As a genre of writing, the essay is generally a short, prose composition that relates—or attempts to relate—a message or story. How you order language in an essay gives it a form, which determines how the message or story is experienced by the reader.
In this eight-week course, we'll study the aesthetic qualities of various essay forms, including but not limited to: the flash essay, the lyrics essay, the confessional essay, and the crónica. Each essay has its own conventions, limitations, and strengths. In this course, participants will gain insights into the identifying elements of each form so they may begin the task of reproducing them.
Writers can expect weekly readings with pointed elements to look out for, in-class writing prompts, and constructive first-blush feedback on their work. Writers will be encouraged to select an essay form that is particularly appealing to them so they may develop it slowly through the duration of the course with the goal of finishing class with at least one solid essay draft. No previous workshop experience is required to enroll in this course!
