Writing Exercises

Each week students will bring multiple copies of that week's writing exercises for in-class workshopping. The exercises will comprise short pieces, ie less than 400 words, the purpose of which is to focus on particular writing craft skills. A detailed exercise brief will be distributed in-class week 1.

At semester end, students will choose four of their semester's exercises to be submitted for assessment. They will submit those exercises via Turn It In on Friday 16 May 2017 by 5pm. Students will incur a late penalty (10% per day) for late submissions.

Extensions: Extensions can only be granted by the tutor in line with university policy.

This Assessment Task relates to the following Learning Outcomes:

• Demonstrate an understanding of the diverse range of methodologies and creative techniques informing production processes of literary non-fiction writing.

• Synthesise and expand their practical knowledge of non-fiction writing.

• Demonstrate awareness of ethical conduct in relation to contemporary non-fiction writing.

Research Portfolio & Report

Task: Submit a research portfolio plus 600-word research report (to be submitted via Turn It In by 5pm on Friday 28 April 2017). Students will incur a late penalty (10% per day) for late submissions.

Extensions: Extensions can only be granted by the tutor in line with university policy.

The background research and footwork is the core, the substance and the hidden bulk of any successful piece of non-fiction writing. (Insufficient research always shows – usually as repetitive, waffly, “puffy” prose.) Solid and thoughtful research is the hidden 90% of the iceberg. Research skills are vital, but each project presents its own unique challenges. This exercise is to help you become familiar with the broad contours and specifics of researching for non-fiction writing.

Portfolio:

Portfolio must be approximately 10-15 x A4 pages in length and include at least 4 different sources of research, such as (but not limited to):

*Interview transcript/s

*Fieldwork notes

Archival research (eg photographs and other material about particular building/s and venues,

maps, early drafts of playscripts, etc – ie material you have accessed at an archive)

Objects/artefacts (include written details of them)

Your own discussion of relevant films/documentaries

Photographs

Statistics (eg. from the Australian Bureau of Statistics)

Books/literature/journalism

Scholarly journal articles

Additional readings

NOTE: Please don’t include photocopies of books/articles in your portfolio. Instead include a detailed bibliography. Please don’t include your entire interview transcript; perhaps instead just select particularly relevant sections.

*NOTE: Your portfolio must include at least one of the following research sources: interview transcript/s, and/or fieldwork

Research Report:

Submit a 600-word research report attached to the front of your portfolio. In 2 or 3 sentences, write what your creative arts journalism article will be about, as well as the central theme/idea you are exploring, or the ‘angle’ you are pursuing. Then explain the significance of each piece of research you’ve done/collected and how you will use each piece in the final article. Set out your report under headings based on each piece of research (eg ‘Interview with XXXX’) and write a few sentences under each heading.

Marking Criteria:

You will be marked on:

Demonstrated ability to conduct in-depth, relevant research using a variety of methodologies

Demonstrated ability to synthesise this research by focusing on one or two key themes to have emerged from it

Demonstrated ability to reflect on the relevance of such research to your proposed creative nonfiction article

This Assessment Task relates to the following Learning Outcomes:

• Demonstrate an understanding of the diverse range of methodologies and creative techniques informing production processes of literary non-fiction writing.

• Synthesise and expand their practical knowledge of non-fiction writing.

• Demonstrate awareness of ethical conduct in relation to contemporary non-fiction writing.

Major Article

Development of a substantial, well-researched piece of non-fiction writing of up to 3000 words. A detailed assignment brief will be distributed in class. Students will submit their major article via Turn It In by 5pm on Tuesday 6 June 2017. Students will incur a late penalty (10% per day) for late submissions.

Extensions: Extensions can only be granted by the tutor in line with university policy.

This Assessment Task relates to the following Learning Outcomes:

• Demonstrate an understanding of the diverse range of methodologies and creative techniques informing production processes of literary non-fiction writing.
• Synthesise and expand their practical knowledge of non-fiction writing.
• Demonstrate awareness of ethical conduct in relation to contemporary non-fiction writing.

Seminar Preparation Task

In Week 3, 5, 6, 9, & 11 of this unit, students will bring to class a 200-300 word written reflection regarding the readings for that week. Students will also submit each week's reflection via Turn It In. Further details of this assessment will be distributed in Week 2. Students will incur a late penalty (10% per day) for late submissions.

Extensions: Extensions can only be granted by the tutor in line with university policy.