain, Jacqui

Craft Talk: Jacqui Germain

Craig, Lydia

Eastern Illinois University 
The Keep 
Fall 2024 2024 
Fall 1-21-2025 
ENG 1001G-018 College Composition I Critical Reading & Source 
Based Writing 
Lydia Craig 
Eastern Illinois University 
Follow this and additional works at: https://thekeep.eiu.edu/english_syllabi_fall2024 
Recommended Citation 
Craig, Lydia, "ENG 1001G-018 College Composition I Critical Reading & Source Based Writing" (2025). Fall 
2024. 19. 
https://thekeep.eiu.edu/english_syllabi_fall2024/19 
This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the 2024 at The Keep. It has been accepted for inclusion 
in Fall 2024 by an authorized administrator of The Keep. For more information, please contact tabruns@eiu.edu. 
 1 
 
 
ENG 1001G-018: College 
Composition I: 
Critical Reading & Source-
Based Writing 
 
 
Instructor: Dr. Lydia Craig, Lecturer of English 
Email: lecraig@eiu.edu 
Class Time: Tues/Thurs, 2:00-3:15PM 
Class Location: Coleman Hall, Room 3160 (3rd Floor) 
 
Student Talk Times: Mon/Wed, 1:00-2:30PM, Coleman Hall, Room 3741; Fri, 
10:00AM-12:00PM (Zoom) 
 
 
Course Description: 
 
College Composition I focuses on informative, analytical, evaluative, and persuasive writing and 
introduces students to college-level research. Students will develop sound writing processes, 
produce cogent writing, strengthen analytical reading skills, and work with sources. 
 
Log into our course in D2L Brightspace using the same EIU ID and password you use to access 
Panthermail (Microsoft Outlook), PAWS, and MyEIU. This is where the most updated version 
of our course syllabus will be posted. 
 
 
Course Goals: 
 
Students will demonstrate the ability to: 
▪ Develop effective writing processes for producing documents, 
▪ Produce informative, analytical, evaluative, and persuasive prose,  
▪ Implement reading processes to evaluate sources, 
▪ Adapt written texts to suit the text’s purpose, audience, genre, rhetorical situation, and 
discourse community, 
▪ Recognize how to transfer their writing processes, understanding of rhetorical principles, 
and genre awareness to other writing situations, 
 2 
▪ Find appropriate sources through secondary research, including the use of academic 
databases, 
▪ Integrate sources ethically and appropriately using at least one recognized citation style, 
▪ Compose a minimum of 5,000 words (20 double-spaced pages), 
▪ Use effective language/delivery skills through speaking opportunities, and 
▪ Present work in Edited American English. 
 
Coursebooks: 
 
Colombo, Gary, Uzzie T. Cannon, Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle. Rereading America: 
Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing.12th edition. Macmillan Learning, 
2022. ISBN: 978-1-319-24462-0. 
Graff, Gerald,  Cathy Birkenstein, and Russel Durst with Laura J. Panning Davies. “They Say I 
Say” The Moves that Matter in Academic Writing with Readings. 5th edition. W.W. 
Norton & Company, 2021. ISBN: 978-0-393-42751-6. 
 
Check out EIU’s Textbook Rental Service: https://www.eiu.edu/textbook/.  
Address: Louis M. Grado Building, 975 Edgar Drive, Charleston, IL 61920.  
 
 
Grading Scale (%): 
 
A = 90-100 B = 80-89 C = 70-79 D = 60-69 F = 0-59 
 
A grade of “C” or better in ENG 1001G is required to pass the course and be eligible for 
enrollment in ENG 1002G: College Composition II. 
 
 
Writing Assignments: 
 
All writing assignments must be formatted in MLA 9 citation style.  
We will review it at the very beginning of the class! 
 
Essay 1 (Summary Response): 10% 
 
Essay 2 (Campus Culture): 10% 
 
Peer Reviews (4): 15% 
 
Revised Essay (1 or 2): 10% 
 
Essay 3 (Rhetorical Analysis): 20% 
 
Essay 4 (Social Debate or Issue): 20% 
 3 
 
Participation, Attendance, and In-Class Writing: 15% 
 
Extra Credit: Revise Essay 3 (2%) 
 
Note: As a graduation requirement, you must submit 3 essays to be included in your 
Electronic Writing Portfolio (EWP); you may choose to submit an essay from this class (ENG 
1001G).  
The EWP submissions deadline for Fall 2024 is December 13.  
 
Policies: 
 
My policies in this course agree with EIU’s Internal Governing Policies.  
 
Absences: According to EIU’s Internal Governing Policy #43, instructors have the right to set 
their own attendance policies.  
 
Students who miss TWO classes or fail to turn in TWO assignments will be required to 
schedule a one-on-one meeting with me. If you are going to be absent for any reason, please 
email me ASAP at lecraig@eiu.edu.  
 
Individual absences for cultural or religious observation are permitted, in accordance with 
EIU’s Internal Governing Policy #61, with no grade penalty. 
 
Your Participation and Attendance grade will be affected by absences unrelated to 
documented health situations. However, if you are experiencing a health situation and need to be 
absent for more than a couple of days, it is your responsibility to request medical visit 
documentation from EIU’s Health & Counseling Services. 
 
Students with Disabilities: If you are a student with a documented disability in need of 
accommodations to fully participate in this class, please contact the Office of Accessibility and 
Accommodations. All accommodations must be approved through this office. Please stop by 
McAfee Gym, Room 1272, or call (217) 581-6583 to make an appointment. 
 
Academic Integrity: Students are expected to maintain principles of academic integrity and 
conduct as defined in EIU’s Code of Conduct. Violations will be reported to the Dean of 
Students. Activities defined as academic dishonesty may include, but are not limited to the 
following:  
 
1) using unauthorized AI tools, such as any version of Chat GPT, for research or 
writing,  
 
2) plagiarizing the published or unpublished work of others, or  
 
3) buying or commissioning papers to be written by others (strangers, family, friends) on 
your behalf for submission to this course.  
 4 
 
Generally, I reserve the right as instructor to decide on the final penalty imposed (i.e. rewrites, 
failing grade on assignment or course). The Dean of Students will pursue more serious 
disciplinary sanctions in the case of repeat violations. 
 
Artificial Intelligence (AI): New AI technologies are already impacting human information-
gathering and online sharing, even though many are flawed and provide false statistics or 
summaries. Though some AI tools can be helpful, using them risks building a dangerous 
dependance on them. As we will discuss in class, here is no guarantee that you will continue to 
have free or cheap access to them. If AI tools are suddenly made unavailable, you may struggle 
to conduct research and write professionally in school or in your future career.  
 
Use of spellcheckers such as Grammarly and citation generators is acceptable. You are 
NOT allowed to use ChatGPT or another AI tool to draft essays themselves. 
 
Assignment Submission: For every 24 hours an assignment remains unsubmitted past the 
deadline, 10 points will be removed from the overall grade. Points will also be removed if the 
assignment does not meet stated method, content, and formatting requirements. Contact me if 
you need help!  
 
Conduct: Students, as class members, should remain respectful and professional throughout the 
course. Bullying, shouting, use of offensive language, swearing at, and insulting other classmates 
or the instructor will not be tolerated, in line with Standards 1 and 2 of EIU’s Standards of 
Student Conduct for 2024-5.  
 
Alcohol, drugs, and weapons cannot be brought onto school property in accordance with the 
Federal Drug-Free Schools and Communities Amendment Act of 1989 (Public Law 101-
226). 
 
Technology: Computer use is permitted for the purposes of taking notes, researching, and 
drafting. Because cell phone use can be distracting from learning, it is not permitted during class 
time.  
 
Academic Resources: 
 
Booth Library: Besides supporting research with millions of print and digital books and 
materials, EIU’s Booth Library also contains computer/printing labs and boasts a 3-D lab and a 
podcast studio. 
 
Email Instructor: Email me at lecraig@eiu.edu with any questions, issues, or concerns. I 
usually reply to emails within 24 hours of receipt, except for the weekends. If you send me an 
email late on Friday and do not receive a reply over the weekend, DO NOT PANIC. I will 
respond when the school week resumes. 
 
Learning Assistance: All students are eligible to receive learning assistance from Academic 
Advising Services, especially when facing educational challenges or if their instructor has 
 5 
entered an Academic Alert for them to ensure their success in a course. TRIO Student Support 
Services are available on a first-come, first-serve basis for students meeting certain criteria (i.e. 
first-gen, financial aid recipients, etc.). On this list of other Student Support Services, note that 
the EIU Writing Center (Coleman Hall, Room 3110) provides writing consultations. 
 
Student Talk Time: Come by my office at Coleman Hall, Room 3741 (3rd Floor) on Monday or 
Wednesday at 1:00-2:30 PM to discuss your writing with me! If these times are not convenient, 
email me at lecraig@eiu.edu to set up a Zoom appointment on Friday morning between 10:AM-
12:00PM or another day/time. Here is an optional template to use when sending this email: 
 
 
Hi Lydia, 
 
Would you be able to meet with me [Specify over Zoom or In-Person] at [Add Time 
and Day]? I’d like to discuss [Briefly Explain Writing Issue or Question].  
 
[Your Full Name] from [Class Name and Number] 
 
Providing the bolded information will help me instantly know who you are and what class you 
are taking so that I can give you more specific advice. 
 
 
Student Resources: 
 
Campus Recreation: Pursue sports and other activities on campus. 
 
EIU Campus Food Pantry: Students only need to bring their EIU Panther Card in order to 
receive support twice a month. No income or financial data is required.   
 
EIU Health and Counseling Services: Access help for medical and mental needs. 
 
Office of Belonging, Access & Engagement: Discover upcoming cultural events, apply for 
scholarships and mentoring, and explore the EIU Center for Gender and Sexual Diversity and 
Cultural Center. 
 
Office of Leadership & Civic Engagement: Impact your world through participation in local 
outreaches, non-profits, and campus services. 
 
PantherTech: Find online remote support for technological issues. 
 
Scholarships: Find scholarships based on your year, major, and interests. 
 
Student Life Office: EIU has a thriving student body with dozens of academic, cultural, 
geographical, religious, and technological interests. Find your people by attending events 
advertised by the Student Life Office and browsing the list of Registered Student 
Organizations (RSOs). 
 6 
 
COURSE SCHEDULE 
 
EIU Academic Calendar 2024-5 
 
All assignments and readings are due on the date listed. The course schedule may also be 
changed or updated by the instructor, depending on circumstances. 
 
 
Week 1: 
Introduction 
to Writing 
 
 
Tues, 8/20: Review of the Syllabus.  
 
Thurs, 8/22: Class Discussion of Writing; Pre-Writing Tactics 
 
 
Week 2: 
Summarizing 
Opinions and 
Addressing 
Writing 
Issues 
 
Tues, 8/27: Read “Starting with What Others Are Saying” (Graff and 
Birkenstein 19-31); Essay 1 (Summary Response) Assigned  
 
Thurs, 8/29: Read “‘Her Point Is’ The Art of Summarizing” (Graff and 
Birkenstein 32-46) 
 
August 30 - Last Day to Withdraw w/Refund 
 
 
 
Week 3: 
Quoting and 
Responding 
September 2 – Labor Day (No Class) 
 
Tues, 9/3: Read “‘As He Himself Puts It’: The Art of Quoting” (Graff and 
Birkenstein 47-56); Drafting 
 
Thurs, 9/5: Read “ ‘Yes/No/Ok, But’: Three Ways to Respond” (Graff and 
Birkenstein 57-71); Drafting 
 
 
Week 4: 
Essay 
Structure 
and Body 
Paragraphs 
 
Tues, 9/10: Read “‘And Yet’: Distinguishing What You Say from What They 
Say” (Graff and Birkenstein 71-81); Drafting 
 
Thurs, 9/12: Read “‘Skeptics May Object’: Planting a Naysayer in Your 
Text” (Graff and Birkenstein 82-95); Drafting 
 
 
Week 5: 
Finding 
Your Voice 
and Peer 
Review 
 
September 16 – Last Day to Withdraw w/ 50% Refund 
 
Tues, 9/17: Read “‘As a Result’: Connecting the Parts” (Graff and 
Birkenstein 107-122); Peer Review 1; Upload Essay 1 by 11:59 PM to D2L. 
 
 7 
Thurs, 9/19: Read “‘You Mean I Can Just Say it That Way?’: Academic 
Writing Doesn’t Mean Setting Aside Your Own Voice” (Graff and 
Birkenstein 123-137); Essay 2 (Campus Culture) Assigned. 
 
 
Week 6: 
Researching 
and 
Synthesis 
 
Tues, 9/24: Read “‘What’s Motivating This Writer?’: Reading for the 
Conversation” (Graff and Birkenstein 187-198); Drafting 
 
Thurs, 9/26: Read “‘But as Several Sources Suggest’: Research as 
Conversation” (Graff and Birkenstein 203-231); Drafting 
 
 
Week 7: 
Navigating 
Different 
Opinions 
 
Tues, 10/1: Read Klein (Graff and Birkenstein 294-302) and Crenshaw (Graff 
and Birkenstein 303-308); Drafting 
 
Thurs, 10/3: Read “How Can we Bridge the Differences That Divide Us?” 
(Graff and Birkenstein 377-379) and “The Other Side” Is Not Dumb by Sean 
Blanda (Graff and Birkenstein 380-386); Peer Review 2; Upload Essay 2 by 
11:59 PM to D2L.  
 
 
Week 8 
 
Tues, 10/8: Midterm (In-Class Writing) 
 
October 10 – Fall Break 
 
 
Week 9: 
Writing 
Across 
Disciplines 
 
Tues, 10/15: Read “‘On Closer Examination’: Entering Conversations about 
Literature” (Graff and Birkenstein 232-249); Revised Essay 1 or 2 Assigned 
 
Thurs, 10/17: Read “‘The Data Suggest’: Writing in the Sciences” (Graff and 
Birkenstein 250-268); Essay 3 (Rhetorical Analysis) Assigned 
 
 
Week 10: 
 
Tues, 10/22: Read “‘Analyze This’: Writing in the Social Sciences” (Graff 
and Birkenstein 269-287); Drafting 
 
Thurs, 10/25: Read “Our Future Selves” by Eric Schmidt and Jared Cohen 
(Colombo 272-287) and “How the Other Half Banks” by Mehrsa Baradaran 
(Colombo 401-416); Drafting 
 
 
Week 11: 
Divisive 
Issues and 
Skepticism 
 
Tues, 10/19: Read “Definitions” by Ibram X. Kendi (Colombo 595-605) and 
“How Does Race Shape the Lives of White People?” by Robin DiAngelo (pp. 
606-622); Drafting 
 
 8 
Thurs, 10/31: Read “Jobs, Crime, and Culture: The Threats That Aren’t” 
(Graff and Birkenstein 458-473) and “How Much Immigration Is Too Much? 
The Wrong Debate” by David Frum (Graff and Birkenstein 474-483); Upload 
Revised Essay 1 or 2 by 11:59 PM to D2L. 
 
 
Week 12: 
Media 
Outlets and 
Technology 
 
Tues, 11/5: Read “Has the Smartphone Destroyed a Generation?” by Jean M. 
Twenge (Colombo (288-299) and “Big Data, Google, and the End of Free 
Will” by Yuval Noah Harari (Colombo 341-347); Peer Review 3; Upload 
Essay 3 by 11:59 PM to D2L. 
 
Thurs, 11/7: Read “Why are Black and Latino People Still Kept out of the 
Tech Industry?” by Sam Dean and Johana Bhuiyan (Colombo 329-333) and 
“How We Sold Our Souls – and More – to the Internet Giants” by Bruce 
Schneier (334-340); Essay 4 Assigned 
 
 
Week 13: 
Good 
Research 
Practices 
 
Tues, 11/12: Read “Against School” by John Taylor Gatto (Colombo 152-
160) and “The Tech We Throw Away” by Tatiana Schlossberg (Colombo 
316-322) 
 
Thurs, 11/14: Read “From The Gender Knot: ‘Patriarchy’” by Allan G. 
Johnson (Colombo 478-496) 
Week 14: 
Improving 
Thesis 
Statements 
 
 
Tues, 11/19: Drafting 
 
Thurs, 11/21: Drafting 
 
Week 15 
 
November 25-29 – Thanksgiving Break (No Class) 
 
 
Week 16: 
Revision 
 
Tues, 12/3: Drafting 
 
Thurs, 12/5: Peer Review 4; Upload Essay 4 by 11:59 PM to D2L. 
 
 
Week 17 
 
December 9-13 – Finals Week 
 
Final Exam Schedule 
 
Mon, 12/9: Final Course Exam (In-Class Writing) (10:15AM-12:15PM) 
 
 


English

ENG 1001G-018 College Composition I Critical Reading & Source Based Writing

Course syllabus
Writing Center Practicum 2024
 
ENG 5500: Practicum in Writing Center Theory and
Practice
Fall 2024  |  Wednesdays 3:00-5:00  |  (1 credit)
 
The practicum is a seminar in the theory and practice (praxis) of writing
center consulting. Each week, we will discuss readings and issues related
to your work in the writing center. 
Attendance and Participation
Because we talk about important issues for our community of practice,
because much of the work done in practicum is collaborative, because you
are serious scholars and professionals, and because you receive one
course credit for this course, it is reasonable to expect you will attend—on
time—every class session. If an emergency arises, contact Dr. Fredrick and
Dr. Smith as soon as possible via email or phone.
 
Of course, you are expected to come to class with all books and other
materials, prepared to contribute to a lively informed discussion of assigned
readings.
 
Assessment, Evaluation, and Grades
You will receive written and oral feedback on your performance in this
class, the written work you submit, and your work as a consultant in the
writing center.  You will not receive a letter grade for this course: the options
are “credit” or “no credit.”
 
Overview of Assignments
 
Weekly discussion posts in D2L: We have set up a forum for each week of
the semester under Discussions. Each week, you should use this space to
reflect on your consulting experiences and/or to articulate questions or
insights about your work, the readings, etc. By noon each Friday, you
8/23/24, 9:37 AM ENG-5500-001 91059.202490 - Practicum in Writing Center Theory & Practice - ENG-5500-001 91059.202490 - Practicum in Writin…
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ENG 5500 -- Summary of weekly readings and assignments
PDF document
should initiate a thread on a topic of your choice. By 11:59 pm each
Sunday, you should have replied substantively to at least two other threads
from that week.
  
Formal Responses: Most weeks you will compose a formal written
response in which you analyze and reflect on concepts, strategies, and
issues presented in one of the assigned readings as part of the
development of your praxis and philosophy of Writing Center
consulting. This 300-500 word response—which may have an assigned
focus, audience, genre, or citation format—should focus on an aspect of the
essay or article that seems worthy of careful analysis and detailed
response: a key point, a significant feature of the article’s research methods
or approach, an assumption implicit in the argument, a tactic or strategy the
article advocates. Use summary to provide context for your discussion of
key passages, which should be quoted or paraphrased and cited. Your
analytic response should include consideration of both theory and practice:
to what extent do these ideas align with what you have learned about peer
tutoring, and to what extent are they reinforced—or complicated—by
situations you have encountered as a writing consultant.
  
Leading Article Discussion: You will be responsible for choosing one of the
articles on the syllabus (or another one approved by the WC directors) and
leading a class discussion of approximately 30 minutes.
 
Philosophy of Writing Center Consulting: Your personal philosophy—the
principles that support your practice as a consultant—will emerge as a
synthesis of the ideas and experience you bring to the Writing Center, ideas
and approaches you develop through experience, and the research and
scholarship we discuss. This document will serve as a capstone for this
seminar, and provide a starting point for your evolution as a consultant
during the spring semester. 
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This overview contains a brief summary of the weekly readings and
assignments. More details and the most up-to-date information can be
found by going to the weekly module.
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ENG 5500-001 Practicum in Writing Center Theory & Practice

Tacke, Elizabeth

ENG 3401-001 Methods of Teaching Composition in the Middle and Secondary School

Campbell, Julie

ENG 3903A-001 Women, Literature, and Language, Pre-1800

Abel, Colleen

Eastern Illinois University 
The Keep 
Fall 2024 2024 
Fall 3-13-2025 
ENG 5020B-600 Graduate Workshop in Creative Writing Creative 
Nonfiction 
Colleen Abel 
Eastern Illinois University 
Follow this and additional works at: https://thekeep.eiu.edu/english_syllabi_fall2024 
Recommended Citation 
Abel, Colleen, "ENG 5020B-600 Graduate Workshop in Creative Writing Creative Nonfiction" (2025). Fall 
2024. 70. 
https://thekeep.eiu.edu/english_syllabi_fall2024/70 
This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the 2024 at The Keep. It has been accepted for inclusion 
in Fall 2024 by an authorized administrator of The Keep. For more information, please contact tabruns@eiu.edu. 
ENG 5020B: Graduate Workshop in Creative Writing 
3 credits / online / Fall 2024 
Dr. Colleen Abel 
 
crabel@eiu.edu                                                                                   Office hours  
Office: CH 3811                          Tuesday 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.  
                                                                                                   Thursday 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.*   
                                                                                           *and by appointment 
Required Texts 
Broome, Brian. Punch Me Up to the Gods. 
Febos, Melissa. Body Work.  
Machado, Carmen Maria. In the Dream House. 
Mark, Sabrina Orah. Happily. 
Satrapi, Marjane. Persepolis.  
Miscellaneous readings (D2L) 
 
Course Description 
The essay is associated with thinking: trying out ideas, making intellectual arguments or 
discoveries, sifting through memories of one’s pasts. But it’s crucial to remember that 
the best creative nonfiction is rooted in the body, the site of our experiences, our 
identity, our physical way of moving through the world, our political status, our 
sexuality (or asexuality), and our ancestral histories. (Even if you choose to write about 
others and not yourself, this remains true.) This course will look at creative nonfiction in 
various innovative forms that is rooted in the body and will help you be a stronger, more 
concrete, more embodied writer of your own.  
 
 
Learning Outcomes 
By the end of the course, you should be able to 
● Develop advanced ability and a repertoire of artistic strategies in the writing of 
literary nonfiction prose. 
● Deepen your understanding of creative nonfiction and its subgenres through 
intensive readings of contemporary authors. 
● Hone critical reading skills. 
● Evaluate, constructively, the works-in-progress of your peers  
● Reflect upon your own creative processes and practices 
 
 
Instructional Philosophy 
“Read, read, read. Read everything -- trash, classics, good and bad, and see how they 
do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! 
You'll absorb it. Then write. If it's good, you'll find out. If it's not, throw it out of the 
window.” -William Faulkner 
“Writing teaches writing.” -John McPhee 
 
Course Delivery Method 
This course will be delivered online through our learning management system, D2L 
Brightspace, http://www.eiu.edu/d2l. If you need help, contact ITS User Services for 
technical support issues. 
Email: support@eiu.edu 
Phone: (217) 581-4357 
Support Hours: 7:00 AM - 4:30 PM, Monday-Friday with your EIU NetID account or 
password, contact Campus Technology Support at (217) 581-4357 or support@eiu.edu.  
 
Grade Breakdown 
Creative Exercises: 100 points 
Discussion Board Posts: 200 points 
Three Essays: 150 points (50 points each x3; includes posting on time for workshop) 
Workshop Feedback: 150 points (50 points feedback) 
Lesson Plan: 100 points 
Two Technique Analysis Papers: 200 points (100 points each) 
Final Project (Essay + “Behind the Story”): 100 points 
____________ 
1000 points total 
 
Creative Exercises: Most weeks, we will be doing a creative exercise to generate new 
work. These are designed to take about fifteen minutes; you shouldn’t treat them as a 
demand to write an entire short piece on the spot. You can always choose to expand on 
any of these exercises for your workshop essays. 
 
Discussion Board Posts: This class is asynchronous, so when it comes to the 
discussion board questions and the creative exercises, you can think of these as our class 
meetings. These cover activities we would otherwise be doing in face-to-face meetings.  
 
My expectation is that each week you have a discussion board question due, you can 
write your response by the due date. I’ll be looking for about 250 words in your 
response; the more specific, the better. The second part of the discussion board will be 
at least one response to a classmate. These responses should be at least 100 words, and 
should be more than simply saying “Good point!” or “I agree!” If you respond to their 
discussion question, you should be adding to what they say, not merely echoing what 
they say. Please limit your responses to other discussion posts, rather than 
any creative exercises we might be doing that week. 
 
Three Essays: Over the course of the semester, you will be asked to write and 
workshop three essays of varying lengths. The instructions for each will be available on 
Dropbox. 
 
Lesson Plan / Presentation: Each of you will create a lesson plan for one text from 
our course that should include 1) a handout with relevant contextual, biographical, or 
craft information; 2) discussion questions; 3) at least two creative exercises a class could 
do; 4) a creative or critical assignment based on the text. You can pitch this lesson plan 
either to high schoolers or college students depending on your own career aims / 
interests. (And keep in mind that even if you don’t want to teach, an MA in English may 
require unexpected moments of pedagogy in your job putting together workshops, talks, 
events, etc.). More details will be available on D2L. 
 
Workshop Participation: Each of you will be workshopped three times over the 
semester. You will provide written feedback for your peers when it is their scheduled 
workshop time. 
 
What does good feedback look like? Good feedback gives the reader a sense of your 
response to the piece as an audience member. Over many years of teaching I’ve found 
that students most appreciate: 
● A description of what you think their piece is about, what you think it’s 
trying to achieve, and what the main idea or theme seems to be. 
Sometimes this means stating things that seem obvious, but often this is 
something people see differently, so it helps to have many perspectives 
● Things that you respond to with excitement or surprise. Everyone loves 
hearing where their piece really took off and flew. This is helpful, too, 
because authors want to try to preserve in revision those things that the 
audience is responding well to (usually!) 
● Questions that you have. Is there anything confusing? Are you especially 
curious about why the author did or did not make a particular choice? 
● Ideas you have about what they could do in revision to experiment with 
different directions. This isn’t quite the same as saying you didn’t like 
something or that an element wasn’t “working.” These are “constructive 
possibilities”: what if this were shorter? Longer? Included research? What 
might that do for the piece? 
All of this will take a generous paragraph (200 words or more) to achieve.  
 
Technique Analysis: Twice during the semester, I will ask you to write a brief (3 
pages) analysis of a particular technique and how it is used in one of the essays we’ve 
studied this term.  
 
Final Project: For your final project, I would like you to extensively revise one of your 
three essays for the term, and include a 1000-word (minimum) statement of intent with 
it that touches on the process of conceiving, writing, and revising the piece, and how it is 
in dialogue with other pieces you might have read.  
 
Instructor Response Time 
For emails, please allow me up to 24 hours to respond to your message, 36 hours on 
weekends or holidays. For grades, please allow a week to ten days for me to get back to 
you for large assignments, though it will likely take less time than this.  
 
Learner Participation Guidelines 
 
Turning in late work for a workshop means you forfeit the right to feedback from your 
peers. I also reserve the right to forgo feedback on late work. Feedback needs to come to 
the writer before the workshop takes place, unless you have an exceptional 
circumstance. I may not be able to reschedule your workshop if you miss class that day. 
 
I cannot give credit for feedback turned in after a workshop has taken place. If you 
cannot attend workshop, please upload your feedback beforehand. 
 
Other late work will be discounted one point for each day late. However, if you are 
concerned about those missing points, you may complete an alternate assignment from 
the Assignment Grab Bag. (More details on this will be available on D2L. 
 
Perhaps the most important classroom policy of all concerns our learning environment. 
A successful learning community is one in which we can learn from people whose 
perspectives we might not necessarily share and I ask everyone to be constructive and 
mindful. Speaking our minds is a fantastic privilege of this environment, but doing so in 
an aggressive or hostile way helps no one. Good workshop etiquette protocol is below. 
 
***DISCLAIMER: One question that students often ask: is it okay if I write about …? 
Usually, they want to know if I will be upset if their work contains profanity, violence, 
sexuality, drug use, etc. The short answer is no. What I care most about is the quality of 
your writing. That being said, please do consider your audience before you workshop a 
piece. We will discuss things like trigger warnings and distressing material as part of the 
consideration of the genre. One exception: if your piece contains hate speech or bias 
toward protected groups, I am obligated to report this to the university. 
 
EIU Policies 
● Students are expected to maintain principles of academic integrity and conduct 
as defined in EIU’s Code of Conduct. Violations will be reported to the Dean of 
Students. Department statement on plagiarism: Any teacher who discovers an act 
of plagiarism—“The appropriation or imitation of the language, ideas, and/or 
thoughts of another author, and representation of them as one’s own original 
work” (Random House Dictionary of the English Language)—has the right and 
responsibility to impose upon the guilty student an appropriate penalty, up to 
and including immediate assignments of a grade of F for the assigned essay and a 
grade of F for the course, and to report the incident to the Office of Student 
Standards. Respect for the work of others should encompass all formats, 
including print, electronic, and oral sources.  
o Note: Creative writers are already beginning to use ChatGPT in 
meaningful and radically disruptive ways in their work; we can talk about 
this in class, and about the experimental potential of AI in creative writing. 
However, please do not use these tools to create any of the work you turn 
in for this class, unless you are experimenting under my specific direction.  
● Students who are having difficulty achieving their academic goals are encouraged 
to contact the Student Success Center for assistance with time management, note 
taking, avoiding procrastination, setting goals, and other skills to support 
academic achievement. The Student Success Center provides individualized 
consultations. To make an appointment, call 217-581-6696, or go to McAfee 1336. 
● If you are a student with a documented disability in need of accommodations to 
fully participate in this class, please contact the Office of Student Disability 
Services (OSDS). All accommodations must be approved through OSDS. Please 
stop by McAfee 1272, or call 217-581-6583 to make an appointment. 
● The writing center (Coleman 3110) can absolutely help English students / English 
majors / graduate students with their assignments, including creative ones. And 
you can make an online appointment if you are an online-only student! 
A Note on Workshop 
Sharing creative work is an exciting, but vulnerable process. There are things to 
remember if you are the artist, as well as if you are the audience. Here are a couple of 
foundational principles that successful workshops are based on.  
1. This is a semi-public space. If you don’t believe audience matters—in other 
words, if you write only for the purposes of self-expression—this may not be the 
right environment for you. Dismissing what a roomful of people think about your 
work because you are only “writing for yourself” places your audience in an 
uncomfortable position. Self-expression is private and requires no external input. 
Art is dialogic: it requires both a creator and a receptor (audience) to make it 
come alive. 
2. Revision is the most important part of writing. If you are interested in others’ 
opinions, but not open to changing your work based on feedback, this may not be 
the right environment for you.  
3. You must trust that strangers have valuable things to say about your work. The 
people here are smart and generous; they care about literature and about reading. 
If you are frustrated if they seem to be “not getting it” perhaps this is a sign that 
something in your work needs to be clarified. This is not a sign that we didn’t 
read it carefully ahead of time. It means that we’re working through our 
questions and individual interpretations, and that is often the most useful part of 
workshop. 
TL; DR: All of the above may be summed up as: be open-hearted and open-minded. 
Course Schedule 
Week One: Monday August 19: Introductions 
Discussion Board 1 question and Creative Exercise 1 due by Friday 11:59 p.m. 
 
Week Two: Monday August 26: Happily 
Discussion Board 2 question due by Wednesday 11:59 p.m. 
Discussion Board 2 response and Creative Exercise 2 due by Friday 11:59 p.m. 
 
Week Three: Monday September 2: Happily 
Discussion Board 3 question due by Wednesday 11:59 p.m. 
Discussion Board 3 response and Creative Exercise 3 due by Friday 11:59 p.m. 
Post your essay on Workshop forum by Friday noon 
 
Week Four: Monday September 9: Small Group Workshop 
Workshop Feedback due by Friday 11:59 p.m.  
 
Week Five: Monday September 16: Dream House  
Discussion Board 4 question due by Wednesday 11:59 p.m. 
Discussion Board 4 response and Creative Exercise 4 due by Friday 11:59 p.m. 
Technique Analysis 1 due Wednesday, September 18 by 11:59 p.m. 
 
Week Six: Monday September 23: Dream House 
Discussion Board 5 question due by Wednesday 11:59 p.m. 
Discussion Board 5 response and Creative Exercise 5 due by Friday 11:59 p.m. 
Post your essay on Workshop forum by Friday noon 
 
Week Seven: Monday September 30: Half-Group Workshop 
Workshop Feedback due by Friday 11:59 p.m.  
 
Week Eight: Monday October 7: Half-Group Workshop 
Workshop Feedback due by Friday 11:59 p.m.  
 
Week Nine: Monday, October 14: Persepolis 
Discussion Board 6 question due by Wednesday 11:59 p.m. 
Discussion Board 6 response and Creative Exercise 6 due by Friday 11:59 p.m. 
 
Week Ten: Monday, October 21: Punch Me Up 
Discussion Board 7 question due by Wednesday 11:59 p.m. 
Discussion Board 7 response and Creative Exercise 7 due by Friday 11:59 p.m. 
Technique Analysis 2 due Monday, October 21 
 
Week Eleven: Monday, October 28: Punch Me Up 
Discussion Board 8 question due by Wednesday 11:59 p.m. 
Discussion Board 8 response and Creative Exercise 8 due by Friday 11:59 p.m. 
 
Week Twelve: Monday November 4: Workshop  
Workshop Feedback due by Friday 11:59 p.m.  
 
Week Thirteen: Monday, November 11: Workshop 
Lesson Plan due Monday November 11  
Workshop Feedback due by Friday 11:59 p.m.  
 
Week Fourteen: Monday, November 18: Workshop 
Workshop Feedback due by Friday 11:59 p.m.  
 
Thanksgiving Break 
 
Week Fifteen: Monday, December 2: Revision 
Discussion Board 9 question due by Wednesday 11:59 p.m. 
Discussion Board 9 response and Creative Exercise 9 due by Friday 11:59 p.m. 
 
Final Project due Monday, December 9 by 11:59 p.m.  
 
 
 


ENG 5020B-600 Graduate Workshop in Creative Writing Creative Nonfiction