the collected creative writing including fiction drama poetry etc

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11 Literature (including fiction, drama, poetry, and prose)

Essential Questions for Literature

• How is literature like life?
• What is literature supposed to do?
• What influences a writer to create?
• How does literature reveal the values of a given culture or time period?
• How does the study of fiction and nonfiction texts help individuals construct their understanding of reality?
• In what ways are all narratives influenced by bias and perspective?
• Where does the meaning of a text reside? Within the text, within the reader, or in the transaction that occurs between them?
• What can a reader know about an author’s intentions based only on a reading of the text?
• What are enduring questions and conflicts that writers (and their cultures) grappled with hundreds of years ago and are still relevant today?
• How do we gauge the optimism or pessimism of a particular time period or particular group of writers?
• Why are there universal themes in literature–that is, themes that are of interest or concern to all cultures and societies?
• What are the characteristics or elements that cause a piece of literature to endure?
• What is the purpose of: science fiction? satire? historical novels, etc.?
• How do novels, short stories, poetry, etc. relate to the larger questions of philosophy and humanity?
• How we can use literature to explain or clarify our own ideas about the world?
• How does what we know about the world shape the stories we tell?
• How do the stories we tell about the world shape the way we view ourselves?
• How do our personal experiences shape our view of others?
• What does it mean to be an insider or an outsider?
• Are there universal themes in literature that are of interest or concern to all cultures and societies?
• What is creativity and what is its importance for the individual / the culture?
• What are the limits, if any, of freedom of speech?

Defining Literature

Literature, in its broadest sense, is any written work. Etymologically, the term derives from Latin  litaritura / litteratura  “writing formed with letters,” although some definitions include spoken or sung texts. More restrictively, it is writing that possesses literary merit. Literature can be classified according to whether it is fiction or non-fiction and whether it is poetry or prose. It can be further distinguished according to major forms such as the novel, short story or drama, and works are often categorized according to historical periods or their adherence to certain aesthetic features or expectations (genre).

Taken to mean only written works, literature was first produced by some of the world’s earliest civilizations—those of Ancient Egypt and Sumeria—as early as the 4th millennium BC; taken to include spoken or sung texts, it originated even earlier, and some of the first written works may have been based on a pre-existing oral tradition. As urban cultures and societies developed, there was a proliferation in the forms of literature. Developments in print technology allowed for literature to be distributed and experienced on an unprecedented scale, which has culminated in the twenty-first century in electronic literature.

Definitions of literature have varied over time.  In Western Europe prior to the eighteenth century, literature as a term indicated all books and writing. [1]   A more restricted sense of the term emerged during the Romantic period, in which it began to demarcate “imaginative” literature. [2]

 Contemporary debates over what constitutes literature can be seen as returning to the older, more inclusive notion of what constitutes literature. Cultural studies, for instance, takes as its subject of analysis both popular and minority genres, in addition to canonical works. [3]

Major Forms

A calligram by Guillaume Apollinaire. These are a type of poem in which the written words are arranged in such a way to produce a visual image.

Poetry is a form of literary art that uses aesthetic and rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meanings in addition to, or in place of, prosaic ostensible meaning (ordinary intended meaning). Poetry has traditionally been distinguished from prose by its being set in verse; [4]  prose is cast in sentences, poetry in lines; the syntax of prose is dictated by meaning, whereas that of poetry is held across metre or the visual aspects of the poem. [5]

Prior to the nineteenth century, poetry was commonly understood to be something set in metrical lines; accordingly, in 1658 a definition of poetry is “any kind of subject consisting of Rythm or Verses”. [6]  Possibly as a result of Aristotle’s influence (his  Poetics ), “poetry” before the nineteenth century was usually less a technical designation for verse than a normative category of fictive or rhetorical art. [7]  As a form it may pre-date literacy, with the earliest works being composed within and sustained by an oral tradition; [8]  hence it constitutes the earliest example of literature.

Prose is a form of language that possesses ordinary syntax and natural speech rather than rhythmic structure; in which regard, along with its measurement in sentences rather than lines, it differs from poetry. [9]  On the historical development of prose, Richard Graff notes that ”

Novel : a long fictional prose narrative.

Novella :The novella exists between the novel and short story; the publisher Melville House classifies it as “too short to be a novel, too long to be a short story.” [10]

Short story : a dilemma in defining the “short story” as a literary form is how to, or whether one should, distinguish it from any short narrative. Apart from its distinct size, various theorists have suggested that the short story has a characteristic subject matter or structure; [11]   these discussions often position the form in some relation to the novel. [12]

Drama is literature intended for performance. [13]

Leitch  et al. ,  The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism , 28  ↵

Ross, “The Emergence of “Literature”: Making and Reading the English Canon in the Eighteenth Century,” 406 & Eagleton,  Literary theory: an introduction , 16  ↵

“POETRY, N.”.  OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY . OUP. RETRIEVED 13 FEBRUARY 2014. (subscription required)  ↵

Preminger,  The New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics , 938–9  ↵

Ross, “The Emergence of “Literature”: Making and Reading the English Canon in the Eighteenth Century”, 398  ↵

FINNEGAN, RUTH H. (1977). ORAL POETRY: ITS NATURE, SIGNIFICANCE, AND SOCIAL CONTEXT. INDIANA UNIVERSITY PRESS. P. 66. & MAGOUN, JR., FRANCIS P. (1953). “ORAL-FORMULAIC CHARACTER OF ANGLO-SAXON NARRATIVE POETRY”.SPECULUM 28 (3): 446–67. DOI:10.2307/2847021  ↵

Preminger,  The New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics , 938–9 &Alison Booth; Kelly J. Mays. “Glossary: P”. LitWeb , the Norton Introduction to Literature Studyspace . Retrieved 15 February 2014.   ↵

Antrim, Taylor (2010). “In Praise of Short”. The Daily Beast. Retrieved 15 February 2014.  ↵

ROHRBERGER, MARY; DAN E. BURNS (1982). “SHORT FICTION AND THE NUMINOUS REALM: ANOTHER ATTEMPT AT DEFINITION”.  MODERN FICTION STUDIES . XXVIII (6). & MAY, CHARLES (1995).  THE SHORT STORY. THE REALITY OF ARTIFICE . NEW YORK: TWAIN.  ↵

Marie Louise Pratt (1994). Charles May, ed.  The Short Story: The Long and the Short of It . Athens: Ohio UP.  ↵

Elam, Kier (1980).  The Semiotics of Theatre and Drama . London and New York: Methuen. p. 98.ISBN 0-416-72060-9.  ↵

LICENSES AND ATTRIBUTIONS CC LICENSED CONTENT, SHARED PREVIOUSLY

Literature. Provided by: Wikipedia. Located at:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literature#cite_note-44 . License:  CC BY-SA: Attribution- ShareAlike

PUBLIC DOMAIN CONTENT: Image of man formed by words. Authored by: Guillaume Apollinaire. Located at:  https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Calligramme.jpg . License:  Public Domain: No Known Copyright

Listen to this Discussion of the poetry of Harris Khalique . You might want to take a look at the transcript as you listen.

The first half of a 2008 reading featuring four Latino poets, as part of the American Perspectives series at the Art Institute of Chicago.

Listen to poetry reading of Francisco Aragón and Brenda Cárdenas

Listen to this conversation with Allison Hedge Coke, Linda Hogan and Sherwin Bitsui . You might want to look at the transcript as you listen. In this program, we hear a conversation among three Native American poets: Allison Hedge Coke, Linda Hogan and Sherwin Bitsui. Allison Hedge Coke grew up listening to her Father’s traditional stories as she moved from Texas to North Carolina to Canada and the Great Plains. She is the author of several collections of poetry and the memoir, Rock, Ghost, Willow, Deer. She has worked as a mentor with Native Americans and at-risk youth, and is currently a Professor of Poetry and Writing at the University of Nebraska, Kearney. Linda Hogan is a prolific poet, novelist and essayist. Her work is imbued with an indigenous sense of history and place, while it explores environmental, feminist and spiritual themes. A former professor at the University of Colorado, she is currently the Chickasaw Nation’s Writer in Residence. She lives in Oklahoma, where she researches and writes about Chickasaw history, mythology and ways of life. Sherwin Bitsui grew up on the Navajo reservation in Arizona. He speaks Dine, the Navajo language and participates in ceremonial activities. His poetry has a sense of the surreal, combining images of the contemporary urban culture, with Native ritual and myth.

Remember to return to the essential questions. Can expand on any of your answers to these questions? You might want to research these poets.

Chris Abani : Stories from Africa

In this deeply personal talk, Nigerian writer Chris Abani says that “what we know about how to be who we are” comes from stories. He searches for the heart of Africa through its poems and narrative, including his own.

Listen to Isabel Allende’s Ted Talk

As a novelist and memoirist, Isabel Allende writes of passionate lives, including her own. Born into a Chilean family with political ties, she went into exile in the United States in the 1970s—an event that, she believes, created her as a writer. Her voice blends sweeping narrative with touches of magical realism; her stories are romantic, in the very best sense of the word. Her novels include The House of the Spirits, Eva Luna and The Stories of Eva Luna, and her latest, Maya’s Notebook and Ripper. And don’t forget her adventure trilogy for young readers— City of the Beasts, Kingdom of the Golden Dragon and Forest of the Pygmies.

As a memoirist, she has written about her vision of her lost Chile, in My Invented Country, and movingly tells the story of her life to her own daughter, in Paula. Her book Aphrodite: A Memoir of the Senses memorably linked two sections of the bookstore that don’t see much crossover: Erotica and Cookbooks. Just as vital is her community work: The Isabel Allende Foundation works with nonprofits in the San Francisco Bay Area and Chile to empower and protect women and girls—understanding that empowering women is the only true route to social and economic justice.

You can read excerpts of her books online here: https://www.isabelallende.com/en/books

Read her musings. Why does she write? https://www.isabelallende.com/en/musings

You might choose to read one of her novels.

Listen to Novelist Chimamanda Adichie . She speaks about how our lives, our cultures, are composed of many overlapping stories. She tells the story of how she found her authentic cultural voice — and warns that if we hear only a single story about another person or country, we risk a critical misunderstanding.

One Hundred Years of Solitu de

Gabriel García Márquez’s novel “One Hundred Years of Solitude” brought Latin American literature to the forefront of the global imagination and earned García Márquez the 1982 Nobel Prize for Literature. What makes the novel so remarkable? Francisco Díez-Buzo investigates.

Answer these questions as you listen:

How many generations of the Buendía family are in One Hundred Years of Solitude?

In what year did Gabriel García Marquez start writing One Hundred Years of Solitude?

Who inspired the style of One Hundred Years of Solitude?

A Colonel Aureliano Buendía

B Gabriel García Márquez

C Nicolás Ricardo Márquez

D Doña Tranquilina Iguarán Cotes

Which real-life event is almost directly represented in the novel?

A The Banana Massacre of 1928

B The Venezuelan coup d’état of 1958

C The Thousand Days’ War

D The bogotazo

What is the name of the town where the novel is set?

A Aracataca

Please explain how One Hundred Years of Solitude exemplifies the genre of magical realism.

What were the key influences in García Márquez’s life that helped inspire One Hundred Years of Solitude?

The narrative moves in a particular shape. What is that shape? How is that shape created?

Gabriel García Márquez was a writer and journalist who recorded the haphazard political history of Latin American life through his fiction. He was a part of a literary movement called the  Latin American “boom ,” which included writers like Peru’s Mario Vargas Llosa, Argentina’s Julio Cortázar, and Mexico’s Carlos Fuentes. Almost all of these writers  incorporated aspects of magical realism in their work . Later authors, such as Isabel Allende and Salman Rushdie, would carry on and adapt the genre to the cultural and historical experiences of other countries and continents. García Máruqez hadn’t always planned on being a writer, but a pivotal moment in Colombia’s—and Latin America’s—history changed all that. In 1948, when García Márquez was a law student in Bogotá,  Jorge Eliécer Gaítan , a prominent radical populist leader of Colombia’s Liberal Party, was assassinated. This happened while the U.S. Secretary of State George Marshall brought together leaders from across the Americas to create the  Organization of American States  (OAS) and to build a hemisphere-wide effort against communism. In the days after the assassination, massive riots, now called the  bogotazo , occurred. The worst Colombian civil war to date, known as  La Violencia ,  also broke out. Another law student, visiting from Cuba, was deeply affected by Eliécer Gaítan’s death. This student’s name was Fidel Castro. Interestingly, García Márquez and Castro—both socialists—would  become close friends later on in life , despite not meeting during these tumultuous events. One Hundred Years of Solitude ’s success almost didn’t happen, but this  article  from  Vanity Fair  helps explain how a long-simmering idea became an international sensation. When Gabriel García Márquez won the Nobel Prize in 1982, he gave a  lecture  that helped illuminate the plights that many Latin Americans faced on a daily basis. Since then, that lecture has also helped explain the political and social critiques deeply embedded in his novels. It was famous for being an indigenous overview of how political violence became entrenched in Latin America during the Cold War.In an  interview  with the  New Left Review , he discussed a lot of the inspirations for his work, as well as his political beliefs.

Don Quixote

Mounting his skinny steed, Don Quixote charges an army of giants. It is his duty to vanquish these behemoths in the name of his beloved lady, Dulcinea. There’s only one problem: the giants are merely windmills. What is it about this tale of the clumsy yet valiant knight that makes it so beloved? Ilan Stavans investigates.

Why do Don Quixote and Sancho Panza work well together?

A They eat at strange times of the day

B They are impatient

C They like to dance together

D Their characters complement each other

Why does Don Quixote want to fix the world?

A He is a knight who believes in social justice

B He reads many books

C He doesn’t have any friends

D He loves toys

Why is Don Quixote’s love for Dulcinea described as “platonic”?

A Plato is their matchmaker

B They love Greek philosophy

C They want material fortune

D It’s purely spiritual

Why is Cervantes’s book described as “the first modern novel”?

A It was originally adapted to television

B The characters evolve throughout the story

C Cervantes only wrote poetry before

D It refers to technological advances

What does the term “quixotic” mean?

B A person without money

C An old man

D A dreamer

In what ways do Don Quixote and Sancho Panza change as the plot progresses?

Is it possible to count the total number of days that pass during their journey?

In what ways does their journey reveal the changes that 17th-century Spain is also undergoing?

Interested in exploring the world of  Don Quixote ? Check out  this translation  of the thrill-seeking classic. To learn more about  Don Quixote ’s rich cultural history, click  here . In  this interview , the educator shares his inspiration behind his book  Quixote: The Novel and the World . The travails of  Don Quixote ’s protagonist were heavily shaped by real-world events in 17th-century Spain. This  article  provides detailed research on what, exactly, happened during that time.

Midnight’s Children

It begins with a countdown. A woman goes into labor as the clock ticks towards midnight. Across India, people wait for the declaration of independence after nearly 200 years of British rule. At the stroke of midnight, an infant and two new nations are born in perfect synchronicity. These events form the foundation of “Midnight’s Children.” Iseult Gillespie explores Salman Rushdie’s dazzling novel.

Saleem Sinai’s birth coincides with:

A The invasion of India by the British

B The end of British occupation and the creation of two new nations, India and Pakistan

C The death of his mother

D His discovery of magic powers

Midnight’s Children is set over the course of:

A About thirty years of Saleem’s life

B A single day in Saleem’s life

C The duration of British occupation

D About thirty years of Saleem’s life, as well as flashbacks to before he was born

Saleem is the only person in the book with magic powers

Saleem has powers of

A Telepathy

B Shape shifting

C Predicting the future

Midnight’s Children is full of cultural references, including

A 1001 Nights

D Mythology

E All of the above

List some of the historical events that are part of the plot of Midnight’s Children

Why is Midnight’s Children a work of postcolonial literature? Describe some of the features of postcolonial literature.

In addition to being a work of postcolonial literature, Midnight’s Children is considered a key work of magical realism. Why do you think this is? What are some of the features of the book that could classify as magical realism?

Midnight’s Children filters epic and complex histories through one man’s life. What are the benefits of fictionalizing history in this way? What do you think he is trying to tell us about the way we process our past? Can history be as much of a narrative construct as fiction?

At the stroke of midnight, the first gasp of a newborn syncs with the birth of two new nations. These simultaneous events are at the center of Midnight’s Children, a dazzling novel about the state of modern India by the British-Indian author  Salman Rushdie . You can listen to an interview with Rushdie discussing the novel  here . The chosen baby is Saleem Sinai, who narrates the novel from a pickle factory in 1977. As  this article  argues, much of the beauty of the narrative lies in Rushdie’s ability to weave the personal into the political in surprising ways. Saleem’s narrative leaps back in time, to trace his family history from 1915 on. The family tree is blossoming with bizarre scenes, including clandestine courtships, babies swapped at birth, and cryptic prophecies. For a detailed interactive timeline of the historical and personal events threaded through the novel,  click here . However, there’s one trait that can’t be explained by genes alone – Saleem has magic powers, and they’re somehow related to the time of his birth. For an overview of the use of magical realism and astonishing powers in Mignight’s Children,  click here. Saleem recounts a new nation, flourishing and founding after almost a century of British rule. For more information on the dark history of British occupation of India,  visit this page. The vast historical frame is one reason why Midnight’s Children is considered one of the most illuminating works of  postcolonial literature  ever written. This genre typically addresses life in formerly colonized countries, and explores the fallout through themes like revolution, migration, and identity. Postcolonial literature also deals with the search for agency and authenticity in the wake of imposed foreign rule. Midnight’s Children reflects these concerns with its explosive combination of Eastern and Western references. On the one hand, it’s been compared to the sprawling novels of Charles Dickens or George Elliot, which also offer a panoramic vision of society paired with tales of personal development. But Rushdie radically disrupts this formula by adding Indian cultural references, magic and myth. Saleem writes the story by night, and narrates it back to his love interest, Padma. This echoes the frame for  1001 Nights , a collection of Middle Eastern folktales told by Scheherazade every night to her lover – and as Saleem reminds us, 1001 is “the number of night, of magic, of alternative realities.” Saleem spends a lot of the novel attempting to account for the unexpected. But he often gets thoroughly distracted and goes on astonishing tangents, telling dirty jokes or mocking his enemies. With his own powers of telepathy, Saleem forges connections between other children of midnight; including a boy who can step through time and mirrors, and a child who changes their gender when immersed in water. There’s other flashes of magic throughout, from a mother who can see into dreams to witchdoctors, shapeshifters, and many more. For an overview of the dazzling reference points of the novel,  visit this page . Sometimes, all this is like reading a rollercoaster: Saleem sometimes narrates separate events all at once, refers to himself in the first and third person in the space of a single sentence, or uses different names for one person. And Padma is always interrupting, urging him to get to the point or exclaiming at his story’s twists and turns. This mind-bending approach has garnered continuing fascination and praise. Not only did Midnight’s Children win the prestigious Man Booker prize in its year of publication,  but it was named the best of all the winners in 2008 . For an interview about Rushdie’s outlook and processed,  click here. All this gives the narrative a breathless quality, and brings to life an entire society surging through political upheaval without losing sight of the marvels of individual lives. But even as he depicts the cosmological consequences of a single life, Rushdie questions the idea that we can ever condense history into a single narrative.

Tom Elemas : The Inspiring Truth in Fiction

What do we lose by choosing non-fiction over fiction? For Tomas Elemans, there’s an important side effect of reading fiction: empathy — a possible antidote to a desensitized world filled with tragic news and headlines.

What is empathy? How does story-telling create empathy? What stories trigger empathy in you? What is narrative immersion? Are we experiencing an age of narcissism? What might be some examples of narcissism? What connection does Tom Elemans make to individualism?

Ann Morgan: My year reading a book from every country in the world

Ann Morgan considered herself well read — until she discovered the “massive blindspot” on her bookshelf. Amid a multitude of English and American authors, there were very few books from beyond the English-speaking world. So she set an ambitious goal: to read one book from every country in the world over the course of a year. Now she’s urging other Anglophiles to read translated works so that publishers will work harder to bring foreign literary gems back to their shores. Explore interactive maps of her reading journey here: go.ted.com/readtheworld

Her blog: Check out my blog (http://ayearofreadingtheworld.com/), where you can find a complete list of the books I read, and what I learned along the way.

Jacqueline Woodson: What reading slowly taught me about writing

Reading slowly — with her finger running beneath the words, even when she was taught not to — has led Jacqueline Woodson to a life of writing books to be savored. In a lyrical talk, she invites us to slow down and appreciate stories that take us places we never thought we’d go and introduce us to people we never thought we’d meet. “Isn’t that what this is all about — finding a way, at the end of the day, to not feel alone in this world, and a way to feel like we’ve changed it before we leave?” she asks.

Introduction to Humanities II Copyright © by loribethlarsenclcmnedu is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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You are here, unit 5: promoting creative writing, introduction.

Creative writing is writing about events in an imaginative way. Novels, plays, short stories and poems are some examples of creative writing. We often think creative writing can only be done by “experts” — that is, poets, playwrights and novelists. Interestingly, however, creative writing can actually be cultivated through classroom writing activities. Students learn to write creatively by reading and analysing the works of experienced writers and by writing stories, poems or plays of their own. This helps them to acquire both the language (vocabulary and structures) and narrative skills (making an interesting beginning, using dialogue skilfully, weaving in contemporary, everyday events to sound more natural, etc.) that they need.

This unit is about how you can promote creative writing amongst your students. It aims to help you and your students explore how a narrative can be developed into an interesting story, or how the words we use every day can be arranged into a rhyming poem. The unit should help you encourage your students to explore and write descriptions that appeal to the senses, arguments that are convincing and narratives that relate ordinary events in an extraordinary way. Your task is to help your students notice what makes the texts creative rather than a collection of ordinary factual information.

Unit outcomes

Upon completion of this unit you will be able to:

Terminology

Teacher support information.

Creative writing is considered to be any writing — fiction, poetry, non-fiction, drama. etc. — that falls outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic and technical forms of writing. Works in this category include novels, epics, short stories and poems (see Resource 1: Why and how to teach creative writing , and Resource 2 : Kinds of creative writing ). A creative writer often gives his or her readers pictures to see, sounds to hear, or things to taste, feel and smell. Note that creative writers look for words that help us to see and hear what they have seen, heard or imagined.

A writer can tell us about the things he or she has seen or imagined by using descriptive words such as shining, narrow, huge, small, glowing, etc. He or she may also use phrases or expressions like the road was a ribbon of moonlight, the wind was a torrent of darkness, his heart was jumping, etc. Expressions like these are called figures of speech .

A number of teaching techniques, including story retelling and shared writing, can help you develop your students’ creative writing skills. (See Resources 3a and b on shared writing).

Activity 1: Promoting creative writing through shared writing

Activity 2: developing imagination, activity 3: writing a rhyming poem, unit summary, reflections, resource 1: why and how to teach creative writing, resource 2: kinds of creative writing, resource 3a: using shared writing, resource 3b: using the shared writing technique in class, resource 4: sample process of shared writing, teacher question and answer.

• Library Guides
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Literature, Creative Writing, & Literary Criticism: Literature (Poetry, Drama, & Fiction)

This guide will help you find British, American, and English-language literary texts, creative writing resources, and literary criticism on authors or literary works in books, reference book entries, and journal articles available from the OSU Library.

Literature (Poetry, Drama, & Prose) in Books

Literature in located on the 4th floor of the OSU Edmon Low Library in the 800s call number range.  The Dewey Decimal call numbers are organized by nationality and genre, and then works by and about an author are in alphabetical order using an alpha-numeric code to give each book a unique spot on the shelf. 

American literature is in the 810s:  811 poetry; 812 drama; and 813 fiction.  British literature is in the 820s:  821 poetry, 822 drama (with Shakespeare having his own call number, 822.33), and 823 fiction.  Although the Library collection is quite large, you can use the call number ranges to find books by and about an author.  For example, books by and about the American poet Robert Frost are start with the call number 811 F939, and then have additional letters or numbers for specific books after the F939. 

Literature in other languages is organized in a similar fashion (830s for German literature, 840s for French literature, 860s for Spanish-language literature, etc.).

Finding Literature with Big Orange Search System (BOSS)

To search for books of poetry, drama, and fiction (primary literary texts) at the OSU Library using BOSS book search, go to the OSU Library homepage and first select the Books radio button on the orange search in the middle of the page. 

Then type in the name of title of the work, if you are looking for a specific piece.  Titles of individual poems, plays, or short stories might be listed in the notes in the Library catalog record, but you might have use one of the reference sources listed on the Reference Books/E-Books tab of this guide to find them in a collection or anthology. Click on the search button, and the work should come up in the results.

If you are looking for works by a specific author, type in the author's name (for example, Maya Angelou) , and on the results screen look for the name under Author on the left-hand column to refine the search; this will eliminate books about an author (i.e., criticism) and will only bring up books by a specific author.

Genre names such as poetry , fiction , and drama are occasionally used as subject headings, but mostly with books published in the last 20 years.  They will appear under Subjects on the search refinements on the left-hand side of the results page.

For broad searches of poetry (or another genre) without specifying an author of title, you search for "Poems" because many poetry collections will have that term in the title or contents.  Below is an example of a broad search for poetry books in BOSS with tips on how to narrow it down.

WorldCat (for books or media, not articles) is a catalog database of library holdings worldwide.  Use it to search for books NOT necessarily at the OSU Library.  Use the "Borrow from another library" link when viewing a book/media record to access the Interlibary Services loan form to request the book from other libraries; that service is free to OSU students, faculty, and staff, but the other library determines how long you can keep the item.

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Literature in English

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Literacy Journals and Magazines

These are some of the literacy journals and magazines available through Duke Libraries collections. Depending on the journal or magazine, you can access it through Duke Libraries' online collections or as a print copy in the library. 

African American Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. Published by John Hopkins University Press, this journal publishes critical essays, fiction, poetry, and book reviews.
• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This British magazine publishes poetry.
• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. 
• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes poetry and short fiction. 

American Poetry Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above and in print in  Current Periodicals and Newspapers  section of Perkins/Bostock Library. The American Poetry Review publishes original poetry, literary criticism, interviews, and essays. 

Amerasia Journal 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. Published by the Asian American Studies Center, this journal publishes critical essays. 

Analog Science Fiction & Fact

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above and in print in  Current Periodicals and Newspapers  section of Perkins/Bostock Library. This magazine specializes in Science Fiction but also incudes factual scientific articles, reviews and editorials. 

Antigonish Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. Antigonish Review publishes poetry and prose.

Antioch Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes articles, poetry, fiction, and reviews. 

Appalachian Journal

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above.This journal publishes a range of materials so long as they are focused on the Appalachian region.

The Atlantic

• This magazine is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This cultural magazine publishes a range of nonfiction, poetry, and fiction. 

The Baffler

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above.This magazine publishes political commentary, cultural analysis, fiction, poetry, and art.

Bamboo Ridge

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This magazine publishes writing about Hawaii, both poetry and prose.

The Beloit Poetry Journal

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes poetry. 

The Bilingual Review or La Revista Bilingüe

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes articles about bilingualism, bilingual education as well as creative writing by established and emerging Hispanic writers.  

Black Renaissance = Renaissance Noire

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above.  Published by the Institute of African American Affairs at New York University, this journal publishes poetry, fiction, essays, photography, art, and reviews that address contemporary BLACK concerns. 

Black Warrior Review  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. Black Warrior Review (BWR) publishes fiction, nonfiction, poetry, comics, and art twice a year. 

Blue Mesa Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. Blue Mesa Review publishes fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and art. 

Boston Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. Boston Review describes itself as a political and literacy forum i.e. a place for public discourse. 
• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. Boulevard publishes fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. 
• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal is a literature and cultural journal.
• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes scholarly articles, book reviews, interviews, nonfiction essays, short fiction, poetry, and visual art.

Canadian Literature 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above.  This journal is devoted to Canadian Literature, publishing criticism, creative work including poetry and short fiction, and book reviews.  

Carolina Quarterly 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. Published by the University of North Carolina , this journal publishes poetry and prose.

 The Chariton Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes short fiction, poetry, essays, and book reviews. 

Chicago Review

Chiron Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes poetry and fiction. 

Cimarron Review  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes stories, poetry, and essays. 

Colorado Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes nonfiction, fiction, poetry, and book reviews. 

Crazy Horse

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. 

Denver Quarterly

• This journal is available in print in Current Periodicals and Newspapers   section of Perkins/Bostock Library. This journal publishes poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. 

Descant 

• This journal is available in print in  Current Periodicals and Newspapers   section of Perkins/Bostock Library. This journal publishes poetry and fiction.

Epoch 

• This journal is available in print in  Current Periodicals and Newspapers   section of Perkins/ Bostock  Library. This journal publishes poetry, fiction, art, essays, and screenplays.

Fairy Tale Review  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry and prose often with a fairy tale element but not always. 

Feminist Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes academic articles but also publishes experiential pieces, media, prose, poetry, and other content. 
• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal focuses on experimental literacy fiction publishing poetry, fiction, art, and criticism. 

Fiction  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction. 

Fiction International

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above and in hardcopy in Perkins/Bostock Library.   They publish prose that emphasizes innovation and social reform. 

Field  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and visual art.

Five Points 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, poetry, essays, and interviews.
• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, poetry, non-fiction, and visual art.

The Georgia Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, poetry, visual art, and book reviews. 

The Gettysburg Review 

• This journal is available in print in the Perkins/Bostock Library. They publish poetry, fiction, and essays.

The Granta 

• This journal is available in print in the Perkins/Bostock Library. They publish poetry, fiction, photographs, and essays.

Great River Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above.

The Greensboro Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry.

Hanging Loose

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry and fiction. 

The Harvard Lampoon 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish humor writing. 

Harvard Review  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry and short fiction. 

The Hiram Poetry Review 

Hudson Review  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, fiction, essays, art, and more.

Indiana Review  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, poetry, art, and non-fiction. 

The Iowa Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, non-fiction, photographs, and works in emerging forms. 

Journal of Short Story in English  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish short fiction and other forms of short writing.

The Kenyon Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, prose, and drama. 

The Literary Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and literary translation.

London Magazine

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes fiction, poetry, essays, reviews, and interviews. 

MĀNOA 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes writing from throughout the pacific region.

The Massachusetts Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, poetry, and translations. 

  Meanjin

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. Based out of Austria, this literacy magazine publishes writing and other forms.

 Michigan Quarterly Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, poetry, and critical essays.

The Midwest Quarterly

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish scholarly essays and poetry. 

 The Minnesota Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, short fiction, nonfiction, and essays.

Mississippi Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish writing. 

Missouri Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, fiction, and essays

Mosaic Literary Magazine

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish interviews, essays, and other articles focused on literature. 

 The New Criterion

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish ​ writing about art and other aspects of intellectual life. 

 New England Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and other kinds of writing. 

 New Orleans Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and book reviews. 

 The North American Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, poetry, and essays.

 North Dakota Quarterly

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction and poetry. 

This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, poetry, drama, visual and media art of Africans globally.  

Paris Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, poetry and other writing. 

The Pembroke Magazine

• This magazine is available in print at Perkins/Bostock Library. They publish poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, art, and interviews.

Ploughshares

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. 

PN Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish articles, interviews, poetry, translations, and book reviews.

Poetry Northwest

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, essays about poetics, and book reviews. 

Prairie Schooner 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, short fiction, essays of general interest, and reveiws.

Raritan   

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This journal publishes essays, reviews, poetry and some fiction. 
• This journal is available in print in the Perkins/Bostock library. They publish Chinese literature in English translation. 

The Review of Contemporary Fiction 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish essays about fiction writing. 
• This journal is available in print in the Perkins/Bostock library. They publish fiction, personal essays, and cultural criticism.

The Seneca Review  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry an lyrical essays.

The Sewanee Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, fiction, and nonfiction.

Shenandoah 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry and fiction.

Sinister Wisdom  

• This journal is available in print in the Perkins/Bostock library. They publish lesbian literature and art. 

South Central Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish critical essays, interviews, and opinion pieces. 

South Dakota Review 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish contemporary literary arts. 

Southern Humanities Review

•  This journal is available in print in the Perkins/Bostock library. They publish essays, fiction, and poetry.

Southern Poetry Review  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry.

Southern Quarterly  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish arts of the south, articles, original archival materials, poetry, reviews, and interviews. 

Southern Review (Baton Rouge)

Storyquarterly 

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction of various lengths and nonfiction. 
• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, fiction, essays, and interviews.

Tampa Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry and fiction.

Tar River Poetry

• This journal is available in print in the Perkins/Bostock library. 

The Threepenny Review

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, fiction and other writing. 

University of Toronto Quarterly  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish interdisciplinary writing and review essays.
• This journal is available in print in the Perkins/Bostock library. They publish poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and visual art. 

Virginia Quarterly Review  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. 

WLA: War, Literature & the Arts

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish short fiction, poetry, personal essay/memoir, visuals, and scholarly essays for a general audience that explore the intersection of art and war.
• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction and nonfiction. 

Willow Springs

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish poetry, prose, and interviews. 

Witness  

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. They publish fiction, nonfiction, essays, poetry, and visual art. Issues are usually themed, check out their website to see what the current theme is before you submit. 

Works and Days

Writer's Digest

• This journal is available online through the getit@Duke link above. This is a magazine that supports discussion of writers and writing. Find tips and personal essays about the practice of writing from current writers. 

Yale Review

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Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

Fiction Writing Basics

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

This resource discusses some terms and techniques that are useful to the beginning and intermediate fiction writer, and to instructors who are teaching fiction at these levels. The distinction between beginning and intermediate writing is provided for both students and instructors, and numerous sources are listed for more information about fiction tools and how to use them. A sample assignment sheet is also provided for instructors. This resource covers the basics of plot, character, theme, conflict, and point-of-view.

Plot is what happens in a story, but action itself doesn’t constitute plot. Plot is created by the manner in which the writer arranges and organizes particular actions in a meaningful way. It’s useful to think of plot as a chain reaction, where a sequence of events causes other events to happen.

When reading a work of fiction, keep in mind that the author has selected one line of action from the countless possibilities of action available to her. Trying to understand why the author chose a particular line of action over another leads to a better understanding of how plot is working in a story

This does not mean that events happen in chronological order; the author may present a line of action that happens after the story’s conclusion, or she may present the reader with a line of action that is still to be determined. Authors can’t present all the details related to an action, so certain details are brought to the forefront, while others are omitted.

The author imbues the story with meaning by a selection of detail. The cause-and-effect connection between one event and another should be logical and believable, because the reader will lose interest if the relation between events don’t seem significant. As Cleanth Brooks and Robert Penn Warren wrote in Understanding Fiction , fiction is interpretive: “Every story must indicate some basis for the relation among its parts, for the story itself is a particular writer’s way of saying how you can make sense of human experience.”

If a sequence of events is merely reflexive, then plot hasn’t come into play. Plot occurs when the writer examines human reactions to situations that are always changing. How does love, longing, regret and ambition play out in a story? It depends on the character the writer has created.

Because plot depends on character, plot is what the character does. Plot also fluctuates, so that something is settled or thrown off balance in the end, or both. Traditionally, a story begins with some kind of description that then leads to a complication. The complication leads up to a crisis point where something must change. This is the penultimate part of the story, before the climax, or the most heightened moment of a story.

In some stories, the climax is followed by a denouement, or resolution of the climax. Making events significant in plot begins with establishing a strong logic that connects the events. Insofar as plot reveals some kind of human value or some idea about the meaning of experience, plot is related to theme.

Character can’t be separated from action, since we come to understand a character by what she does. In stories, characters drive the plot. The plot depends on the characters' situations and how they respond to it. The actions that occur in the plot are only believable if the character is believable. For most traditional fiction, characters are divided into the following categories:

• Protagonist : the main or central character or hero (Harry Potter)
• Antagonist : opponent or enemy of the protagonist (Dark Lord Voldemort)
• Foil Character : a character(s) who helps readers better understand another character, usually the protagonist. For example in the Harry Potter series, Hermione and Ron are Harry's friends, but they also help readers better understand the protagonist, Harry. Ron and Hermione represent personalities that in many ways are opposites - Ron is a bit lazy and insecure; Hermione is driven and confident. Harry exists in the middle, thus illustrating his inner conflict and immaturity at the beginning of the book series.

Because character is so important to plot and fiction, it’s important for the writer to understand her characters as much as possible. Though the writer should know everything there is to know about her character, she should present her knowledge of the characters indirectly, through dialogue and action. Still, sometimes a summary of a character’s traits needs to be given. For example, for characters who play the supporting cast in a story, direct description of the character’s traits keeps the story from slowing down.

Beginning and intermediate level writers frequently settle for creating types, rather than highly individualized, credible characters. Be wary of creating a character who is a Loser With A Good Heart, The Working Class Man Who Is Trapped By Tough Guy Attitudes, The Lonely Old Lady With A Dog, etc. At the same time, keep in mind that all good characters are, in a sense, types.

Often, in creative writing workshops from beginning to advanced levels, the instructor asks, “Whose story is this?” This is because character is the most important aspect of fiction. In an intermediate level workshop, it would be more useful to introduce a story in which it is more difficult to pick out the main character from the line-up. It provides an opportunity for intermediate level fiction writers to really explore character and the factors that determine what is at stake, and for whom.

Conflict depends on character, because readers are interested in the outcomes of people’s lives, but may be less interested in what’s at stake for a corporation, a bank, or an organization. Characters in conflict with one another make up fiction. Hypothetically, a character can come into conflict with an external force, like poverty, or a fire. But there is simply more opportunity to explore the depth and profundity in relationships between people, because people are so complex that conflict between characters often gets blurred with a character’s conflict with herself

The short story, as in all literary forms, including poetry and creative nonfiction, depends on the parts of the poem or story or essay making some kind of sense as a whole. The best example in fiction is character. The various aspects of a character should add up to some kind of meaningful, larger understanding of the character. If the various aspects of a character don’t add up, the character isn’t believable. This doesn’t mean that your characters have to be sensible. Your characters may have no common sense at all, but we have to understand the character and why she is that way. The character’s motives and actions have to add up, however conflicted, marginalized or irrational they may be.

ENG 125 & 126 - Creative Writing: Drama

• Short Fiction
• Long Fiction
• Non-fiction
• Research Process

Drama Defined

Definition:  A prose or verse composition, especially one telling a serious story, that is intended for representation by actors impersonating the characters and performing the dialogue and action.

Elements:  

• Structure -- This deals with how to setup the beginning, middle and end of a play and is even more crucial in drama than any other genre of writing.
• Characters -- People will act out the story on stage. Characters should be well-developed and not appear as stereotypes.
• Dialogue -- This is crucial in plays because everything happens through the spoken word.
• Theme -- Plays often deal with universal themes which encourage discussion of ideas. 
• Production -- Costumes, props and lighting are some of the necessary items for putting on a play.

Find Plays & Criticism

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Search our Card Catalog to find videos housed in the Library-IC collection.

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Featured Drama

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• Last Updated: Oct 19, 2023 8:54 AM
• URL: https://libguides.rccc.edu/creative

literature and its writers 5th edition

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guelph humber creative writing

Office of Registrarial Services

Creative Writing

New in 2022!

Explore the ways writing can drive social justice and environmental awareness. Create meaning through your writing and storytelling. You will take courses in speculative fiction, non-fiction, poetry, screenwriting and writing for the inclusive stage. You will develop a body of creative work that includes writing exercises, short creative pieces and a portfolio. 

Sample Careers

• Game designer

Chat with a Current U of G Student

For more information.

For more information, please visit:

• College of Arts

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Admission Requirements

Requirement for admission to the MFA program is a baccalaureate degree, in an honours program or the equivalent, from a recognized degree-granting institution. There is no requirement as to the discipline in which the degree was earned. Successful applicants will be expected to have achieved an average standing of at least second-class honours (B-) in their last four semesters of study. Note, however, that a limited number of students may be admitted to the MFA without having satisfied the degree requirement or academic standing requirement, if they are assessed as qualified to undertake graduate studies in creative writing on the basis of other experience and practice.

Further information on admission requirements, how to prepare for graduate school, and the financial commitment of a graduate program, can be found here.

We are now accepting fall 2024 applications.

Please read through the instructions below and apply by december 4th, 2023  to be considered for fall 2024 entrance..

The MFA application process involves multiple steps, in two separate portals, so please read through all the information. Get started well in advance of the deadline, as the application process takes time.

Applying to the Creative Writing MFA program requires that you submit an online application through the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre (OUAC) portal, as well as a CV, a letter of intent, and a writing portfolio to the University of Guelph SlideRoom portal. 

Your OUAC application AND all three parts of your portfolio submission are due by 11:59pm on Monday, December 4, 2023.

Step one: complete the ouac application, to complete step one of your application, go directly to the ouac portal here ..

The OUAC portal offers the convenience of submitting your application and paying the CDN $110 application fee online.

After you submit your online OUAC application, and it has been received by the University of Guelph, within five (5) business days an account will be created for you in WebAdvisor. WebAdvisor is the University of Guelph student information system. 

Once this account is created, you will receive an email with instructions on how to access WebAdvisor.

In WebAdvisor, you’ll see a checklist of documents you must then upload.

This checklist will include:

• TRANSCRIPT(S)

A transcript is required, with the institution grading scale and degree confer date, for each degree-granting institution in which you’ve been previously enrolled. Transcripts must be provided for every degree-granting institution you’ve attended, and for all full or partial programs you’ve completed.

Scans of your unofficial transcript(s) can be uploaded using the online application portal, or electronic transcripts can, in many cases, be ordered from your previous academic institution. If you prefer to submit a hard copy transcript, it can be sent to the Office of Graduate Studies, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Road E., Guelph, ON N1G 2W1.

‘Official’ transcripts are not required at this time but, if admitted, applicants will have to provide official transcripts to the Office of Graduate Studies before their studies begin.

• TWO LETTERS OF REFERENCE

Your referees do not have to be academic references, but we recommend that you choose referees who can speak about your writing practice and your ability to navigate a graduate program successfully. They should be familiar with your current writing work, and it's recommended that you share relevant information about your application with them before you apply (including your CV and portfolio) so that they can write an informed statement. You may also use a professional reference in the writing field: a publisher, agent, author, or writing workshop facilitator.

Applicants and referees do not submit hard copies of their letters of reference. Letters of reference are always sent electronically, directly from the referees to the University of Guelph, and the applicant is not directly involved in this process.

You, as the applicant, will declare your referees on your OUAC application and then your referees will receive an email 1-5 days after you submit your OUAC application, around the same time you receive your WebAdvisor information. This request will include instructions on how to complete a Referee Assessment Form on your behalf.

Please contact your referees prior to submitting your application. If your referees have any trouble with the form, let them know they can reach out to [email protected] .

• ENGLISH PROFICIENCY TEST

Applicants who indicate on their application that English is not their first language are required to submit the results of a standardized language test, such as TOEFL, or IELTS. Find the list of standardized tests we accept, and the score requirements,  here.

If you have any further questions about the OUAC application process and its requirements, please visit us  here .

Or reach out to the program administrator, Libby Johnstone at [email protected] .

STEP TWO: Submit your CV, letter of intent, and writing portfolio to SlideRoom

Once you submit your online application through the OUAC application portal, you must submit an admissions portfolio which is made up of three documents: your CV, a letter of intent, and a writing portfolio.

This portion of your application must be submitted to a platform called SlideRoom by December 4, 2023, or you will not be considered for admission. The SlideRoom portal opens August 1, 2023 and closes at 11:59 pm on December 4, 2023.

Please note that SlideRoom will allow you to log in and edit your admissions portfolio as much as you like, but no further changes are allowed after you click submit. A US$5 fee will be charged to each applicant at the time of submission.

TO COMPLETE STEP TWO OF YOUR APPLICATION, GO TO THE UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH SLIDEROOM PORTAL  HERE .

Then click on the ‘Creative Writing MFA Program’ from the list of programs to which you may apply.

Once you access the SlideRoom portal for the Creative Writing MFA, you will be required to answer a short series of questions and upload the following::

• CURRICULUM VITAE (CV)

The curriculum vitae should outline professional work, education, and awards, as well as all relevant publications, presentations, residencies, collaborations, community initiatives, and grants.

• LETTER OF INTENT

In no more than three (3) pages, 1.5 or double-spaced, describe your aspirations as a writer, your reasons for applying for this program at this time, and the genre(s) in which you are most interested. Please be as specific as you can. It’s important to let the admissions review team know exactly why our MFA program at the University of Guelph feels like the best fit for your studies.

• WRITNIG PORTFOLIO

Upload to SlideRoom 25-40 pages of published work, unpublished work, and/or works-in-progress. Your portfolio must include a minimum of two separate works, or two excerpts from separate works.

It is highly recommended that you submit work in more than one genre, so the admissions committee can see a range of material.

Your portfolio should be uploaded as a PDF or Microsoft Word document. Poetry and drama submissions may be single-spaced. Fiction and creative nonfiction submissions must be double-spaced. Please use 12 pt. font for all submissions. 

You are also required (via a series of questions in SlideRoom) to indicate your primary genre—the genre in which you intend to write your thesis manuscript. Possible genres include fiction, creative nonfiction, drama/screenwriting, poetry, or mixed-mode narrative.

MFA students are still required to take at least one workshop outside of their primary genre and are not ‘locked in’ to the genre they choose as an applicant. This information simply helps us with considerations of balance over the program, in terms of the number of students we take per genre.

Note that ‘mixed-mode narrative’ (also known as ‘hybrid’) does not mean that you have included works of two or more genres in your portfolio. A mixed-mode narrative is a single work that includes multiple genres. Please declare your genre ‘mixed-mode narrative’ only if you intend to write a hybrid thesis (a singular work) written in two or more genres.

Find help with SlideRoom here.

For further questions about the application process, contact Libby Johnstone at [email protected]

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How to Apply

Applications to Humber are made through ontariocolleges.ca . Be sure to submit your application by the equal consideration deadline of February 1. You may apply after February 1, however, post-February 1 applications will be considered on a first-come, first-served basis depending on the availability of the space in the program. To check program availability refer to the Campus/Availability listing on Humber's program pages or ontariocolleges.ca .

Admissions Road Map

Apply through Ontario Colleges

INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

If you’re an international student, you can apply directly to Humber via our International Centre.

Apply through the International Centre

Admission selection is based on the following 5 requirements:.

To be eligible for admission, you must possess the following:

• A bachelor’s degree, diploma or advanced diploma

Mature Applicants

Diplomas and certificates.

An applicant is considered a mature applicant if they have not completed secondary school or other postsecondary school, and will be 19 or older as of the first day of classes. Humber will invite you for testing to demonstrate that you meet all listed course requirements.

An applicant is considered a mature applicant if they have not completed secondary school or attended postsecondary studies, and will be 21 or older as of the first day of classes. Mature applicants for degree programs will be required to meet course requirements at the U/M level or equivalent.

College Transfer Applicants

An applicant is considered a college transfer applicant if they have completed some or all of a college-level credential. Humber may use a combination of secondary school and/or college courses and grades to determine program eligibility.

An applicant is considered a college transfer applicant if they have completed some or all of a college-level credential. Humber may use a combination of secondary school and/or college courses and grades to determine program eligibility. Applicants must have an overall minimum grade point average (GPA) of 65 per cent in the program. Applicants are required to disclose and provide academic transcripts for all course work completed at the postsecondary level.

University Transfer Applicants

An applicant is considered a university transfer applicant if they have completed some or all of a university-level credential. Humber may use a combination of secondary school and/or university courses and grades to determine program eligibility.

An applicant is considered a university transfer applicant if they have completed some or all of a university-level credential. Humber may use a combination of secondary school and/or university courses and grades to determine program eligibility. Applicants are required to disclose and provide academic transcripts for all course work completed at the postsecondary level.

English Language Proficiency

International credit evaluation.

Canadian citizens or permanent residents with international education are required to provide a credential evaluation. Note, for international High school education course by course evaluations, ICAS must be used. For international post-secondary education, a WES evaluation must be provided. In situations where you expect to apply for transfer credit, it is recommended that a course by course WES evaluation is completed.

Cover Letter

Please submit a cover letter describing the single book-length project you intend to work on in the program, your writing experience, and any relevant life experience. The letter should be no more than two pages, double-spaced in 12-point font. Please include your name and email address, and submit as MS Word or PDF.

Writing Sample

Please submit a sample of your writing that is no more than 15 pages in length. Ideally, the writing sample should be taken from the project you intend to work on in the program. If this is not possible, please submit a sample in the same form/genre (e.g., fiction if you intend to work on a novel). The manuscript must be prepared according to professional standards: double-spaced, 12-point font, with name, title and page number on each page. Please submit as MS Word or PDF.

Submission Instructions

INTERNATIONAL ACADEMIC EQUIVALENCY

Admission equivalencies for Humber depend on your country of study. Please enter your location or choose detect my location to see the requirements for your country below.

APPLYING WITH AN INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE (IB)

The 2023/2024 fee for two semesters was:

• domestic: $3,694.94
• international: $18,058.00

Fees are subject to change.

Scholarships

Humber offers a variety of scholarships each year.

*Plus Mandatory Health Insurance fee once per academic year: Fall start - $420 Winter start - $280 Summer start - $140

Program Specific Questions

Alissa York, program co-ordinator   416.675.6622 ext. 3451 [email protected]

Admissions Questions

Domestic students  .

Phone: 416-675-5000 Email: [email protected]

Visit Humber

Book A Tour

Recruitment Events

Speak to a Recruitment Advisor

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Professional Writing and Communications

Online option, online full-time programs.

Online full-time programs are offered as either Daytime, or a combination of Evenings and Saturdays. Check your program Dates and Times to see what the program commitment will be.

Find out more about Full-Time Online programs

Program Overview

Humber’s Professional Writing and Communications graduate certificate program supports you as you learn and practise the craft of writing in the digital age while building a professional portfolio. This unique program provides the core transferrable skills you need to build a successful career in a variety of communications roles. Building on foundational skills such as storytelling, drafting, editing, pitching, interviewing and research, you will build proficiency in areas such as media writing, social media management, project management and design.   

With a focus on writing for different audiences and purposes (including editing writing by Indigenous writers and about Indigenous issues), as well as using current technologies to maximize the impact of your message, you will be well-positioned to enter the workplace with the knowledge and skills needed to succeed as a professional writer/communications specialist across a variety of sectors. You will also learn how to think strategically in preparation for taking on leadership positions within communications departments or starting your own freelance writing business.   

This program allows you to find a community of writers and supports collaboration, networking, professional development and publication.   

At Humber, courses are delivered in a variety of formats:

In-Person - An in-person course is delivered fully on campus.

Online Asynchronous (A) - An online asynchronous course has no fixed class schedule and allows students to engage with the course at different times according to their needs. Faculty provide modules, which are completed independently by the students according to established deadlines.

Online Synchronous (S) - An online synchronous course is delivered fully online and requires faculty and students to participate in real-time according to a fixed schedule. Classes are scheduled for a specific day and time.

Hybrid - A hybrid course is a combination of in-person and online classes and follows a set schedule. Students must be available to attend in-person classes at scheduled times during the semester.

The chart below outlines the delivery options available for each course in this program, by campus. For some academic terms, there may be more than one delivery option available. You’ll be able to select your preferred options when building your course schedule during open enrolment. Preferences for course delivery will be considered on a first come, first served basis. Some Humber programs are also delivered fully online, where all courses are delivered online.

International students: the impact of studying from outside of Canada on Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) eligibility differs significantly based on when you start your program. Please review the PGWP eligibility before choosing your program and course delivery.

Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:

Analyze the elements of storytelling in texts and choose appropriate narrative techniques and forms for a variety of writing projects.

Create documents suitable for a diversity of audiences and purposes using advanced linguistic and rhetorical skills.

Create documents that adhere to standards of structure/formatting for standard print and electronic forms such as informational articles, reports, blog posts, and web site copy, and strategically repurpose content across these forms.

Integrate new communications technologies into an existing media toolkit.

Manage a multifaceted editorial project or communications campaign from the planning stages through completion, using a team-oriented, collaborative leadership style.

Adapt a consistent, unique writing voice to different platforms and genres.

Assess the needs of complex communications campaigns and then select and deploy appropriate strategies to meet those needs, using knowledge of communications theory and audience analysis.

Produce and/or edit error-free publications for both print and on-line environments, through the use of grammar and mechanical rules, correct and relevant editorial terminology, and copy-writing and style guides.

Analyze the structure and mechanics of a variety of document forms, both electronic and print, and apply substantive, line-level, and copyediting revisions as appropriate.

Analyze the media landscape and the range of communications fields to plan ways to navigate the industry and market oneself.

Create an online portfolio and social media profile to market writing skills to potential employers and freelance clients.

Select suitable and credible research sources for strategic applications to a range of advanced communication challenges.

Work-Integrated Learning  

Work-integrated learning  .

Students complete a twelve-week field experience allowing them to gain valuable practical and professional skills.  

Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) at Humber

Work-integrated learning.

Work-integrated learning opportunities prepare you for your future career. You will apply what you’ve learned in class and in real-world environments through a wide range of academic, community and industry partnerships. These work-integrated learning opportunities may include field experiences, professional practicums and co-operative education.

Field Experience

A field experience offers students an opportunity to engage in intensive experiences related to their field of study or career goals to build their skills, knowledge and abilities. Field experiences may be paid or unpaid.

Professional Practicum

Programs requiring a professional practicum offer practice-based experience or work hours for a professional license or certification. Students work under the direct supervision of an experienced professional. Placements are unpaid.

Co-operative Education

Students in co-op programs gain experience through paid work terms in their field of study that become progressively more complex as their skill level increases.

Optional Co-operative Education

Students in co-op programs gain experience through paid work terms in their field of study that become progressively more complex as their skill level increases. The co-op portion of this program is optional.

If you would like to learn more about work-integrated learning at Humber, visit WIL AT HUMBER

Is Our Program Right For You?

Do you love storytelling? Reading? Listening to podcasts? When you’re walking down the street, do you spot the typos and errors on signs and in storefronts? Do you sometimes find yourself quietly correcting the copy on the websites you visit?

If this sounds like you, come join our dynamic community of creative-minded writing professionals.

Our program provides a supportive environment where you can learn from experts who will show you how to take your writing to the next level. By practicing and experimenting with different styles and forms of writing, you’ll build the skills, discipline and confidence you need to excel in the communications market.

Added bonus? You’ll form lifelong friendships with members of your writing cohort.

Watch the "Power Up Your Credential!" Info Session to learn more about the Professional Writing and Communications program.

Joining the World of Professional Writing

In today's increasingly virtual and text-based world, writing is everywhere. Yet not everyone can create documents with both accuracy and readability. Your job as a writer is to become very good at language skills such as grammar, style and mechanics. Communications directors and hiring managers are always looking for writers who understand the foundations of writing and editing and who can quickly learn the subject matter of their businesses.

The Professional Writing and Communications program is delighted to have the following professionals on its advisory committee.

Career Overview

Graduates of this program may find employment as

• Communications specialists or coordinators
• Freelance writers
• Web copywriters
• Social media managers
• Social media marketing specialists
• Report writers
• Proposal writers
• Grant writers
• Project Managers
• Journalists

Note: This is a post-graduate certificate. You must already have a bachelor's degree or the equivalent from a university or college.

Professional Writing and Communications Specialist Entrance Scholarship

One entrance scholarship is available. For more information about how to apply, please visit the website.

Scholarship Value: $1000

Academic Excellence Award in Professional Writing and Communications

This annual award is presented to the graduate of the Professional Writing and Communications Postgraduate Program who has achieved the highest overall GPA.

Award Value: $500

Excellence in Professional Writing

This annual award is presented to a graduate of the Professional Writing and Communications Postgraduate Program who has demonstrated both academic excellence and leadership in the program.

Expert Faculty

• FACULTY HIGHLIGHTS

Meaghan Strimas

Meaghan Strimas is an award-winning educator, writer and editor who joined Humber as a faculty member in 2012. Before accepting her exciting role in the Bachelor of Creative and Professional Writing program, she served as the program co-ordinator for the college’s graduate certificate in Professional Writing & Communications.

Meaghan worked at Quill & Quire magazine for several years as a marketing manager and at the University of Guelph as the program administrator for its Creative Writing MFA. In addition to her work as a professor and co-ordinator, Meaghan works as a freelance proofreader, copy editor and project manager, and is interviews editor at the Humber Literary Review , a magazine she co-founded in 2014. She is co-lead of the HLR Spotlight project, an experiential learning opportunity that is funded by Humber’s Office of Research & Innovation.

Meaghan is the author of three collections of poetry and the editor of The Selected Gwendolyn MacEwen . Her most recent collection, Yes or Nope , was the winner of the Trillium Book Award for Poetry. In the fall of 2018, she released the Another Dysfunctional Cancer Poem Anthology , which she co-edited with the late Priscila Uppal. Meaghan is at work on a novel and a new collection of poetry, and she has an essay forthcoming in the anthology Good Mom on Paper (edited by Jen Sookfong Lee and Stacey May Fowles).

Meaghan holds a MA in Creative Writing. She believes that writing programs are essential because they cultivate confidence, teach technique and craft, offer mentorship and, perhaps most importantly, provide a space for artistic collaboration and community.

Your Career

Communication remains an essential skill sought by employers, regardless of discipline or field of study.  According to the Conference Board of Canada, the ability to communicate tops the list of essential employability skills that employers require. The ability to read carefully, write effectively and think critically provides the foundation to get, keep and progress on a job.   

Graduates are able to find employment in a variety of service industries such as finance, hospitality and health services, as well as in government, not-for-profit organizations, corporate communications, publishing and digital media.  

Program Availability

Humber Students Benefit from Five Centres of Innovation (COIs)

The Humber Centres of Innovation Network demonstrates our strong commitment to providing an experiential learning environment for students. Students and faculty work with industry partners on real-world challenges to prepare them to become the innovative and strategic problem-solvers of tomorrow. Come to Humber and experience interdisciplinary learning across five COIs.

Building The Foundation: Humber College Helps Students Find Their Way Into Post-Secondary Education

The need for pathway programs has been highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on workforce opportunities.

Top 10 Reasons to Choose a Humber College Pathways Program

Associate Dean of Pathways and graduate, Cameron Farrar, share their top 10 reasons to choose one of the Arts and Science Pathways programs.

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Call 416-675-3111 or email [email protected] . If you have already applied, be sure to check your application status on myhumber.ca .

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Contact the International Centre for information about full-time programs (including the International Graduate School), how to apply and to follow up on your submitted application.

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Speak to the Program Co-ordinator about the course curriculum, projects and career options.

David Miller, program co-ordinator 416.675.6622 ext. 72095 [email protected]

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How To Become An Apprentice

Becoming an apprentice.

Find an employer willing to sponsor you as an apprentice.

Contact the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development to register as an apprentice.

Work with your employer approximately one year before attending Humber.

View Instructions  

Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP)

If you’re in high school – grade 11 or 12 – you can earn co-op education credits through work placements in some skilled trades.

Visit OYAP  

Domestic students.

Applications to Humber are made through ontariocolleges.ca . Be sure to submit your application by the equal consideration deadline of February 1. You may apply after February 1, however, post-February 1 applications will be considered on a first-come, first-served basis depending on the availability of the space in the program.

To check program availability refer to the Campus/Availability listing on Humber’s program pages, search by availability , or ontariocolleges.ca .

To see where you are in the admissions process, visit the Admissions Road Map .

International Students

If you’re an international student, you can apply directly to Humber via our International Centre .

Need Advice?

Program advising appointments.

Get help narrowing down your program options or book a one-on-one pre-enrolment advising appointment with one of our Recruitment Officers.

Transfer & Pathway Advising

Book a virtual appointment with a Student Mobility Advisor learn more about getting Transfer Credit(s) for previous post-secondary experience, Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR), and Pathways options.

Admission selection is based on the academic criteria indicated. Meeting minimum eligibility requirements does not guarantee admission.

Admission selection is based on the following four requirements:

• A bachelor’s degree

Letter of Intent

Please submit a one-page letter of intent (350 words) outlining your interest in this field of study. Your letter should express why you have an interest in professional writing and communications and in Humber's Professional Writing and Communications graduate certificate program.

All applicants whose first language is not English must meet Humber’s English Language Proficiency Policy .

International Credit Evaluation

International academic equivalency.

Applying with an International Baccalaureate (IB)

Post-Admission Requirements

Once you have been accepted, and have confirmed your offer, you may need to complete a further set of requirements related to your program (Post-Admission Requirements).

Equipment & Device Requirements

Semester 1, 2

Fees & Financial Aid

The 2023/2024 fee for three semesters was:

• domestic: $5,802.35
• international: $18,608.69

Fees by Semester

Domestic Fees by Semester

International fees by semester.

Financial Aid, Scholarships and Bursaries

Understand the costs associated with coming to Humber and explore resources available from first year to your final year on Student Fees and Financial Resources .

Humber scholarships.

Find out more about scholarships and bursaries that you may be eligible for, visit Student Scholarships . International students can visit International Student Scholarships .

Humber Bursaries

Bursaries are available for Certificate, Diploma and Degree programs primarily based on financial need, visit Humber Bursaries.

External Awards, Bursaries & Scholarships

Find out more information about external scholarships and bursaries, visit External Awards.

Indigenous Student Awards, Bursaries & Scholarships

Humber offers a variety of bursaries and scholarships for Indigenous students, visit Indigenous Student Awards.

Explore Opportunities through Humber Pathways

Humber Pathways include:

• Opportunities to build on your college education and complete your diploma or degree at Humber.
• Degree and graduate study opportunities at other institutions in Ontario, Canada and abroad.

Additional information will be made available to students from their program before the beginning of the Winter term. Courses with in-person requirements will likely also have online components. The delivery mode of some courses is still being determined. Humber may need to change plans for in-person learning, subject to government and public health directives and/or additional health and safety considerations.

You can find a complete list of programs with downloads including program and course details at Current Student Resources  

Students in programs marked as online/in-person will have a combination of those two types of delivery. Additional information will be made available to students from their program in the first week of June. Courses with in-person requirements will likely also have online components. The delivery mode of some courses is still being determined. Humber may need to change plans for in-person learning, subject to government and public health directives and/or additional health and safety considerations.

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Guelph humber mfa creative writing

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French Journal of English Studies

Home Numéros 59 1 - Tisser les liens : voyager, e... 36 Views of Moscow Mountain: Teac...

36 Views of Moscow Mountain: Teaching Travel Writing and Mindfulness in the Tradition of Hokusai and Thoreau

L'auteur américain Henry David Thoreau est un écrivain du voyage qui a rarement quitté sa ville natale de Concorde, Massachusetts, où il a vécu de 1817 à 1862. Son approche du "voyage" consiste à accorder une profonde attention à son environnement ordinaire et à voir le monde à partir de perspectives multiples, comme il l'explique avec subtilité dans Walden (1854). Inspiré par Thoreau et par la célèbre série de gravures du peintre d'estampes japonais Katsushika Hokusai, intitulée 36 vues du Mt. Fuji (1830-32), j'ai fait un cours sur "L'écriture thoreauvienne du voyage" à l'Université de l'Idaho, que j'appelle 36 vues des montagnes de Moscow: ou, Faire un grand voyage — l'esprit et le carnet ouvert — dans un petit lieu . Cet article explore la philosophie et les stratégies pédagogiques de ce cours, qui tente de partager avec les étudiants les vertus d'un regard neuf sur le monde, avec les yeux vraiment ouverts, avec le regard d'un voyageur, en "faisant un grand voyage" à Moscow, Idaho. Les étudiants affinent aussi leurs compétences d'écriture et apprennent les traditions littéraires et artistiques associées au voyage et au sens du lieu.

Index terms

Keywords: , designing a writing class to foster engagement.

1 The signs at the edge of town say, "Entering Moscow, Idaho. Population 25,060." This is a small hamlet in the midst of a sea of rolling hills, where farmers grow varieties of wheat, lentils, peas, and garbanzo beans, irrigated by natural rainfall. Although the town of Moscow has a somewhat cosmopolitan feel because of the presence of the University of Idaho (with its 13,000 students and a few thousand faculty and staff members), elegant restaurants, several bookstores and music stores, and a patchwork of artsy coffee shops on Main Street, the entire mini-metropolis has only about a dozen traffic lights and a single high school. As a professor of creative writing and the environmental humanities at the university, I have long been interested in finding ways to give special focuses to my writing and literature classes that will help my students think about the circumstances of their own lives and find not only academic meaning but personal significance in our subjects. I have recently taught graduate writing workshops on such themes as "The Body" and "Crisis," but when I was given the opportunity recently to teach an undergraduate writing class on Personal and Exploratory Writing, I decided to choose a focus that would bring me—and my students—back to one of the writers who has long been of central interest to me: Henry David Thoreau.

2 One of the courses I have routinely taught during the past six years is Environmental Writing, an undergraduate class that I offer as part of the university's Semester in the Wild Program, a unique undergraduate opportunity that sends a small group of students to study five courses (Ecology, Environmental History, Environmental Writing, Outdoor Leadership and Wilderness Survival, and Wilderness Management and Policy) at a remote research station located in the middle of the largest wilderness area (the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness) in the United States south of Alaska. In "Teaching with Wolves," a recent article about the Semester in the Wild Program, I explained that my goal in the Environmental Writing class is to help the students "synthesize their experience in the wilderness with the content of the various classes" and "to think ahead to their professional lives and their lives as engaged citizens, for which critical thinking and communication skills are so important" (325). A foundational text for the Environmental Writing class is a selection from Thoreau's personal journal, specifically the entries he made October 1-20, 1853, which I collected in the 1993 writing textbook Being in the World: An Environmental Reader for Writers . I ask the students in the Semester in the Wild Program to deeply immerse themselves in Thoreau's precise and colorful descriptions of the physical world that is immediately present to him and, in turn, to engage with their immediate encounters with the world in their wilderness location. Thoreau's entries read like this:

Oct. 4. The maples are reddening, and birches yellowing. The mouse-ear in the shade in the middle of the day, so hoary, looks as if the frost still lay on it. Well it wears the frost. Bumblebees are on the Aster undulates , and gnats are dancing in the air. Oct. 5. The howling of the wind about the house just before a storm to-night sounds extremely like a loon on the pond. How fit! Oct. 6 and 7. Windy. Elms bare. (372)

3 In thinking ahead to my class on Personal and Exploratory Writing, which would be offered on the main campus of the University of Idaho in the fall semester of 2018, I wanted to find a topic that would instill in my students the Thoreauvian spirit of visceral engagement with the world, engagement on the physical, emotional, and philosophical levels, while still allowing my students to remain in the city and live their regular lives as students. It occurred to me that part of what makes Thoreau's journal, which he maintained almost daily from 1837 (when he was twenty years old) to 1861 (just a year before his death), such a rich and elegant work is his sense of being a traveler, even when not traveling geographically.

Traveling a Good Deal in Moscow

I have traveled a good deal in Concord…. --Henry David Thoreau, Walden (1854; 4)

4 For Thoreau, one did not need to travel a substantial physical distance in order to be a traveler, in order to bring a traveler's frame of mind to daily experience. His most famous book, Walden , is well known as an account of the author's ideas and daily experiments in simple living during the two years, two months, and two days (July 4, 1845, to September 6, 1847) he spent inhabiting a simple wooden house that he built on the shore of Walden Pond, a small lake to the west of Boston, Massachusetts. Walden Pond is not a remote location—it is not out in the wilderness. It is on the edge of a small village, much like Moscow, Idaho. The concept of "traveling a good deal in Concord" is a kind of philosophical and psychological riddle. What does it mean to travel extensively in such a small place? The answer to this question is meaningful not only to teachers hoping to design writing classes in the spirit of Thoreau but to all who are interested in travel as an experience and in the literary genre of travel writing.

5 Much of Walden is an exercise in deftly establishing a playful and intellectually challenging system of synonyms, an array of words—"economy," "deliberateness," "simplicity," "dawn," "awakening," "higher laws," etc.—that all add up to powerful probing of what it means to live a mindful and attentive life in the world. "Travel" serves as a key, if subtle, metaphor for the mindful life—it is a metaphor and also, in a sense, a clue: if we can achieve the traveler's perspective without going far afield, then we might accomplish a kind of enlightenment. Thoreau's interest in mindfulness becomes clear in chapter two of Walden , "Where I Lived, and What I Lived For," in which he writes, "Morning is when I am awake and there is a dawn in me. To be awake is to be alive. I have never yet met a man who was quite awake. How could I have looked him in the face?" The latter question implies the author's feeling that he is himself merely evolving as an awakened individual, not yet fully awake, or mindful, in his efforts to live "a poetic or divine life" (90). Thoreau proceeds to assert that "We must learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aids, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn…. I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life by a conscious endeavor" (90). Just what this endeavor might be is not immediately spelled out in the text, but the author does quickly point out the value of focusing on only a few activities or ideas at a time, so as not to let our lives be "frittered away by detail." He writes: "Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred or a thousand; … and keep your accounts on your thumb nail" (91). The strong emphasis in the crucial second chapter of Walden is on the importance of waking up and living deliberately through a conscious effort to engage in particular activities that support such awakening. It occurs to me that "travel," or simply making one's way through town with the mindset of a traveler, could be one of these activities.

6 It is in the final chapter of the book, titled "Conclusion," that Thoreau makes clear the relationship between travel and living an attentive life. He begins the chapter by cataloguing the various physical locales throughout North America or around the world to which one might travel—Canada, Ohio, Colorado, and even Tierra del Fuego. But Thoreau states: "Our voyaging is only great-circle sailing, and the doctors prescribe for diseases of the skin merely. One hastens to Southern Africa to chase the giraffe; but surely that is not the game he would be after." What comes next is brief quotation from the seventeenth-century English poet William Habbington (but presented anonymously in Thoreau's text), which might be one of the most significant passages in the entire book:

Direct your eye sight inward, and you'll find A thousand regions in your mind Yet undiscovered. Travel them, and be Expert in home-cosmography. (320)

7 This admonition to travel the mysterious territory of one's own mind and master the strange cosmos of the self is actually a challenge to the reader—and probably to the author himself—to focus on self-reflection and small-scale, local movement as if such activities were akin to exploration on a grand, planetary scale. What is really at issue here is not the physical distance of one's journey, but the mental flexibility of one's approach to the world, one's ability to look at the world with a fresh, estranged point of view. Soon after his discussion of the virtues of interior travel, Thoreau explains why he left his simple home at Walden Pond after a few years of experimental living there, writing, "It is remarkable how easily and insensibly we fall into a particular route, and make a beaten track for ourselves" (323). In other words, no matter what we're doing in life, we can fall into a "beaten track" if we're not careful, thus failing to stay "awake."

8 As I thought about my writing class at the University of Idaho, I wondered how I might design a series of readings and writing exercises for university students that would somehow emulate the Thoreauvian objective of achieving ultra-mindfulness in a local environment. One of the greatest challenges in designing such a class is the fact that it took Thoreau himself many years to develop an attentiveness to his environment and his own emotional rhythms and an efficiency of expression that would enable him to describe such travel-without-travel, and I would have only sixteen weeks to achieve this with my own students. The first task, I decided, was to invite my students into the essential philosophical stance of the class, and I did this by asking my students to read the opening chapter of Walden ("Economy") in which he talks about traveling "a good deal" in his small New England village as well as the second chapter and the conclusion, which reveal the author's enthusiasm (some might even say obsession ) for trying to achieve an awakened condition and which, in the end, suggest that waking up to the meaning of one's life in the world might be best accomplished by attempting the paradoxical feat of becoming "expert in home-cosmography." As I stated it among the objectives for my course titled 36 Views of Moscow Mountain: Or, Traveling a Good Deal—with Open Minds and Notebooks—in a Small Place , one of our goals together (along with practicing nonfiction writing skills and learning about the genre of travel writing) would be to "Cultivate a ‘Thoreauvian' way of appreciating the subtleties of the ordinary world."

Windy. Elms Bare.

9 For me, the elegance and heightened sensitivity of Thoreau's engagement with place is most movingly exemplified in his journal, especially in the 1850s after he's mastered the art of observation and nuanced, efficient description of specific natural phenomena and environmental conditions. His early entries in the journal are abstract mini-essays on such topics as truth, beauty, and "The Poet," but over time the journal notations become so immersed in the direct experience of the more-than-human world, in daily sensory experiences, that the pronoun "I" even drops out of many of these records. Lawrence Buell aptly describes this Thoreauvian mode of expression as "self-relinquishment" (156) in his 1995 book The Environmental Imagination , suggesting such writing "question[s] the authority of the superintending consciousness. As such, it opens up the prospect of a thoroughgoing perceptual breakthrough, suggesting the possibility of a more ecocentric state of being than most of us have dreamed of" (144-45). By the time Thoreau wrote "Windy. Elms bare" (372) as his single entry for October 6 and 7, 1853, he had entered what we might call an "ecocentric zone of consciousness" in his work, attaining the ability to channel his complex perceptions of season change (including meteorology and botany and even his own emotional state) into brief, evocative prose.

10 I certainly do not expect my students to be able to do such writing after only a brief introduction to the course and to Thoreau's own methods of journal writing, but after laying the foundation of the Thoreauvian philosophy of nearby travel and explaining to my students what I call the "building blocks of the personal essay" (description, narration, and exposition), I ask them to engage in a preliminary journal-writing exercise that involves preparing five journal entries, each "a paragraph or two in length," that offer detailed physical descriptions of ordinary phenomena from their lives (plants, birds, buildings, street signs, people, food, etc.), emphasizing shape, color, movement or change, shadow, and sometimes sound, smell, taste, and/or touch. The goal of the journal entries, I tell the students, is to begin to get them thinking about close observation, vivid descriptive language, and the potential to give their later essays in the class an effective texture by balancing more abstract information and ideas with evocative descriptive passages and storytelling.

11 I am currently teaching this class, and I am writing this article in early September, as we are entering the fourth week of the semester. The students have just completed the journal-writing exercise and are now preparing to write the first of five brief essays on different aspects of Moscow that will eventually be braided together, as discrete sections of the longer piece, into a full-scale literary essay about Moscow, Idaho, from the perspective of a traveler. For the journal exercise, my students wrote some rather remarkable descriptive statements, which I think bodes well for their upcoming work. One student, Elizabeth Isakson, wrote stunning journal descriptions of a cup of coffee, her own feet, a lemon, a basil leaf, and a patch of grass. For instance, she wrote:

Steaming hot liquid poured into a mug. No cream, just black. Yet it appears the same brown as excretion. The texture tells another story with meniscus that fades from clear to gold and again brown. The smell is intoxicating for those who are addicted. Sweetness fills the nostrils; bitterness rushes over the tongue. The contrast somehow complements itself. Earthy undertones flower up, yet this beverage is much more satisfying than dirt. When the mug runs dry, specks of dark grounds remain swimming in the sunken meniscus. Steam no longer rises because energy has found a new home.

12 For the grassy lawn, she wrote:

Calico with shades of green, the grass is yellowing. Once vibrant, it's now speckled with straw. Sticking out are tall, seeding dandelions. Still some dips in the ground have maintained thick, soft patches of green. The light dances along falling down from the trees above, creating a stained-glass appearance made from various green shades. The individual blades are stiff enough to stand erect, but they will yield to even slight forces of wind or pressure. Made from several long strands seemingly fused together, some blades fray at the end, appearing brittle. But they do not simply break off; they hold fast to the blade to which they belong.

13 The point of this journal writing is for the students to look closely enough at ordinary reality to feel estranged from it, as if they have never before encountered (or attempted to describe) a cup of coffee or a field of grass—or a lemon or a basil leaf or their own body. Thus, the Thoreauvian objective of practicing home-cosmography begins to take shape. The familiar becomes exotic, note-worthy, and strangely beautiful, just as it often does for the geographical travel writer, whose adventures occur far away from where she or he normally lives. Travel, in a sense, is an antidote to complacency, to over-familiarity. But the premise of my class in Thoreauvian travel writing is that a slight shift of perspective can overcome the complacency we might naturally feel in our home surroundings. To accomplish this we need a certain degree of disorientation. This is the next challenge for our class.

The Blessing of Being Lost

14 Most of us take great pains to "get oriented" and "know where we're going," whether this is while running our daily errands or when thinking about the essential trajectories of our lives. We're often instructed by anxious parents to develop a sense of purpose and a sense of direction, if only for the sake of basic safety. But the traveler operates according to a somewhat different set of priorities, perhaps, elevating adventure and insight above basic comfort and security, at least to some degree. This certainly seems to be the case for the Thoreauvian traveler, or for Thoreau himself. In Walden , he writes:

…not until we are completely lost, or turned round,--for a man needs only be turned round once with his eyes shut in this world to be lost,--do we appreciate the vastness and strangeness of Nature. Every man has to learn the points of compass again as often as he awakes, whether from sleep or any abstraction. Not till we are lost, in other words, not till we have lost the world, do we begin to find ourselves, and realize where we are and the infinite extent of our relations. (171)

15 I could explicate this passage at length, but that's not really my purpose here. I read this as a celebration of salutary disorientation, of the potential to be lost in such a way as to deepen one's ability to pay attention to oneself and one's surroundings, natural and otherwise. If travel is to a great degree an experience uniquely capable of triggering attentiveness to our own physical and psychological condition, to other cultures and the minds and needs of other people, and to a million small details of our environment that we might take for granted at home but that accrue special significance when we're away, I would argue that much of this attentiveness is owed to the sense of being lost, even the fear of being lost, that often happens when we leave our normal habitat.

16 So in my class I try to help my students "get lost" in a positive way. Here in Moscow, the major local landmark is a place called Moscow Mountain, a forested ridge of land just north of town, running approximately twenty kilometers to the east of the city. Moscow "Mountain" does not really have a single, distinctive peak like a typical mountain—it is, as I say, more of a ridge than a pinnacle. When I began contemplating this class on Thoreauvian travel writing, the central concepts I had in mind were Thoreau's notion of traveling a good deal in Concord and also the idea of looking at a specific place from many different angles. The latter idea is not only Thoreauvian, but perhaps well captured in the eighteen-century Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai's series of woodblock prints known as 36 Views of Mt. Fuji , which offers an array of different angles on the mountain itself and on other landscape features (lakes, the sea, forests, clouds, trees, wind) and human behavior which is represented in many of the prints, often with Mt. Fuji in the distant background or off to the side. In fact, I imagine Hokusai's approach to representing Mt. Fuji as so important to the concept of this travel writing class that I call the class "36 Views of Moscow Mountain," symbolizing the multiple approaches I'll be asking my students to take in contemplating and describing not only Moscow Mountain itself, but the culture and landscape and the essential experience of Moscow the town. The idea of using Hokusai's series of prints as a focal point of this class came to me, in part, from reading American studies scholar Cathy Davidson's 36 Views of Mount Fuji: On Finding Myself in Japan , a memoir that offers sixteen short essays about different facets of her life as a visiting professor in that island nation.

17 The first of five brief essays my students will prepare for the class is what I'm calling a "Moscow Mountain descriptive essay," building upon the small descriptive journal entries they've written recently. In this case, though, I am asking the students to describe the shapes and colors of the Moscow Mountain ridge, while also telling a brief story or two about their observations of the mountain, either by visiting the mountain itself to take a walk or a bike ride or by explaining how they glimpse portions of the darkly forested ridge in the distance while walking around the University of Idaho campus or doing things in town. In preparation for the Moscow Mountain essays, we read several essays or book chapters that emphasize "organizing principles" in writing, often the use of particular landscape features, such as trees or mountains, as a literary focal point. For instance, in David Gessner's "Soaring with Castro," from his 2007 book Soaring with Fidel: An Osprey Odyssey from Cape Cod to Cuba and Beyond , he not only refers to La Gran Piedra (a small mountain in southeastern Cuba) as a narrative focal point, but to the osprey, or fish eagle, itself and its migratory journey as an organizing principle for his literary project (203). Likewise, in his essay "I Climb a Tree and Become Dissatisfied with My Lot," Chicago author Leonard Dubkin writes about his decision, as a newly fired journalist, to climb up a tree in Chicago's Lincoln Park to observe and listen to the birds that gather in the green branches in the evening, despite the fact that most adults would consider this a strange and inappropriate activity. We also looked at several of Hokusai's woodblock prints and analyzed these together in class, trying to determine how the mountain served as an organizing principle for each print or whether there were other key features of the prints—clouds, ocean waves, hats and pieces of paper floating in the wind, humans bent over in labor—that dominate the images, with Fuji looking on in the distance.

18 I asked my students to think of Hokusai's representations of Mt. Fuji as aesthetic models, or metaphors, for what they might try to do in their brief (2-3 pages) literary essays about Moscow Mountain. What I soon discovered was that many of my students, even students who have spent their entire lives in Moscow, either were not aware of Moscow Mountain at all or had never actually set foot on the mountain. So we spent half an hour during one class session, walking to a vantage point on the university campus, where I could point out where the mountain is and we could discuss how one might begin to write about such a landscape feature in a literary essay. Although I had thought of the essay describing the mountain as a way of encouraging the students to think about a familiar landscape as an orienting device, I quickly learned that this will be a rather challenging exercise for many of the students, as it will force them to think about an object or a place that is easily visible during their ordinary lives, but that they typically ignore. Paying attention to the mountain, the ridge, will compel them to reorient themselves in this city and think about a background landscape feature that they've been taking for granted until now. I think of this as an act of disorientation or being lost—a process of rethinking their own presence in this town that has a nearby mountain that most of them seldom think about. I believe Thoreau would consider this a good, healthy experience, a way of being present anew in a familiar place.

36 Views—Or, When You Invert Your Head

19 Another key aspect of Hokusai's visual project and Thoreau's literary project is the idea of changing perspective. One can view Mt. Fuji from 36 different points of views, or from thousands of different perspectives, and it is never quite the same place—every perspective is original, fresh, mind-expanding. The impulse to shift perspective in pursuit of mindfulness is also ever-present in Thoreau's work, particularly in his personal journal and in Walden . This idea is particularly evident, to me, in the chapter of Walden titled "The Ponds," where he writes:

Standing on the smooth sandy beach at the east end of the pond, in a calm September afternoon, when a slight haze makes the opposite shore line indistinct, I have seen whence came the expression, "the glassy surface of a lake." When you invert your head, it looks like a thread of finest gossamer stretched across the valley, and gleaming against the distinct pine woods, separating one stratum of the atmosphere from another. (186)

20 Elsewhere in the chapter, Thoreau describes the view of the pond from the top of nearby hills and the shapes and colors of pebbles in the water when viewed from close up. He chances physical perspective again and again throughout the chapter, but it is in the act of looking upside down, actually suggesting that one might invert one's head, that he most vividly conveys the idea of looking at the world in different ways in order to be lost and awakened, just as the traveler to a distant land might feel lost and invigorated by such exposure to an unknown place.

21 After asking students to write their first essay about Moscow Mountain, I give them four additional short essays to write, each two to four pages long. We read short examples of place-based essays, some of them explicitly related to travel, and then the students work on their own essays on similar topics. The second short essay is about food—I call this the "Moscow Meal" essay. We read the final chapter of Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma (2006), "The Perfect Meal," and Anthony Bourdain's chapter "Where Cooks Come From" in the book A Cook's Tour (2001) are two of the works we study in preparation for the food essay. The three remaining short essays including a "Moscow People" essay (exploring local characters are important facets of the place), a more philosophical essay about "the concept of Moscow," and a final "Moscow Encounter" essay that tells the story of a dramatic moment of interaction with a person, an animal, a memorable thing to eat or drink, a sunset, or something else. Along the way, we read the work of Wendell Berry, Joan Didion, Barbara Kingsolver, Kim Stafford, Paul Theroux, and other authors. Before each small essay is due, we spend a class session holding small-group workshops, allowing the students to discuss their essays-in-progress with each other and share portions of their manuscripts. The idea is that they will learn about writing even by talking with each other about their essays. In addition to writing about Moscow from various angles, they will learn about additional points of view by considering the angles of insight developed by their fellow students. All of this is the writerly equivalent of "inverting [their] heads."

Beneath the Smooth Skin of Place

22 Aside from Thoreau's writing and Hokusai's images, perhaps the most important writer to provide inspiration for this class is Indiana-based essayist Scott Russell Sanders. Shortly after introducing the students to Thoreau's key ideas in Walden and to the richness of his descriptive writing in the journal, I ask them to read his essay "Buckeye," which first appeared in Sanders's Writing from the Center (1995). "Buckeye" demonstrates the elegant braiding together of descriptive, narrative, and expository/reflective prose, and it also offers a strong argument about the importance of creating literature and art about place—what he refers to as "shared lore" (5)—as a way of articulating the meaning of a place and potentially saving places that would otherwise be exploited for resources, flooded behind dams, or otherwise neglected or damaged. The essay uses many of the essential literary devices, ranging from dialogue to narrative scenes, that I hope my students will practice in their own essays, while also offering a vivid argument in support of the kind of place-based writing the students are working on.

23 Another vital aspect of our work together in this class is the effort to capture the wonderful idiosyncrasies of this place, akin to the idiosyncrasies of any place that we examine closely enough to reveal its unique personality. Sanders's essay "Beneath the Smooth Skin of America," which we study together in Week 9 of the course, addresses this topic poignantly. The author challenges readers to learn the "durable realities" of the places where they live, the details of "watershed, biome, habitat, food-chain, climate, topography, ecosystem and the areas defined by these natural features they call bioregions" (17). "The earth," he writes, "needs fewer tourists and more inhabitants" (16). By Week 9 of the semester, the students have written about Moscow Mountain, about local food, and about local characters, and they are ready at this point to reflect on some of the more philosophical dimensions of living in a small academic village surrounded by farmland and beyond that surrounded by the Cascade mountain range to the West and the Rockies to the East. "We need a richer vocabulary of place" (18), urges Sanders. By this point in the semester, by reading various examples of place-based writing and by practicing their own powers of observation and expression, my students will, I hope, have developed a somewhat richer vocabulary to describe their own experiences in this specific place, a place they've been trying to explore with "open minds and notebooks." Sanders argues that

if we pay attention, we begin to notice patterns in the local landscape. Perceiving those patterns, acquiring names and theories and stories for them, we cease to be tourists and become inhabitants. The bioregional consciousness I am talking about means bearing your place in mind, keeping track of its condition and needs, committing yourself to its care. (18)

24 Many of my students will spend only four or five years in Moscow, long enough to earn a degree before moving back to their hometowns or journeying out into the world in pursuit of jobs or further education. Moscow will be a waystation for some of these student writers, not a permanent home. Yet I am hoping that this semester-long experiment in Thoreauvian attentiveness and place-based writing will infect these young people with both the bioregional consciousness Sanders describes and a broader fascination with place, including the cultural (yes, the human ) dimensions of this and any other place. I feel such a mindfulness will enrich the lives of my students, whether they remain here or move to any other location on the planet or many such locations in succession.

25 Toward the end of "Beneath the Smooth Skin of America," Sanders tells the story of encountering a father with two young daughters near a city park in Bloomington, Indiana, where he lives. Sanders is "grazing" on wild mulberries from a neighborhood tree, and the girls are keen to join him in savoring the local fruit. But their father pulls them away, stating, "Thank you very much, but we never eat anything that grows wild. Never ever." To this Sanders responds: "If you hold by that rule, you will not get sick from eating poison berries, but neither will you be nourished from eating sweet ones. Why not learn to distinguish one from the other? Why feed belly and mind only from packages?" (19-20). By looking at Moscow Mountain—and at Moscow, Idaho, more broadly—from numerous points of view, my students, I hope, will nourish their own bellies and minds with the wild fruit and ideas of this place. I say this while chewing a tart, juicy, and, yes, slightly sweet plum that I pulled from a feral tree in my own Moscow neighborhood yesterday, an emblem of engagement, of being here.

Bibliography

BUELL, Lawrence, The Environmental Imagination: Thoreau, Nature Writing, and the Formation of American Culture , Harvard University Press, 1995.

DAVIDSON, Cathy, 36 Views of Mount Fuji: On Finding Myself in Japan , Duke University Press, 2006.

DUBKIN, Leonard, "I Climb a Tree and Become Dissatisfied with My Lot." Enchanted Streets: The Unlikely Adventures of an Urban Nature Lover , Little, Brown and Company, 1947, 34-42.

GESSNER, David, Soaring with Fidel: An Osprey Odyssey from Cape Cod to Cuba and Beyond , Beacon, 2007.

ISAKSON, Elizabeth, "Journals." Assignment for 36 Views of Moscow Mountain (English 208), University of Idaho, Fall 2018.

SANDERS, Scott Russell, "Buckeye" and "Beneath the Smooth Skin of America." Writing from the Center , Indiana University Press, 1995, pp. 1-8, 9-21.

SLOVIC, Scott, "Teaching with Wolves", Western American Literature 52.3 (Fall 2017): 323-31.

THOREAU, Henry David, "October 1-20, 1853", Being in the World: An Environmental Reader for Writers , edited by Scott H. Slovic and Terrell F. Dixon, Macmillan, 1993, 371-75.

THOREAU, Henry David, Walden . 1854. Princeton University Press, 1971.

Bibliographical reference

Scott Slovic , “ 36 Views of Moscow Mountain: Teaching Travel Writing and Mindfulness in the Tradition of Hokusai and Thoreau ” ,  Caliban , 59 | 2018, 41-54.

Electronic reference

Scott Slovic , “ 36 Views of Moscow Mountain: Teaching Travel Writing and Mindfulness in the Tradition of Hokusai and Thoreau ” ,  Caliban [Online], 59 | 2018, Online since 01 June 2018 , connection on 16 October 2023 . URL : http://journals.openedition.org/caliban/3688; DOI : https://doi.org/10.4000/caliban.3688

About the author

Scott slovic.

University of Idaho Scott Slovic is University Distinguished Professor of Environmental Humanities at the University of Idaho, USA. The author and editor of many books and articles, he edited the journal ISLE: Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment from 1995 to 2020. His latest coedited book is The Routledge Handbook of Ecocriticism and Environmental Communication  (2019).

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• Introduction (version en français) [Full text] Introduction [Full text | translation | en] Published in Caliban , 64 | 2020
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Ch. 9 The Development of Russia

Ivan i and the rise of moscow, learning objective.

• Outline the key points that helped Moscow become so powerful and how Ivan I accomplished these major victories
• Moscow was considered a small trading outpost under the principality of Vladimir-Suzdal into the 13th century.
• Power struggles and constant raids under the Mongol Empire’s Golden Horde caused once powerful cities, such as Kiev, to struggle financially and culturally.
• Ivan I utilized the relative calm and safety of the northern city of Moscow to entice a larger population and wealth to move there.
• Alliances between Golden Horde leaders and Ivan I saved Moscow from many of the raids and destruction of other centers, like Tver.

A rival city to Moscow that eventually lost favor under the Golden Horde.

Grand Prince of Vladimir

The title given to the ruler of this northern province, where Moscow was situated.

The Rise of Moscow

Moscow was only a small trading outpost in the principality of Vladimir-Suzdal in Kievan Rus’ before the invasion of Mongol forces during the 13th century. However, due to the unstable environment of the Golden Horde, and the deft leadership of Ivan I at a critical time during the 13th century, Moscow became a safe haven of prosperity during his reign. It also became the new seat of power of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Ivan I (also known as Ivan Kalita) was born around 1288 to the Prince of Moscow, Daniil Aleksandrovich. He was born during a time of devastation and upheaval in Rus’. Kiev had been overtaken by the invading Mongol forces in 1240, and most of the Rus’ principalities had been absorbed into the Golden Horde of the Mongol Empire by the time Ivan was born. He ascended to the seat of Prince of Moscow after the death of his father, and then the death of his older brother Yury.

Ivan I. He was born around 1288 and died in either 1340 or 1341, still holding the title of Grand Prince of Vladimir.

Ivan I stepped into a role that had already been expanded by his predecessors. Both his older brother and his father had captured nearby lands, including Kolomna and Mozhaisk. Yury had also made a successful alliance with the Mongol leader Uzbeg Khan and married his sister, securing more power and advantages within the hierarchy of the Golden Horde.

Ivan I continued the family tradition and petitioned the leaders of the Golden Horde to gain the seat of Grand Prince of Vladimir. His other three rivals, all princes of Tver, had previously been granted the title in prior years. However they were all subsequently deprived of the title and all three aspiring princes also eventually ended up murdered. Ivan I, on the other hand, garnered the title from Khan Muhammad Ozbeg in 1328. This new title, which he kept until his death around 1340, meant he could collect taxes from the Russian lands as a ruling prince and position his tiny city as a major player in the Vladimir region.

Moscow’s Rise

During this time of upheaval, the tiny outpost of Moscow had multiple advantages that repositioned this town and set it up for future prosperity under Ivan I. Three major contributing factors helped Ivan I relocate power to this area:

• It was situated in between other major principalities on the east and west so it was often protected from the more devastating invasions.
• This relative safety, compared to Tver and Ryazan, for example, started to bring in tax-paying citizens who wanted a safe place to build a home and earn a livelihood.
• Finally, Moscow was set up perfectly along the trade route from Novgorod to the Volga River, giving it an economic advantage from the start.

Ivan I also spurred on the growth of Moscow by actively recruiting people to move to the region. In addition, he bought the freedom of people who had been captured by the extensive Mongol raids. These recruits further bolstered the population of Moscow. Finally, he focused his attention on establishing peace and routing out thieves and raiding parties in the region, making for a safe and calm metaphorical island in a storm of unsettled political and military upsets.

Kievan Rus’ 1220-1240. This map illustrates the power dynamics at play during the 13th century shortly before Ivan I was born. Sarai, the capital of the Golden Horde, sat to the southeast, while Moscow (not visible on this map) was tucked up in the northern forests of Vladimir-Suzdal.

Ivan I knew that the peace of his region depended upon keeping up an alliance with the Golden Horde, which he did faithfully. Moscow’s increased wealth during this era also allowed him to loan money to neighboring principalities. These regions then became indebted to Moscow, bolstering its political and financial position.

In addition, a few neighboring cities and villages were subsumed into Moscow during the 1320s and 1330s, including Uglich, Belozero, and Galich. These shifts slowly transformed the tiny trading outpost into a bustling city center in the northern forests of what was once Kievan Rus’.

Russian Orthodox Church and The Center of Moscow

Ivan I committed some of Moscow’s new wealth to building a splendid city center and creating an iconic religious setting. He built stone churches in the center of Moscow with his newly gained wealth. Ivan I also tempted one of the most important religious leaders in Rus’, the Orthodox Metropolitan Peter, to the city of Moscow. Before the rule of the Golden Horde the original Russian Orthodox Church was based in Kiev. After years of devastation, Metropolitan Peter transferred the seat of power to Moscow where a new Renaissance of culture was blossoming. This perfectly timed transformation of Moscow coincided with the decades of devastation in Kiev, effectively transferring power to the north once again.

Peter of Moscow and scenes from his life as depicted in a 15th-century icon. This religious leader helped bring cultural power to Moscow by moving the seat of the Russian Orthodox Church there during Ivan I’s reign.

One of the most lasting accomplishments of Ivan I was to petition the Khan based in Sarai to designate his son, who would become Simeon the Proud, as the heir to the title of Grand Prince of Vladimir. This agreement a line of succession that meant the ruling head of Moscow would almost always hold power over the principality of Vladimir, ensuring Moscow held a powerful position for decades to come.

• Boundless World History. Authored by : Boundless. Located at : https://www.boundless.com/world-history/textbooks/boundless-world-history-textbook/ . License : CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike

Humber is noted for its exceptional creative writing mentors including authors of world stature. Past mentors include Martin Amis, Peter Carey, Miriam Toews, David Mitchell, Esi Edugyan, Nino Ricci, Margaret Atwood, Lawrence Hill, Anne Michaels, Edward Albee, Ha Jin and Alistair MacLeod.

The Humber Advantage FLASH FICTION CONTEST Humber College's Bachelor of Creative & Professional Writing (BCPW) program is excited to announce the five winners of its annual Humber Literary Review (HLR) High-School Spotlight Flash Fiction Contest. Entries came from high school students across Ontario.

Creative Writing The School of English and Theatre Studies, which has on its faculty some of Canada's most recognized and respected creative writers, will launch a creative writing major for undergraduate students in the Fall 2022 term. The School will continue to offer a minor in creative writing as well.

The University of Guelph is excited to introduce Creative Writing at Guelph, a new program of writing courses in a variety of genres and, for dedicated learners, a focused program of study resulting in a certificate.

Since September 2006, the University of Guelph has offered an exciting Master of Fine Arts (MFA) Program in Creative Writing, located in the University of Guelph-Humber building on the north campus of Humber College in Toronto.

CW MFA: 2022 in Review We've had a fabulous first year with Canisia Lubrin at the helm of the MFA program and Catherine Bush continues to supervise MFA students and teach fiction for us and the many writers clamoring into the new Creative Writing undergraduate program at the University of Guelph. More features

You will complete writing assignments and exercises, short creative pieces, and peer critiques across three writing genres, including fiction, poetry, screenwriting, and creative nonfiction. You will build upon this by engaging with our creative writing community through initiatives, such as:

Creative Writing Creative Writing MFA Program Brochure PDF Graduate Calendar - Creative Writing Application Deadline: December 4, 2023 Entry: Fall 2024 College: College of Arts Program Website: Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Department: The School of English & Theatre Studies (Facilitated at University of Guelph-Humber campus)

Since 2006, the University of Guelph has offered an innovative Master of Fine Arts (M F A) Program in Creative Writing, housed in the University of Guelph-Humber building in Toronto. The program is structured to nurture and support diverse voices and wide imaginaries.

Humber School for Writers, Humber College, and Toronto theatres, for example - provide MFA students with extraordinary possibilities for professional development. Location . The program is located at the University of Guelph's satellite location in Toronto. All classes are held in the Guelph-Humber building on the Humber College North campus.

Tuition Our degree is a full-time program located on the Guelph-Humber campus. According to these specifications, tuition for the University of Guelph Creative Writing MFA is broken down on the main University website by cohort (year of entry). For an approximate indication of current fees, by semester, see the following:

New in 2022! Explore the ways writing can drive social justice and environmental awareness. Create meaning through your writing and storytelling. You will take courses in speculative fiction, non-fiction, poetry, screenwriting and writing for the inclusive stage. You will develop a body of creative work that includes writing exercises, short ...

Applying to the Creative Writing MFA program requires that you submit an online application through the Ontario Universities' Application Centre (OUAC) portal, as well as a CV, a letter of intent, and a writing portfolio to the University of Guelph SlideRoom portal. Your OUAC application AND all three parts of your portfolio submission are ...

Writing Sample; Please submit a sample of your writing that is no more than 15 pages in length. Ideally, the writing sample should be taken from the project you intend to work on in the program. If this is not possible, please submit a sample in the same form/genre (e.g., fiction if you intend to work on a novel).

Meaghan worked at Quill & Quire magazine for several years as a marketing manager and at the University of Guelph as the program administrator for its Creative Writing MFA. In addition to her work as a professor and co-ordinator, Meaghan works as a freelance proofreader, copy editor and project manager, and is interviews editor at the Humber ...

The University of Guelph Creative Writing MFA, Toronto, Ontario. 358 likes · 35 talking about this. The University of Guelph Creative Writing MFA was established in 2006 and is based at Guelph-Humber

Humber Writing Centre; Related topics ... MLA Style (9th edition) by Guelph-Humber Library Services Last Updated Sep 7, 2023 1577 views this year Humber College Writing Centre Book an appointment at the writing centre for help with your paper. Book a Writing Centre appointment. Learn more about the Writing Centre ...

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Guelph humber mfa creative writing Accurately prepare and poetry and abroad. There was her debut course influency: mfa. Toronto, may 19 until friday, and support many voices and. Toronto star; profile: smart grid electrical engineering technology company to study. Accurately prepare and maintaining documentation for more information creative ...

BUELL, Lawrence, The Environmental Imagination: Thoreau, Nature Writing, and the Formation of American Culture, Harvard University Press, 1995. DAVIDSON, Cathy, 36 Views of Mount Fuji: On Finding Myself in Japan, Duke University Press, 2006. DUBKIN, Leonard, "I Climb a Tree and Become Dissatisfied with My Lot." Enchanted Streets: The Unlikely Adventures of an Urban Nature Lover, Little, Brown ...

Comprehensive Annual Financial Report C M, I F T F Y E S 30, 2019 Prepared by the Finance Department Sarah L. Banks Finance Director

Ivan I (also known as Ivan Kalita) was born around 1288 to the Prince of Moscow, Daniil Aleksandrovich. He was born during a time of devastation and upheaval in Rus'. Kiev had been overtaken by the invading Mongol forces in 1240, and most of the Rus' principalities had been absorbed into the Golden Horde of the Mongol Empire by the time ...

Since 2006, the University of Guelph has ofered an innovative Master of Fine Arts (M F A) Program in Creative Writing, housed in the University of Guelph-Humber building in Toronto. The program is structured to nurture and support diverse voices and wide imaginaries.

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Municipal Drama Theater Strela

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• Collected writings

HINTS AND TIPS:

Before giving away the correct answer, here are some more hints and tips for you to guess the solution on your own!

1. The first letter of the answer is: A

2. the last letter of the answer is: y, 3. there are 3 vowels in the hidden word:.

CORRECT ANSWER :

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