Writers Collective

For experienced and novice writers, this Collective will help you to take your writing to the next level. Courses are taught by professional writers with a gift for sharing their insights on the craft of writing. Inspired by discussions with others who are passionate, serious, and savvy about writing, you will develop new work. Delve into a variety of genres, including fiction, journalism, creative nonfiction, screenwriting, and technical and grant/proposal writing. Designed for writers who want more—more practice, more feedback, more skills, and more opportunities to write and publish.

Courses
1     Writing Your Life: Introduction to Memoir Writing
2     Getting Published
3     Grant/Proposal Writing
4     Fiction Writing
5     Poet’s Corner
6     Cultural Journalism
7     Screenwriting
8     Technical Writing
9     Playwriting
10   Writing About and Reviewing Film
11   Writing About and Reviewing Theatre

About the Instructors

Costs
In addition to the tuition, there is a $25 nonrefundable registration fee paid once per semester.

FALL 2010 Courses

Early Registration Discount
This discount applies to registrations received (paid in full) by Aug. 20.

Writing Your Life: Introduction to Memoir Writing
Explore various approaches to writing memoirs, autobiography, family history, autobiography-based fiction, or other “life stories,” incorporating the classic elements of the personal essay. Develop creative techniques for writing and crafting your memoir, including approach and selecting a topic, research, and organization, as well as stylistic and creative concerns. Create your life stories and apply such elements as character, plot, description, and dialogue. Learn how to and where to market your work.
AWR9220.10 / $479
AWR9220.11 / $455 (Purchase College employees and alumni, and early registration discount)
Instructor: Theresa Benaquist
Tues., 6:00–9:00 p.m.
Sept. 28–Nov. 16 (8 sessions)
Humanities Bldg., Room 2077

 NEW! Screenwriting
Develop the craft of screenwriting by writing proposals, treatments, and scripts for original short films. Starting with visual storytelling, concentrate on the two fundamental elements of drama—structure and character—and examine standard formatting practices and dialogue. Includes lectures, discussion of current TV shows and movies, and in-class reading and critique of peer work.
AWR9285.10 / $320
AWR9285.11 / $295 (Purchase College employees and alumni, and early registration discount)
Instructor: Elisha Miranda
Tues., 6:00–8:00 p.m.
Sept. 28–Nov. 16 (8 sessions)
Humanities Bldg., Room 3053

 NEW! Writing About and Reviewing Film
Learn to write critiques and feature stories about the films you love (and those you don’t) for print media and the Internet. Learn how to watch them, judge them, write about them, and evaluate what others are saying. At the end of the course you will be able to discuss, think, and write as an arts reporter and critic!
AWR9310.10 / $239
AWR9310.11 / $215 (Purchase College employees and alumni, and early registration discount)
Instructor: Robert Heisler
Wed., 6:00–9:00 p.m.
Sept. 22–Oct. 13 (4 sessions)
Library Bldg., Room 1014

 NEW! Writing About and Reviewing Theatre
Explore the wonders and challenges of writing about theatre. Discover how to make judgments about the performing arts—does the work “work” and is it worth doing—and incorporate them in your feature stories and reviews for print media and the Internet. At the end of the course you will be able to discuss, think, and write as an arts reporter and critic!
AWR9315.10 / $479
AWR9315.11 / $455 (Purchase College employees and alumni, and early registration discount)
Instructor: Robert Heisler
Wed., 6:00–9:00 p.m.
Oct. 27–Nov. 17  (4 sessions)
Library Bldg., Room 1014 

SPRING 2011 Courses

• Writing Your Life: Introduction to Memoir Writing
• Getting Published
• Grant/Proposal Writing
• Screenwriting

Other Courses in the Program

Writers Collective courses are also offered during summer session.

Fiction Writing
Develop your individual narrative skills, style, and talent. Learn to produce short stories or novels with elements of character, plot, point of view, description, dialogue, setting, pacing, voice, and theme. Use lecture, feedback from instructors and classmates, and class exercises to improve your writing. Improve at your own pace in developing your perceptual, technical, and imaginative abilities.
AWR9240.10
AWR9240.11 (Purchase College employees and alumni, and early registration discount)

Poet’s Corner
Explore various ways to analyze and understand poetry in order to create your own poems. Discuss aspects of craft and technique, using published poems from a diverse menu of poets. Produce and refine your poems through writing exercises, reading discussions, written and oral peer-feedback, and notebook assignments. The in-class exercises and notebook assignments are designed to give you experience in generating poems and fine-tuning your analytical skills.
AWR9250.10
AWR9250.11 (Purchase College employees and alumni, and early registration discount)

Playwriting
Write—and complete—your own one act play! Explore the art and craft of playwriting with fun, creative, and specific exercises designed to help you write the play of your dreams. Weekly readings of your work will enable you to revise and edit your scripts into viable works for the theatre. Learn the practical elements of copyrighting, finding an agent, and getting your play produced.
AWR9280.10
AWR9280.11 (Purchase College employees and alumni, and early registration discount)

Cultural Journalism
Discover what it takes to pursue a career in writing for the entertainment industry. Focus on the fundamentals of writing, determining the validity of information, and the basics of news writing for the arts. Learn to research, understand what makes a story interesting, and create written work that exhibits good leads, organization, informative content, and polished endings. Develop good reporting, news-gathering, editing, and rewriting skills with an emphasis on writing feature articles, cultural news selections, and news values. Hone your ability to get the facts and tell a story with accuracy and journalistic responsibility.
AWR9300.10
AWR9300.11 (Purchase College employees and alumni, and early registration discount)

Getting Published
Get your work published! Find the right literary agent and learn to work with the departments within a publishing company. Master the writing skills used in book proposals and query letters. Understand the sales of subsidiary, special, and premium rights. Develop effective Internet marketing and promotion skills. Learn how to research the competition before you write your book!
AWR9510.10
AWR9510.11 (Purchase College employees and alumni, and early registration discount)

Grant/Proposal Writing
Learn to research and write proposals that get funded. Explore relevant funding sources: corporate, foundation, and government. Construct coherent proposals by creating effective cover sheets, narratives, background pages, and both stakeholder and third-party evaluation plans. Discover the quickest and most efficient research methods. Examine the criteria that funders use to determine whether grant proposals are funded or rejected.
HCE9055.10
HCE9055.11 Purchase College employees and alumni, and early registration discount)

Technical Writing
Description TBA.

About the Instructors

Theresa Benaquist is a Keene State graduate with an M.F.A. in nonfiction writing from Sarah Lawrence. She has taught college, creative, and fiction writing at Purchase College and teaches writing workshops to students from 8 to 18 years of age at Writopia in New York City.

Robert Heisler has run arts and entertainment departments for newspapers both large (NY Daily News and The New York Post), small (The Journal News and the Philadelphia Daily News), and regional (Newsday). During more than two decades as an arts journalist, Bob has also been a feature writer, reviewer, and critic. He has interviewed Oscar winners, opera divas, jazz masters, and Kermit the Frog and reviewed movies, theatre, music, opera, dance, and restaurants. Mr. Heisler has helped launch arts blogs, video reports, and interactive chats. His message is direct: When technology allows anyone to be a critic, the informed journalist who engages that community conversation—online or in print—will fill the important role of connecting the arts and its audiences. He has lived in Larchmont for 23 years.

Updated August 31, 2010

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