How to Plan a Creative Writing Course
"Creative" may be the most subjective word in the English language, but everyone agrees that to meet that objective, you have to move away from "ordinary." A creative writing course is an opportunity for like-minded people to gather together and share their ideas and creative compositions with a receptive audience. Planning a creative writing course is a creative exercise in and of itself and an opportunity to see how far outside the square you can think.
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Instructions
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Determine what sort of creative writing course you want to plan. It could be a course on how to write poetry or the best way to write a book. Think about whether you are going to include lessons on improving technical accuracy and grammar, or if you are just going to stick with the "creative."
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Identify your topics. Start with the introduction to the course. Plan lessons on setting, character, plot, structure, metaphor and symbolism.
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Draft your creative writing course outline. Fill in the blanks, such as the time, dates and length of the course. Decide if there will be a student assessment at the end of the course, or if it is just for fun.
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Leave the course outline draft for a day or two and then review it. Check to see that it follows a logical sequence. For example, you might want to teach students how to write short stories before you get into novel writing.
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Compile a list of recommended readings. You will want to provide students with good examples of creative writing to give them a goal to strive toward.
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Figure out how you are going to evaluate your creative writing course. Use an assessment model that tests the result against the objectives of your original creative course outline.
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Tips & Warnings
If this is the first creative writing course you've written, review it with an experienced teacher and get her feedback. She may be able to offer some tips and suggestions that will help with your creative writing course plan.
Start each class with a 10-minute free-style exercise. The point is to just write -- it doesn't have to be brilliant, but the words have to keep coming until the timer you set goes off. This will teach your students to try to kick-start their creative writing, rather than waiting for inspiration to strike.
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