What do creative nonfiction, fiction, and poetry look like in modern literature?
How can each of these creative writing modes perform your ideas?
In this course, you will read and discuss contemporary works of creative nonfiction, fiction, and poetry. You will also practice your own writing around these genres through readings and exercises. By the end of the course, you will have a better understanding of literary art and how your own writing applies to different forms of expression.
“…Writing is an act of physical courage. You have this great idea… And you sit down to write it and almost always what was brilliant before… is somehow not so brilliant when you go to write. It’s as though you have a certain music in your head and trying to get that music out on the page is just absolute hell. And so you fail…” Through drafts “you try to go from really bad, to okay, to acceptable. And then you know you’ve done your job. You never really get— I never get to that perfect thing that was in my head. So I always consider the entire process about failure… Perseverance. I think that’s just so key to writing.” - Ta Nehisi Coates, Author/Journalist
2025 Pre-College SummerPROGRAM DATES
PROGRAM COST: $2,250 APPLICATION DEADLINES: Early Action:* March 7, 2025 *Apply by the early action deadline and receive a $100 discount on the program fee. |
Experiential Learning
Through reading assignments and class discussions, you will learn to:
- Identify story basics like plot arcs and character development
- Dissect poetry techniques like metaphor and prosody
- Combine poetry and fiction elements to turn an essay into a work of creative nonfiction
Through writing assignments and workshop discussions you will practice the writing techniques you discover through readings and discussions like figurative language, dialogue, and structure.
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Instructor
Robert Crace
Robert Crace is a Visiting Professor of Fiction and Creative Nonfiction at Stony Brook University. He ghostwrites novel manuscripts, memoirs, and prescriptive nonfiction. His work has been published in Routledge, The Brooklyn Rail, Eclectica, Sleepingfish, The Under Review, Mayday, and other journals.
Robert has an MFA in Creative Writing from Stony Brook University and a BA from Berklee College of Music.