SUMMATIVE CREATIVE PORTFOLIO - 2021/2

Module Overview

Worth 90 credits out of the 240 total credits required for the MFA, this module provides students with the opportunity to explore the challenges of producing a sizeable, polished and cohesive portfolio of Creative Writing. This portfolio may consist of a single extended piece of writing, a lengthy extract from an even larger project, or a collection of pieces of a shorter length. For students submitting poetry, 150 lines of poetry should be taken to be equivalent to 5,000 words of prose. Each student will be assigned a tutor who will assist them in choosing their subject matter and literary approach, and who will provide advice, encouragement and formative feedback over the course of the writing process, as well as suggesting relevant reading material which may help inspire or critically locate the project. The tutor will also help with time management and planning, and will offer guidance on producing a portfolio that demonstrates the student’s ability to plan, produce and revise an extended piece of creative writing.

Module provider

School of Literature and Languages

Module Leader

THOMPSON Carl (Lit & Langs)

Number of Credits: 90

ECTS Credits: 45

Framework: FHEQ Level 7

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Module Availability

Year long

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

None

Module content

 The content of the module depends in each case on the specific subject, literary mode and genre of writing as chosen by the student in consultation with their tutor.

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

N/A

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to plan, structure, write, revise and edit a polished and extended piece of creative writing

 

Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of a Summative Creative Portfolio [The equivalent of a final dissertation], which takes the form of 30,000 words of creative prose or equivalent

 

Formative assessment and feedback

 

Formative assessment is designed to assist students in an engaging with the subject matter of the module and its context, as well as to encourage them in the development of writerly practice skills along professional lines.

 

Students will receive regular formative feedback (verbal and/or written) on samples of written work over the course of the semester (maximum of 3,000 words).

 

Other feedback methods may include online group or face to face peer feedback exchanges within the cohort for this module, as well as individual editing exercises and blog and micro-blogging response exercises.

Module aims

•  Produce a considerable body of highly-accomplished creative writing
• Reflect on and engage with the specific challenges of attempting a longer piece (or collection) of creative writing
• Identify the specific creative challenges posed by a project of this kind, and to reflect on and engage with these challenges in a productive fashion
• Build confidence in making creative decisions in a well-informed and productive way
• Develop more effective personal writing habits, as well as more effective habits of editing and revision
• Engage in independent guided research, exploring the history of the form, genre, mode and/or literary techniques they are employing in their work, as well as the key critical and theoretical issues raised by their project

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

 The learning and teaching strategy is designed to:

• Identify and explain relevant techniques and strategies for producing high-quality creative writing;


• Develop students’ autonomy as writers, through supervision and guidance from an experienced researcher;


• Help students identify the best methods of research, writing, editing and revision for them as writer, through supervision and guidance from an experienced research

 The learning and teaching methods include:

• Up to six hours of one-on-one tutorial contact, allowing students to explain, discuss and probe possible solutions to creative challenges, as well as refine ideas with a supervisor.


• Around 144 hours of guided research (suggested reading, guided research, writing and revision)

 Special attention should be paid to the ‘Creative Writing Submissions – About Assessments’ document, available on SurreyLearn for guidance on critical reflection and interaction.

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: ELIM034

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2021/2 academic year.