Students

CWPG818 – Writing Young Adult (YA) Fiction

2018 – S1 External

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor
Jane Messer
Contact via jane.messer@mq.edu.au
Australian Hearing Hub, Macquarie University, Ryde Campus
Meetings and phone discussions by appointment. Please email to arrange.
Lecturer
Elizabeth Claire Alberts
Phone or skype by appointment. Please email to arrange.
Credit points Credit points
4
Prerequisites Prerequisites
CWPG810 or CWPG811
Corequisites Corequisites
LIT848
Co-badged status Co-badged status
ENGL716
Unit description Unit description
Taught by professional writers of young adult (YA) fiction, this unit focuses on the writing of fiction for young adult readers in the genres of novel and short story; and critical and analytical discussion and writing about the YA genre. It is suitable for students with some experience in narrative writing, who want to develop their knowledge and practice of YA fiction. Students devise their own writing projects and are encouraged to write across a range of YA genres that might include for instance, comedy, speculative fiction, or verse forms. Students read a range of international and Australian contemporary YA fiction, including work that experiments with the YA form, and which explore new developments in publishing such as e-books. Assessment is based on the student's creative work and reflection, and critical writing about the set texts.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • Demonstrated creativity and problem solving skills in the planning, revision, editing and completion of creative works in the field of Young Adult fiction or creative nonfiction, poetry or transmedia.
  • Knowledge of Australian and international Young Adult writing and its varied modes of print and digital production, publication and reception by audiences and readers.
  • Ability to deploy and utilize relevant technical creative writing terms, vocabulary and narrative studies concepts to critically discuss and analyse craft and technique.
  • Skillful analysis, editing and construtive feedback about the creative work of peers in writing communities which utilizes technical and craft vocabularies.
  • Demonstrated capacity to reflect on the role of the writer and one's own writing and its potential and real impacts on YA audiences and readerships.

General Assessment Information

It is an assessment requirement of this unit that students participate online or in class weekly: missed weeks must be explained with a satisfactory Professional Authority Form (PAF) relating to urgent or serious medical circumstances; or in the case of employment demands, a letter from the employer. 20% of the Participation mark will be deducted from the Participation mark for each online or class absence. Written tasks must be completed within the week they are due (except where students have provided the PAF or employer's letter to satisfactorily document their absence.) The online week commences each Monday and ends on the Sunday.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Participation 20% No Ongoing & scheduled
Writing Exercises 15% No 3 scheduled tasks
Creative Writing Assignment 45% No 1 June 2018
Workshop Drafts 10% No Individual due dates
Reflective Statement 10% No 1 June 2018

Participation

Due: Ongoing & scheduled
Weighting: 20%

Participation includes graded written work. See the full Unit Handbook available from the unit's iLearn site for a complete description of this task.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Knowledge of Australian and international Young Adult writing and its varied modes of print and digital production, publication and reception by audiences and readers.
  • Ability to deploy and utilize relevant technical creative writing terms, vocabulary and narrative studies concepts to critically discuss and analyse craft and technique.
  • Skillful analysis, editing and construtive feedback about the creative work of peers in writing communities which utilizes technical and craft vocabularies.
  • Demonstrated capacity to reflect on the role of the writer and one's own writing and its potential and real impacts on YA audiences and readerships.

Writing Exercises

Due: 3 scheduled tasks
Weighting: 15%

See the full Unit Handbook available from the unit's iLearn site for a complete description of this task.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Ability to deploy and utilize relevant technical creative writing terms, vocabulary and narrative studies concepts to critically discuss and analyse craft and technique.

Creative Writing Assignment

Due: 1 June 2018
Weighting: 45%

See the full Unit Handbook available from the unit's iLearn site for a complete description of this task.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrated creativity and problem solving skills in the planning, revision, editing and completion of creative works in the field of Young Adult fiction or creative nonfiction, poetry or transmedia.
  • Ability to deploy and utilize relevant technical creative writing terms, vocabulary and narrative studies concepts to critically discuss and analyse craft and technique.
  • Demonstrated capacity to reflect on the role of the writer and one's own writing and its potential and real impacts on YA audiences and readerships.

Workshop Drafts

Due: Individual due dates
Weighting: 10%

Workshop drafts of work in progress are assessed for conceptual promise, development, and engagement with craft and technique. See full Unit Handbook for further details.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrated creativity and problem solving skills in the planning, revision, editing and completion of creative works in the field of Young Adult fiction or creative nonfiction, poetry or transmedia.
  • Ability to deploy and utilize relevant technical creative writing terms, vocabulary and narrative studies concepts to critically discuss and analyse craft and technique.
  • Demonstrated capacity to reflect on the role of the writer and one's own writing and its potential and real impacts on YA audiences and readerships.

Reflective Statement

Due: 1 June 2018
Weighting: 10%

Students write a short personal essay discussing their unit learning and writing development.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Knowledge of Australian and international Young Adult writing and its varied modes of print and digital production, publication and reception by audiences and readers.
  • Demonstrated capacity to reflect on the role of the writer and one's own writing and its potential and real impacts on YA audiences and readerships.

Delivery and Resources

The online unit is taught through a combination of live and pre-recorded lectures and discussions;  weekly workshopping of student writing; discussion of the set readings; and individual presentations by the students about the readings. Your lecturer will contribute feedback to your individual creative writing workshops, and to your discussion groups’ discussion threads. The unit includes three guest lectures by Australian YA writers, and all students are invited to attend these free talks. They are recorded for external students who are not able to attend.

Required Reading - Texts

These are the full texts you will be reading. Other required readings including book chapters and articles are available through the Library's Unit Readings online. Two further texts will be set once the guest speakers are confirmed.

  • Margo Lanagan, Sea Hearts
  • Sue Lawson, Pan’s Whisper
  • Randa Abdel-Fattah (guest speaker), When Michael Met Mina
  • Tanya Lee Stone, A Bad Boy Can Be Good For a Girl
  • Scott Westerfeld and Devin Grayson and Steven Cummings (Illustrator), Uglies: Shay's Story
  • Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games - Book 1
  • Saci Lloyd, The Carbon Diaries

 

Unit Schedule

Week 1  Introduction, Greetings, Schedules for workshopping and Individual Presentations.

Week 2 Readers Past/Present/Future, Issues of Identity

Week 3 Dramatic Elements of Young Adult Fiction (Romance, Darkness and Conflict) and Young Adult Bildungsroman

Week 4 Character, Voice, Focalisation, Dialogue Guest Author Talk

Week 5 Themes, 3 Act Structure, Multiple Perspectives

Week 6 Writing multi-cultural literature for YA readers Guest Author Talk

Week 7 Writing and publishing poetry and Verse novels

Week 8 Flash Fiction/Graphic Novels

Week 9 Pitching, Publishers and Pay

Week 10 Writing the Series, experimenting with form - Guest Author Talk

Week 11 Writing Dystopias

Week 12 Environmental Crisis in Young Adult Fiction

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Undergraduate students seeking more policy resources can visit the Student Policy Gateway (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/student-policy-gateway). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/getting-started/student-conduct​

Results

Results shown in iLearn, or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to improve your marks and take control of your study.

Student Services and Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

Student Enquiries

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Graduate Capabilities

PG - Capable of Professional and Personal Judgment and Initiative

Our postgraduates will demonstrate a high standard of discernment and common sense in their professional and personal judgment. They will have the ability to make informed choices and decisions that reflect both the nature of their professional work and their personal perspectives.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Knowledge of Australian and international Young Adult writing and its varied modes of print and digital production, publication and reception by audiences and readers.
  • Skillful analysis, editing and construtive feedback about the creative work of peers in writing communities which utilizes technical and craft vocabularies.
  • Demonstrated capacity to reflect on the role of the writer and one's own writing and its potential and real impacts on YA audiences and readerships.

Assessment tasks

  • Participation
  • Creative Writing Assignment

PG - Discipline Knowledge and Skills

Our postgraduates will be able to demonstrate a significantly enhanced depth and breadth of knowledge, scholarly understanding, and specific subject content knowledge in their chosen fields.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Demonstrated creativity and problem solving skills in the planning, revision, editing and completion of creative works in the field of Young Adult fiction or creative nonfiction, poetry or transmedia.
  • Knowledge of Australian and international Young Adult writing and its varied modes of print and digital production, publication and reception by audiences and readers.
  • Ability to deploy and utilize relevant technical creative writing terms, vocabulary and narrative studies concepts to critically discuss and analyse craft and technique.
  • Skillful analysis, editing and construtive feedback about the creative work of peers in writing communities which utilizes technical and craft vocabularies.
  • Demonstrated capacity to reflect on the role of the writer and one's own writing and its potential and real impacts on YA audiences and readerships.

Assessment tasks

  • Participation
  • Writing Exercises
  • Creative Writing Assignment
  • Workshop Drafts

PG - Critical, Analytical and Integrative Thinking

Our postgraduates will be capable of utilising and reflecting on prior knowledge and experience, of applying higher level critical thinking skills, and of integrating and synthesising learning and knowledge from a range of sources and environments. A characteristic of this form of thinking is the generation of new, professionally oriented knowledge through personal or group-based critique of practice and theory.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Demonstrated creativity and problem solving skills in the planning, revision, editing and completion of creative works in the field of Young Adult fiction or creative nonfiction, poetry or transmedia.
  • Ability to deploy and utilize relevant technical creative writing terms, vocabulary and narrative studies concepts to critically discuss and analyse craft and technique.
  • Skillful analysis, editing and construtive feedback about the creative work of peers in writing communities which utilizes technical and craft vocabularies.
  • Demonstrated capacity to reflect on the role of the writer and one's own writing and its potential and real impacts on YA audiences and readerships.

Assessment tasks

  • Participation
  • Writing Exercises
  • Creative Writing Assignment
  • Workshop Drafts
  • Reflective Statement

PG - Research and Problem Solving Capability

Our postgraduates will be capable of systematic enquiry; able to use research skills to create new knowledge that can be applied to real world issues, or contribute to a field of study or practice to enhance society. They will be capable of creative questioning, problem finding and problem solving.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcome

  • Ability to deploy and utilize relevant technical creative writing terms, vocabulary and narrative studies concepts to critically discuss and analyse craft and technique.

Assessment tasks

  • Participation
  • Writing Exercises
  • Creative Writing Assignment
  • Workshop Drafts

PG - Effective Communication

Our postgraduates will be able to communicate effectively and convey their views to different social, cultural, and professional audiences. They will be able to use a variety of technologically supported media to communicate with empathy using a range of written, spoken or visual formats.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Demonstrated creativity and problem solving skills in the planning, revision, editing and completion of creative works in the field of Young Adult fiction or creative nonfiction, poetry or transmedia.
  • Ability to deploy and utilize relevant technical creative writing terms, vocabulary and narrative studies concepts to critically discuss and analyse craft and technique.
  • Skillful analysis, editing and construtive feedback about the creative work of peers in writing communities which utilizes technical and craft vocabularies.
  • Demonstrated capacity to reflect on the role of the writer and one's own writing and its potential and real impacts on YA audiences and readerships.

Assessment tasks

  • Participation
  • Writing Exercises
  • Creative Writing Assignment

PG - Engaged and Responsible, Active and Ethical Citizens

Our postgraduates will be ethically aware and capable of confident transformative action in relation to their professional responsibilities and the wider community. They will have a sense of connectedness with others and country and have a sense of mutual obligation. They will be able to appreciate the impact of their professional roles for social justice and inclusion related to national and global issues

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Knowledge of Australian and international Young Adult writing and its varied modes of print and digital production, publication and reception by audiences and readers.
  • Skillful analysis, editing and construtive feedback about the creative work of peers in writing communities which utilizes technical and craft vocabularies.

Assessment tasks

  • Participation
  • Reflective Statement