Reading for Writers – ENGL 199, Section RFW, TUTH, 12:30 – 1:45 p.m.

When asked whether he thought writers were made or born, Beat writer Jack Kerouac answered that genius involves originality in style: “It ain’t whatcha write, it’s the way atcha write it.” In Reading for Writers, unlike in traditional literature courses, this will be our focus: the how of a story or poem, the way it’s written, more so than merely the what. This course will introduce you to a way of reading that you may be unfamiliar with-reading with an eye for craft. Some questions we will ask ourselves are, How is a piece put together? Why and how did the author do what she’s done? How can we relate this to our own writing? Ideally, this is a course to get you excited about reading as a tool to become a better writer. And even if you don’t identify yourself as a writer, you will gain a greater understanding of and appreciation for how a work of literature is put together. The class will be discussion-based and will involve writing both critical and creative works. Note: Reading for Writers fulfills a literature requirement in the CW major. It is also open to non-majors.