NYU Novel Writing
Fall 2024 WRIT1-CE9357 Online

NOVEL WRITING
WRIT1-CE9357 Novel Writing (Fall 2023)
9-18/2024 - 11/20/2024
10 Wednesdays 6:30 p.m. to 8:50 p.m.
Synchronous online by Zoom
Instructor: Meredith Sue Willis (She, her, hers etc.)
E-mail: meredithsuewillis@gmail.com
Updated 10-12-24
Please note that this site changes often during the semester based on what I perceive as the needs of the students. You should check for updates at least once a week.

Current Class

From Jeffrey Rudell: a very short story that is told in a very artistic dialect.

Presentation/Critique Schedule  Pick a date to present your work for class critique.

Writing Assignments Due 10-16-24

Reading Assignments Due 10-16-24

 


Dialog. Scene. Conflict. Story.

Overview of Weekly Topics

Current Week's Class Plan is posted by Noon of Class Day

Optional Text for this Course: Ten Strategies to Write Your Novel by Meredith Sue Willis. This text is not required. It is, however, available at the NYU Bookstore, from the publisher, and from all the usual online suspects including Bookshop.org.

 

 

Some Novelists Living and Dead I've Been Reading Lately


LeGuin
Barbara Kingsolver;Octavia Butler; Gore Vidal; Ursula LeGuin; Primo Levi; Jessamyn Ward; Michael Connelly; Brandon Taylor.

 

A Few Optional Readings
Cynthia Swanson on going from best-selling commercial author to self-publishing.
Dialogue punctuation: Six "unbreakable" rules for dialogue punctuation.
Pros and Cons of Present Tense
Susan DeFreitas on Character Arc
Article in Psychology Today that discusses some fiction writing techniques in light of neurology. It's a refreshingly different way of looking at things. Author Laura Otis says, "Deciding which confrontations readers should experience in real time and which should be quickly summarized goes to the heart of the writing process."
Finding your novel's clock: from Literary Hub.
Writing ideas from Kurt Vonnegut collected by Suzanne McConnell in her book on Vonnegut.

 

Samples of MSW's fiction online:
"The Sweetest Man Who Ever Lived,"  Cold Mountain Review 2023

From novel Their Houses
"Fan Fiction: Paradise Lost," Maryland Literary Review
"Grandma Shiksa," Persimmon Tree
"Feral Grandmothers: Little Red's," Persimmon Tree

 

 

Outline/Overview of Probably Weekly Topics  (Subject to change)

 
Session 1. 9-18-24  Lots of basic Business, vocabulary for talking about novels, the importance of the senses and description for writer and reader.

 

Session 2. 9-25  Dialogue and Scene One: Writing Vivid Dialogue; Dramatize versus Summarize. Presentation of Student Work for Critique

 

Session 3. 10-2   Dialogue and Scene Two: Presentation of Student Work for Critique

 

Session 4.  10-9   Point of View and Tense for telling your story. Presentation of Student Work for Critique

 

Session 5.  10-16   Arc of Character. Monologue (inner speech)  Presentation of Student Work for Critique. 

 

Session 6.  10-23   Structure One: Thinking About How to Organize the Material You Draft.
Presentation of Student Work for Critique

 

 

Session 7.  10-30 Structure Two: When, How, & If to Outline.
Presentation of Student Work for Critique

 

Session 8. 11-6  What Novels Do Better than Movies and What Novelists Can Learn from Film. Physical Action, Group Scenes; the "Clock" of the story.
Short Presentation on What To Do Once Your Novel is Finished.
Student Work for Critique

 

Session 9.  11-13 Making your Novel Better One: Diction, Line Editing, and Fine Tuning.
Presentation of Student Work for Critique

 

Session 10. 11-20   Makiing Your Novel Better Two: Macro Revision for
Presentation of Student Work for Critique. Final Session--What's next--Farewells.

 

 

 

Session 1
9-18-23 

Why We Use Concrete Language;
How to Talk about Novels


And they have and odor, crunch sound. feel round and shiny, and taste sweet.
 
Reading Assignments Due 9-18-24:
Getting the right spacing between paragraphs in Word
Look over these copy editor's marks for times when you want to do hand written mark-ups--or understand the ones MSW puts on your pages!.
A piece from The Guardian on using adverbs
(Optional) In Ten Strategies to Write Your Novel, read "Strategy 1: Separate Process and Product" or this excerpt from the book :Click on the "Read an Excerpt" at this link link. 
 
Writing Assignment Due 9-18-2
The first page--a sample of your writing--from your novel. If you haven't written it yet, this is an essential first assigment.. Turn this in by midnight of class night: 9-18-24. It will be distributed to all members of the class as a quick means of gettng a sense of your work. This will not be critiqued or marked up.
 

 

I. General Business

A lot of business today--apologies to those who have taken this course before.
  • All writing and presentation selections should be from the novel you're working on.
  • During the course, you may bring up-to 30 manuscript pages for critique (some of these pages will be for the whole group, some only for the teacher). Assignments are optional and go only to MSW. Anything you turn in to MSW, however, counts towards the total of 30 pages to be reviewed during the semester. See more below.
  • May I share the email list? (You'll want to get things from each other). Also, unless you tell me otherwise, I'll put you on my personal list for a free newsletter and announcements about my teaching and work.

  • Please be prepared to discuss the work of classmates when they present.

  • This class welcomes beginning novelists as well as writers who are well-underway on a novel and need further discussion and stimulation to continue or restart. For those with longer or revised manuscripts, this course may be repeated. We will cover a lot of basics fast, beginning with a survey of common terms for discussing novels and a look at novel structure in general. If you feel you need more of the basic terminology and ideas, please take a look at the teacher's book, Ten Strategies to Write Your Novel.

  • This syllabus will be updated regularly online, so please check this web page at least once a week. Access to the website is also available from MSW's home page. Look at the top left.

  • You will receive a grade for this course unless you request a NonEvaluative mark. For the Non-Evaluative, please see the attached form.   A copy of this request must be filed with the department. Send it by e-mail to kf38@nyu.edu. No letter grade will be given below a B. To earn a B, you must attend regularly, complete 30 pages to the professor's satisfaction plus present work for critiquing by the class at least once. To earn an A, you must attend regularly, complete the 30 pages, present work for critiquing by the class at least once, show evidence of having done any outside reading, plus participate in class discussions.
  • It should be noted that all NYU policies on academic integrity, i.e., plagiarism, are fully in effect in this course. For various NYU policies, click here.
    Disclaimer: Syllabus is subject to change due to current events, guest speaker schedule changes, and/or level and interests of students.
  • No-evaluative Grade Information: if you don't want a grade, you must follow these instructions.
  • Take a look at weekly topics.

  • Sign up for class critiques

Pick a session to present 5-10 pages to the class. Everyone should read the material BEFORE class (it will not be read aloud), and the presenter needs to e-mail .doc files to everyone by Sunday night of the class you are presenting on.

  • Send MSW by chat or e-mail: your snail mail address; names you want to be called; corrections to e-mail, corrections to page or broken links or other.

 

Material you send in for responses ("Homework"). There are three kinds:

1. The weekly assignments should be @ 2-3 pages long. They are not required, but are a good way to move your novel forward. These pages are sent only to MSW. They are due on the day of class (thus, the "Writing Assignments due" for Session 2 are due any time September 25, 2024 (before or after class). If they don't arrive that day, there is no guarantee they will be returned by the next session. You may send longer passages (still adding up in total to 30 pp), but please let MSW know your plan so she doesn't get swamped at the end!
2. Substitutions: especially for people taking this class again, or who have an in-process novel--you may send any pages you want to the instructor for feedback.  These pages are sent only to MSW.  They are also due on the day of class. If they don't arrive that day, there is no guarantee they will be returned by the next session.
3. Presentation pieces for critiquing (as short as you'd like, but no more than 10 pp. double spaced, 1 inch margins, roughly comparable to 12 pt. New Times Roman Type face)   are sent to the entire class. These presentation pieces are to to arrive in people's e-mail in boxes by Sunday night before the presentation.

 

VIP: the total pages you may turn in to MSW cannot be more than 30 pp. This includes work to be critiqued by the whole class and assignments sent only to MSW.  When there is work to critique, be prepared to discuss it by the time the class member presents. Please provide written responses. You don't have to do line editing (unless you like to), but you should send at least a paragraph of response.


II. Things We Do During Class Sessions:

  • Some discussions of homework readings and other topics.Not everything assigned to read will be discussed. This is partially a self-taught class.
  • Critique sessions of class members' novel sections.
  • Mini-lectures (MSW talks--not too lopng)
  • Discussion (as much as possible). Send questions if you have any.
  • In-class writing
  • For general topics by week, click here.

  

 

III. Zoom guidelines

- Please have your camera turned on.
-- Put yourself on mute when you're not talking so we don't have to hear your puppy, your partner in the kitchen, etc. The mute button is at lower left of the Zoom screen.
-- Raise your physical hand if you want to speak. (Emojiis tend to set MSW's teeth on edge).
-- Speak one at a time--in practice, this means waiting for the instructor to call on you.
-- Try to be succinct.
-- Listen and respect each other's ideas. We are writing different kinds of novels, and if possible, try to make suggestions based on helping each other write the best novel of the type we are writing.
-- Use the chat function for procedural notes to the instructor ( you got a text from a classmate who can't get in; the name of a book you couldn't think of and wanted to share....)
-- Apologies in advance: I may have to interrupt you or cut you off.   We try for equal time for each person, but I also have an ambitious plan for what to cover.
-- Technical note for Mac Users on Zoom: To view screen share in Zoom at full screen, see the top drop down menu and set to "100%"

 

 

IV. Very brief go-round of introductions

Say up to two sentences about yourself: the name you want to be called, one thing about you (what do you like to read? Do you have a little expertise on something that might help the rest of us? were you a volunteer EMT in a past life?). Also, PLEASE NO APOLOGIES FOR HOW MUCH OR HOW LITTLE YOU'VE WRITTEN ON THIS NOVEL! In fact, let's not tell the status of our novels tonight at all.

 

 V. Write

Using Timed Writing, write a description (not narrated but rather focusing on what can be observed with the senses--especially those other than sight) of a place in your novel. This can be indoors, outdoors, private or public.
 
 
 
[In Timed writing, you write steadily for the given time. Write slowly but steadily. If you get stuck, repeat a word till you're unstuck. But try to keep the words coming.]

 

 

 

 

VI. Share a couple?

 

VII. Separating Process and Product

It is essential to know that what you write first is rarely the same as the beginning of your novel. Preparing the manuscript (including a passage for critique) demands different thinking from creating new material.
If you haven't, don't forget to read this excerpt from Ten Strategies:Click on "Read an Excerpt."   If you have the book, you can read the full version In Ten Strategies to Write Your Novel, "Strategy 1: Separate Process and Product.")
 

VIII. Extremely Mini-Lecture on the uses of concrete language, which often means description

  1. Concrete description brings your reader into the story. It also brings you the writer into the story. Concrete means using the senses whenever possible. Like the apples above, we best communicate what is in our minds by sharing the lowest common denominator: red, warm, smooth, crisp, sweet, juicy. Sense details is not the only thing in fiction writing, but it is essential for those of us writers (novelists and other fiction writers!) who aren't illustrating their work or depending on costume designers and actors to give the timbre of the voice, the fabric and folds of the cloak.
  2. Drafting lots of rich description will help you see your work more completely and clearly and may even give you ideas for new scenes, new characters, new depth! Over-write as you make your first draft. This is how description is vital for the process of writing as well as the product a reader encounters.
  3. In your final product, get rid of most of the description you drafted. Make your descriptions as concise as possible, retaining only the very best details. See "The Lady Sheriff."
  4. Finally, don't stick with visual detail only. The intimate senses-- touch, smell -- are extremely evocative, and not just in sex scenes. Here are two brief passages (mostly visual) from assignment for today. Even though they are both focused in their different ways on action, the concrete description makes them work:

    -- At approximately 11:30 PM local time on Monday July 24th, two stealth helicopters entered the airspace above Brussels. Their dark metal armor barely discernible from the night sky. Below the lights of the capital city bathed the streets and squares in a dull amber light. The few people left in the business district paid no mind to the choppers.


    ---Jenny could picture her mother's smiling face as her brothers chased each other around the yard. Her mother turned and waved at her. Tears clouded her vision as her body shook. Her knuckles turned white as she tightened her grip, and she closed her eyes. Tears slid down her cheeks.



    Here are a couple of descriptions of people that get their strength from senses other than sight.

 

 

 IX BREAK

 

X. A few important terms and concepts-- a common vocabulary:

For thinking and talking: Types of novels
This class is roughly equal parts Big Picture stuff (Macro) and small details of description and house keep9ng (Micro).

More terms for Novel Writing

Common vocabulary--Process versus product, pacing, when to dramatize, when to elide. Essential importance of Point of View in all fiction. Scene and summary. What is Scene? Why is it important? The building block of novels. But at the heart is concrete details.Process versus product, pacing, when to dramatize, when to elide.

 

You'll especially need the terms for thinking about your own novel and for critiquing others' novels.

 

XI. SCHEDULE PRESENTATIONS FOR CRITIQUE.

This is for many people the most important part of a course like this one.
PLEASE GET WORK TO WHOLE CLASS BY SUNDAY NIGHT before the Wednesday of class.
I need two for next week: Prize is to get first dibs on second time. Please send me by email before the next class your first choice for your first presentation.

Brief discussion: How do we talk about ("critique") one another's novels?

Support groups, no response groups/classes.
What do you find useful? Not useful?
For me, it's always How to make this novel (scene, passage) the best it can be at what it wants to be.

Here's a sheet to help people critique your passage. You might want to print out--use as a reference.

 

 

XII. a Macro Exercise

Macro exercise about the novel you are planning/engaged in. Your novel--write about it, talk about it.

 

 Answer these questions about your novel:
(This is a structuring exercise, to get a grip on the novel-as-a-whole)
– Genre (Fiction autobiography? Mystery? Romance? See "Types of Novels.")
– How much I've done so far– how long will it be?

– Who will be the typical reader? Sketch in words the typical reader. – What is
reader doing? Where are they sitting?

– Point of view-how is the story told?

– One important conflict
Conflict is often thought of as a person against themself; or, a person against other individuals; or, a person against society; or even a person against natural forces (The Martian).
– Some books I think people would like who would like my book– the way Barnes & Noble rders has a shelf of "If you like this, try this one."
 

XIII. Homework and readings for 9-25-24 next week

Writing assignments:

1. Write down 5 novels you love/admire/envy/emulate (In other words, feel strongly about). Write one title, if you'd like, that you really dislke.
2. Write a physical description of a character. Focus first on what can be observed with the senses--especially those other than sight.. Things to consider: try to make it psychologically accurate--that is, not every possible detail, but maybe an over view first, or maybe a person entering the space. Notice clothing, posture, skin color, but also odor of perfume or cigars, etc. Who is telling this? A first person narrator? The main character from 20 years in the future?
NOTE: the writing assignment is due by midnight of the week it's due, in this case, Wednesday, September 25, 2024. It will be returned to you via email by the session after it's received.

 

Reading Assignments
Read the first pages of the other students' novels. This is not for critique just for further introduction. What genre is the person writing? Is it heavy on description? Lots of dialogue? How is it told?
Do you need ideas for starting your novel? Check out MSW's article online from The Writer: "How to Get a Novel Started."
Advice for Writers from Novelists
Using the latest technology in your novel
How a story was submitted forty times over ten years, and finally..
(Optional) Two chapters in Ten Strategies: "Strategy 1: Separate Process and Product " and "Strategy 2: Taste It, Touch It Smell It..."

 

 


 

 

 

Session 2
9-25-23 

Dialogue & Scene I
Dramatize versus Summarize

 

Scenes from novels in a different medium: Tom Jones by Henry Fielding; Strangers on a Train (Hitchcock movie from Patricia Highsmith novel));
Trollope's Phineas Finn political novels; Rear Window (more Hitchcock from a story by Crornell Woolrich)

 

Presentation/Critique Schedule

For an overview of weekly topics, click here.  

 

Homework and readings due 9-25-24

Writing assignments:

1. Write down 5 novels you love/admire/envy/emulate (In other words, feel strongly about). Write one title, if you'd like, that you really dislke.
2. Write a physical description of a character. Focus first on what can be observed with the senses--especially those other than sight.. Things to consider: try to make it psychologically accurate--that is, not every possible detail, but maybe an over view first, or maybe a person entering the space. Notice clothing, posture, skin color, but also odor of perfume or cigars, etc. Who is telling this? A first person narrator? The main character from 20 years in the future?
NOTE: the writing assignment is due by midnight of the week it's due, in this case, Wednesday, September 25, 2024. It will be returned to you via email by the session after it's received.

 

Reading Assignments
Read the first pages of the other students' novels. This is not for critique -- just for further introduction. What genre is the person writing? Is it heavy on description? Lots of dialogue? How is it told?

Read the pieces for critique arriving by Sunday night from Jake Rakov and Lauren Jenkins
Do you need ideas for starting your novel? Check out MSW's article online from The Writer: "How to Get a Novel Started."
Advice for Writers from Novelists
Using the latest technology in your novel
How a story was submitted forty times over ten years, and finally..
(Optional) Two chapters in Ten Strategies: "Strategy 1: Separate Process and Product " and "Strategy 2: Taste It, Touch It Smell It..."

 

 

 

 

I. Business

 
  • Questions about business? Who is confused? Can I help?
  • Are you understanding that the homework due in today won't be critiqued and returned till next week. The responses to the critique pieces go to the writer. Some of you are copying me, and that's great but not required.
  • Total of thirty pages to me, includes presentations and homeworks--you can substitute; you can send one longer piece if you'r rather.

 

  • SIGN UP TO PRESENT!   3 or 4 people haven't yet. I'm about to start offering second slots, but I'd like those three people to get theirs first. By tomorrow, please.

 

  • Formatting: Double space your homework and presentation pieces (for readability)  Please give everything page numbers. Make Word give you narrative style, NOT block paragraphs. That is, indented paragraphs and no extra spaces between paragraphs unless you want them to indicate time passing or some other conscious stylistic element. See examples here:

 

Conventional Narrative formatting: From "The Two Lindas."

 

Settng Word to get rid of the block paragraphing -- Also note that conventional narrative formatting uses indented paragraphs.

 

 

  • Presenter work due Sunday night . Send to whole class.

 

  • Homeworks due by midnight of class day--send only to MSW.

 

  • Any more questions at this point?

 

 

 

II.  Leftover from Last Week

A few important terms and concepts-- a common vocabulary:

For thinking and talking: Types of novels

This class is roughly equal parts Big Picture stuff (Macro) and small details of description and house keep9ng (Micro).

More common terms for Novel Writing

You'll especially need the terms for thinking about your own novel and for talking about the novelsl of others.

 

A Few Notes on Time (mini-mini lecture)

Time frame/span: I call the " present time of the story" for your novel the farthest forward, most recent, part of your story. This is a process issue. The reader doesn't care.

The "present time of the story" could be the first person narrator at the age of 45 looking back at what happened to her when she was 22. That is, this is not back story, not flashbacks, etc., but the moment from which the narrator is telling the story.

The present time of James Joyce's novelistic long story "The Dead" is the 5 or 6 hours of a party followed by a carriage ride to a hotel to sleep--plus a a lot of dips into memory, flashback, and more.

The present time in your novel might be the instant a man stands before a firing squad while the whole novel consists of his life flashing before his eyes. The present time could be the timeless Godseye view of the omniscient narrator telling from a great distance (a long shot) about the bombing of a city followed by alternating passages close to various characters and how they experiences the events.

This is useful as you structure your novel: being aware of "present time of the story" and keeping a chronology of events can help you keep organized.

 

 

III. The first pages you turned in.

These are to be used as a way to get a quick idea of the kind of novel we're going to be reading: Jake's, which we'll be looking at latere, is clearly an omnsicient novel, with lots of action, probably many characters.

Note that he sticks in one POV at a time.
Go over quickly--emphasis on POV and dialogue

 

 

IV. Critiquing

  • I gave you this to consider: Points for novel critiquing. Some of you plunged write in wth "comments" via Word. I usually go old schooll and write on the page and send you a scan.
  • But what are things you have found especially fruitful in critique sessions?
  • Not so much?

 

 

V. Presenter One

Lauren

 

 

VI. WRITE:

Today's general topic is dialogue. Some of us are naturals at it, others, not. But one approach is to concentrate on the words said first, separating out the other material, the enrichment, as it were.

1. Write a short conversaton from your novel with a conflict in it, as if it had been recorded audio only: Write just the words said, without even the names of the speakers.
2. Go over it, and add any/all of these or other things:
Setting
Action!
Narration
Descriptions of people, objects, anything
Tags (she said, he said, they murmured)
modifiers to the tags
inner monologue
3.Go back and cut everything that isn't interesting and/or slows it down.

 

 

VII. Share? Responses

This will be writing homework for next week.

 

VIII. BREAK

 

IX. Mini lecture on dialogue/scene

We are talking today about how dialogue works. We all know what it is. BUT for novel writing: Dialogue is where the drama is-- conflict, confrontation, love!

It is also the closest thing to "real" time as anything in prose narrative. A sword thrust in fiction isn't much like one in life or movies. But dialogue is.

On the other hand, we have to make an illusion. The transcription of a real dialogue too long and boring. Our job is to create the illusion of people ;speaking.

 

 

X. Presenter Two

Jake Rakov

 

XI. Assignments For next week:

Writing Assignments:
  • Finish the in-class dialogue.
    1. Write a short conversaton from your novel with a conflict in it, as if it had been recorded audio only: Write just the woreds said, without even the names of the speakers.
    2. Go over it, and add any/all of these:
    Setting
    Descriptions of people, objects, anything
    Tags (she said, he said, they murmured)
    modifiers to the tagsinner monologue
    3.Go back and cut everything that isn't interesting.
  • Or, as always, substitute a passage from your novel you want feedback on.
     

     

Reading Assignments (some of this is material referred to in class 9-25-24):

 

 

 

  • Scene and summary. What is Scene? Why is it important? The building block of novels. Some ways of telling a story– central one is scene. Please be sure and read the things online about scene, but in a nutshell, it's the unit of the novel–not the only thing, and some novels it isn't even the main thing, but always crucial for drama, for the reader visualizing the action.

 

 

 

  • Ten Strategies, "Strategy 5: Master Dialogue and Scene" (optional)

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Session 3
10-2-24

Scene & Dialogue II

 

Illustration from Thackery's Vanity Fair and still from 1953 movie From Here to Eternity

 

Writing Assignments:
  • Finish the in-class dialogue.
    1. Write a short conversaton from your novel with a conflict in it, as if it had been recorded audio only: Write just the woreds said, without even the names of the speakers.
    2. Go over it, and add any/all of these:
    Setting
    Descriptions of people, objects, anything
    Tags (she said, he said, they murmured)
    modifiers to the tagsinner monologue
    3.Go back and cut everything that isn't interesting.
  • Or, as always, substitute a passage from your novel you want feedback on.
     

     

Reading Assignments (some of this is material referred to in class 9-25-24):

 

 

 

  • Scene and summary. What is Scene? Why is it important? The building block of novels. Some ways of telling a story– central one is scene. Please be sure and read the things online about scene, but in a nutshell, it's the unit of the novel–not the only thing, and some novels it isn't even the main thing, but always crucial for drama, for the reader visualizing the action.

 

 

 

  • Ten Strategies, "Strategy 5: Master Dialogue and Scene" (optional)

 

 

 

 

I. Business

  • People are asking if your critiques of other students come to me. Not required, but you may. Don't forget--for anyone hand writing their remarks (and to read mine) look at copy editor's marks.

 

 

  • Total of thirty pages to me, includes presentations and homeworks--you can substitute; you can send one longer piece if you'r rather.

 

  • At least three people are doing big chunks (thirty pp at once). If you are, please give me an idea when it will be coming.

 

 

  • Please remember in all homework and presentation pieces: Page numbers, double space, 1" margins, standard narrative format, also your name on the first page!

 

 

  • MSW Pet Peeve

 

 

Mini-lesson on Lie versus Lay

– Today I lie in my bed; yesterday, I lay in my bed. In the past, I have lain in bed till noon.
– Right now, I lay the paintbrush on the table, and the paintbrush just lies there. But when I laid it down yesterday, it rolled off the table and lay on the floor.

Confused? Paintbrushes "lie" on the table or floor, but you "lay" the paintbrush down on the table. Then of course, it just "lies" there.

The really confusing part is the past tenses: "I laid the brush down beside the paints, and it just lay there." One verb has an object; one doesn't. Many, many people do this in a grammatically incorrect way.

For those of you who hate grammar and don't really care, take heart: there is an excellent chance that in another ten or twenty years, usage will have changed.

One current dictionary (Random House Unabridged Second Edition) explains, "...forms of LAY are commonly heard in senses normally associated with LIE. In edited written English, [however,] such uses of LAY are rare and are usually considered nonstandard."

 

II. Hermione Brice on concept of Sensitivity Reading

 

 

III.  WRITE: A Macro Exercise-- we touched on this, but I haven't asked you yet to send it to me or share it. (5 minutes scribbled down. Send it to me as part of the homework. It helps me keep a sense of the whole work).

– The genre or type of your novel
– The length you guess it will be in the end ( 150 manuscript pages? 300?)
– How much you've actually written
– Point of view-how is the story told?

– One important conflict
Conflict is often thought of as a person against themself; or, a person against other individuals; or, a person against society; or even a person against natural forces (The Martian).
-- My strengths as a writer

-- My challenges in getting it written

 

 

IV. Go round on challenges in getting this novel written.

 

 

 

V. Presenter One:

Jeffrey

 

 

VI. WRITE:

Scribble down three important scenes that will happen (or have happened) in your novel. Write a new version if, say, you have a draft, or name them hypothetically: this is one way of moving forward as you draft.
Choose one and start writing.

 

 

 

VII: Break

 

 

VIII. Presenter Two:

Hermione

 

 

IX. Mini lecture on Scene 

Dialect is the dramatic heart of novels, but scene is the building block, the essential structure of a novel.

In common speech, "scene" is the place where an action or event occurs, such as the scene of the crime. It is also commonly used to refer to a public display of passion or temper as in, "She tried not to make a scene." It is also a sphere of activity, as when we speak of observing the political scene. In slang, it is a situation or set of circumstances– "a bad scene.

In theater, film, and novel, it is an essential unit of action. In drama, there is a new scene when a new character enters. The setting is fixed and the time continuous, usually "real" or natural time. In film, a scene is a shot or series of shots constituting a unit of continuous related action.

In the novel, it is above all a dramatized moment– shown, not told. It can include dialogue, monologue (thinking) description, action, etc. etc. The dynamics change. People talk and act.  Something happens.

We remember great scenes in movies--but in novels too. This one was a first: a horizontal kiss! 1953 From Here to Eternity.

 

 

In fiction, while there are lots of things besides scenes– passages of narration and long internal monologues, for example– most writers eventually come to the point where they want to dramatize their story with a scene. Dialogue or other interaction between two or more characters often marks the heart of a scene. You can have pages and pages of narration, or pages and pages of the vicissitudes of one character's thoughts or suffering, but the building block of fiction is a series of scenes with connecting and surrounding material.

The sene is the way the story moves to its next level: this is where the other parts of the story come together; or, it may be the beginning of everything, after which the next parts deal with the repercussions of this dramatized part.

A scene is "dramatized," although not necessarily dramatic in the sense of having a lot of shouting or overt action. It generally demonstrates or "shows" rather than tells.

 

One excellent way to outline a novel is to list twenty or thirty scenes--and then write them.

 

One of the optional readings I suggested for today was 10 Tips for Strong Scenes (from Masterclass.com. This is worth looking at but it, like so many articles for writers, is really about revions--the product--rather than the preocess of drafting. So look at it as some good ideas for critiquing or revising your work.

 

Two scenes: from Night of the Hunter  and fromTo the Lighthouse
 

 

X. Leftovers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

XI. Discussion:

Go round on how your writing is going.

 

 

 

 

XII. HOMEWORK:

        Writing Assignments: (These are due by midnight of the next class, October 9, 2024)

        • Send MSW this information about your novel:
        – The genre or type of your novel
        – The length you guess it will be in the end ( 150 manuscript pages? 300?)
        – How much you've actually written
        – Point of view-how is the story told?
        – One important conflict
        – My strengths as a writer
        -- My challenges in getting it written
  • Write a crucial scene from the middle of your novel. This can be a continuation of what you drafted in class. It is is especially useful for people who haven't written a lot yet. THink of a POSSIBLE crisis or other crucial scene and draft it.
  • Or, as always, substitute a passage from your novel you want feedback on.
 

Reading Assignments:

 

  • Three Student presentations coming by e-mail by Sunday night. Danny, Benjamin, Phillip Berroll.
  • Catch up on any reading you meant to do and haven't yet. on in novels and other conventional fiction. Knowing their names isn't particularly important.
  • Point of view chart online plus skim a few of these examples of various points of view.

 

  • Also, check out the Kilted Warrior example of amateurish (IMHO) omniscient POV.
 

 

 

 

 

 

Session 4.  10-9-24  

 

Point of View and Tense:

Where I Stand as I Tell the Story


Movie scene of a strike in Zola's Germinal ; painting of the Battle of Borodino

 

Assignments due today:

 
  • Writing Assignments due October 9, 2024

 

  • Send MSW this information about your novel:
– The genre or type of your novel
– The length you guess it will be in the end ( 150 manuscript pages? 300?)
– How much you've actually written
– Point of view-how is the story told?
– One important conflict
– My strengths as a writer
-- My challenges in getting it written
  • Write a crucial scene from the middle of your novel. This can be a continuation of what you drafted in class. It is is especially useful for people who haven't written a lot yet. Think of a POSSIBLE crisis or other crucial scene and draft it.
  • Or, as always, substitute a passage from your novel you want feedback on.

 

Reading Assignments due October 9, 2024 :

  • More on Sensitivity after the short 10-2-24 discussion: A class member wrote, "Just a thought: I don't think we fully clarified the issue of sensitivity  in class.  I think there's an important difference between an observation and an ethnic or racial characterization. Both can't be lumped together as 'sensitivity' because it flattens all discussion of cultural difference.   The scenario where the narrator sees the Indian woman in a sari in the gas station is ok because it's not a characterization of a person's ethnicity.  It's an observation about how the person is dressed. After that it depends on how the narrator uses that observation--depending on the narrator's take on this woman or her ethnicity, the scene might go from observation to something else. But any discussion of race has to take into account the unique and appalling American history of race from Jamestown to the present moment,  If an author is writing about race, that's where the question of characterization, voice, and appropriation (who can tell this story) comes in."

    Some months ago I wrote the following notes about cultural appropriation.  Keep reading after this piece for a reaction to what I wrote.  
  • Three Student presentations coming by e-mail by Sunday night. Danny, Benjamin, Phillip Berroll.

 

 

  • Catch up on any reading you meant to do and haven't yet. on in novels and other conventional fiction. Knowing their names isn't particularly important.

 

 

 

  • Also, check out the Kilted Warrior example of amateurish (IMHO) omniscient POV.
  • (optional) Ten Strategies, "Strategy 4: Find Where You Stand as You Tell Your Story."

 

I. Business

 

  • Please remember in all homework and presentation pieces: Page numbers, double space, 1" margins, standard narrative format (not block paragraphs), also your name on the first page!

 

 

 

  • Another MSW Pet Peeve:

 

Smirk I don't like using "smirk" as a cute little smile. I like to save it for an irritatingly smug, conceited, silly or evil smile. Think Alan Rickman as Hans Gruber in the first Die Hard movie.

Another one often misued or perhaps in the process of changing is "honing in" for "homing in."

 

 

 

II. Things you want to have covered in the rest of this course (discussion)

 

 

III. Presenter One:

Philip Berroll, Benjamin Williams, Danny Williams

(NOTE: 25 minutes per presenter for short reading, group responses, presenters responses and questions).

 

IV. Write:

Draft a crowd or group scene from your novel. Your main character, or one of the main characters, is at a party, in a bar, at a family dinner or in a stadium attending a big game. Try to write it as your character would experience it. Try to have several people with "speaking parts." Note in today's presentations how Benjamin does the movement in a court room and then out into a tense open space with demonstrators. Also, Philip's character in a customs line.
 

V. Share a couple?

 

VI. Presenter Two:

Philip Berroll, Benjamin Williams, Danny Williams

 

VII. Break

 

VIII. A Mini-Lecture on POINT OF VIEW

A.  Essential importance of Point of View in all fiction. It guides the reader through the novel. It is the Voice we are listening to. Point of view samples
B. But it is also how the writer approaches and discovers the story.
Point of View chart to establish the vocabulary.
The illusion of how the story is told
C. A few Strategies for group and crowd scenes
Here are a couple of practical strategies for dealing with logistics and large groups. Not tricks-- all prose narrative, after all, is an illusion of reality-- but as you revise, you can try these things to make the storytelling run more smoothly.
  • Only identify by name two or three individuals in a scene and refer to the others as a mass. Say "The twenty two members of the Ridgewood Bobcats walked into the dressing room with long faces," and then give quoted speeches only to Rob, Andre, and the Coach. The other Bobcats can mutter as a group, or lower their heads in shame, but they remain a mass, part of the scene setting.
  • As above. Give proper names to the most important characters in a group scene. (Be sure you really need the names. Proper names call attention to themselves, slow down the flow of the story.)
  • Clarify the logistics and physical action by giving a firm vantage point. Imagine a fixed camera or a character in a chair in the northeast corner next to to the white board. Write only what is seen from that point of view. This will help keep the reader oriented. Even if you have an omniscient story, write your action from one point of view at a time.
  • Conflate. If you are writing fiction based on, say, your own large family, how many drunken uncles do you really need? Can you turn tem into one? It strays from the facts, but it's fiction! It allows you to concentrate on exploring and building one character and eases your logistical problems.

D. Point of view problems and solutions
 

 

IX. Presenter Three:

Philip Berroll, Benjamin Williams, Danny Williams

 

 

 

X. Assignments for Next Week

 

Writing Assignments for 10-16-24

Finish the group scene.

 

Reading Assignments for 10-16-24

 

  • Read the work by three presenters arriving by Sunday night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Session 5

10-16-24

Arc of Character & Catch Up

 

October 2024 Adventures in the Written Word
with Danny Williams

 

Dickens and His Characters
 

 

 

 

Writing Assignments for 10-16-24

Finish the group scene.

 

Reading Assignments for 10-16-24

 

 

  • Read the work by three presenters arriving by Sunday night.

 

 

 

 

 

These are optional of course:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All assignments should be PART OF YOUR NOVEL. You may substitute any short section for the assignments, keeping in mind that the total submitted to MSW may not be more than 30 pages.
 

 

 

 

 

List of Presenters


If you are presenting, please get the piece to the class by midnight on the Sunday before your presentation.

 

 

Session 2. 9-25 

1. Lauren Jenkins

 

2. Jake Rakov

 


Session 3. 10-2  

1. Jeffrey Rudell

 

2. Hermione Brice

 

 

Session 4. 10-9

1. Danny Williams

 

2. Benjamin Williams

 

3. Phillip Berroll

 

 

Session 5.  10-16

1. Pompa Banerjee

 

2. Estelle Erasmus

 

3. Jackie Celio

 

 

Session 6.  10-23  

1. Karen Flyer

 

2. Karen Flyer #2 (she is taking a double session).

 

3. Philip Ai

 

4. Rhea Almeida

 

 

Session 7.  10-30

1. Hans Aschim

 

2. Linda Atlas

 

3. Jeffrey Rudell #2

 

4.

 
Session 8. 11-6 

1. Estelle Erasmus #2

 

2. Danny Williams #2

 

3.

 

4.

 
Session 9.  11-13

1. Ben Williams #2

 

2. Philip Ai #2

 

3. Jake Rakov #2

 

4. Pompa Banerjee #2

 
Session 10. 11-20

1. Hans Aschim #2

 

2. Linda Atlas #2

 

3. Lauren Jenkins #2

 

4. Philip Berroll #2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dashes in dialogue is commonly used in Bulgarian, French, Greek, Hungarian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, and Vietnamese.

 

 


    Below this line: NYU policies and rules.

     

     

 

 


 

Various NYU Policies

 

 

 

Here is the official NYU Syllabus as it appears on Brightspace.

For full links, see the version on Brightspace
.

 
Description of course

(See below for more details. This is what is on NYU's website:)

 

Beginning with a discussion of the basic elements and structure of novels, the class will include instruction and exercises for anyone just getting started as well as a serious exploration of how to organize novels and other long prose narratives for those writers with projects already under way. Writing exercises will cover shaping, establishing tone, exploring character, tightening and enriching dialogue, and working with interior monologue. Topics for discussion will include sustaining interest for the writer as well as the reader, making a place in your life for your novel, and highlighting what novels do that film can't. We will look closely at up to 50 pages of manuscript from each participant. For the first class, bring 15 copies of a one-page writing sample. For those with longer or revised manuscripts, this course may be repeated. This syllabus will be updated regularly online, so please check this website at least once a week at https://meredithsuewillis.com/NYU%20Novel%20Writing%20Fall%202023.html.

 

 

"Learning Outcomes" (This is what it says on the NYU website)

YOU'LL WALK AWAY WITH...

• Instructor critiques of your writing
• Knowledge of the editing and publishing process
I would add that by the end of this course, students will have lengthened their novels and gained insight into how to continue and deepen their fiction.

Communication

 

Start with e-mail or a conversation during the Zoom session. Check frequently for changes in the plans.

 

 

Structure | Method | Modality (Whatever that is)

This distance/Zoom class uses short homework assignments, in-class writings, class discussion and regular critique. Please check the class website at

https://meredithsuewillis.com/NYU%20Novel%20Writing%20Fall%202023.html at least weekly for changes.

 

 

 

Tentative Outline of Weekly Topics (Subject to change depending on student needs)

Week 1. 9-13-23 Essential Importance of the Senses for writer and reader. Places, People.
Week 2. 9-20 Point of View. Presentation of Student Work for Critique
Week 3. 9-27 Dialogue and Scene I: Writing Vivid Dialogue. Presentation of Student Work for Critique
Week 4. 10-4 Dialogue and Scene II: Scene & Dialogue II: Group Scenes; Dramatize versus Summarize; Monologue (inner speech). Presentation of Student Work for Critrique
Week 5. 10-11 Structure I: Conflict and Story Arc (compare to Plot). Logistics. Presentation of Student Work for Critrique
Week 6. 10-18 Structure II: When, How, & If to Outline. Presentation of Student Work for Critrique
Week 7. 10-25 Things Novels Do Better than Movies and Things Novelists Can Learn from Film. Physical Action. Presentation of Student Work for Critrique.
Week 8. 11-4 Arc of Character and Minor Characters. Presentation of Student Work for Critrique
Week 9. 11-8 Revision I: Revising Novels. Also, what do you do with your novel once you've finished writing it? Presentation of Student Work for Critrique
Week 10. 11-15 Revision II: Diction and Fine Tuning. (Final Session) Presentation of Student Work for Critrique

 

Expectations

Homeworks are due as described on syllabus, but subject to change.  Substitutions are allowed for those who already have drafts and portions of drafts. See website for updates. Attendance and class participation are expected, as is responding to the work of other class members and presenting your own work. Do all readings that aren't marked optional. See class page for details.


Communication Policy

Communicate with the teacher via her e-mail: meredithsuewillis@gmail.com. She tries to get back promptly.

 

 

Learning Environment

NYU says, and how could I not agree? "You play an important role in creating and sustaining an intellectually rigorous and inclusive classroom culture. Respectful engagement, diverse thinking, and our lived experiences are central to this course, and enrich our learning community."

 

 

 

 

Participation

You are integral to the learning experience in this class. Be prepared to actively contribute to class activities, group discussions, and work outside of class.

 

 

Assignments and Deadlines

Please submit all assignments in a timely fashion. .If you require assistance, please contact me BEFORE the due date.

 


Course Technology Use

We will utilize multiple technologies to achieve the course goals. I expect you to use technology in ways that enhance the learning environment for all students.

 

 

 

Attendance

I expect you to attend all class sessions. Attendance is part of my grading system.

 

 

More on Textbooks And Course Materials

There will be regular links to online readings.
The instructor's book Ten Strategies to Write Your Novel is optional. ((Available NYU Bookstore, from the publisher (montemayorpress.com, and from all the usual online suspects including Bookshop.org.)

 

Grading | Assessment

NYU's policy is now that grading is the default. You definitely need a grade if you are going for the Storytelling Certificate. If you do not want a grade, get in touch with Kenneth French (kenneth.french@nyu.edu) for a form to fill ot.The assessment is through interactive critique of your work. You are expected to attend and participate.To earn a B, you must turn in at least 30 pages, attend at least 8 of 10 sessions, and present your work at least once as well as showing evidence of having read other students' work. To earn an A, you must turn in 45-50 pages, attend at least 9 of ten sessions, and present your work at least twice to the group as well as respond and show evidence of having read the other students' work.No letter grade will be given below a B.

 

It should be noted that all NYU policies on academic integrity, i.e., plagiarism, are fully in effect in this course.

 

Disclaimer: Syllabus is subject to change due to current events, guest speaker schedule changes, and/or level and interests of students.

 

 

Here is NYU's SPS Continuing Education Grading Scale


 

A 93-100 4.000 Excellent: Earned by work whose excellent quality indicates a full mastery of the subject and is of extraordinary distinction.
A- 90-92 3.667 Excellent: Earned by work whose excellent quality indicates a full mastery of the subject.
B+ 87-89 3.333 Good: Earned by work that indicates a very good comprehension of the course material, very good command of the skills needed to work with the course material, and indicates the student's full engagement with the course requirements and activities.
B 83-86 3.000 Good: Earned by work that indicates a good comprehension of the course material, good command of the skills needed to work with the course material, and indicates the student's full engagement with the course requirements and activities.
B- 80-82 2.667 Good: Earned by work that indicates comprehension of the course material, command of the skills needed to work with the course material, and indicates the student's engagement with the course requirements and activities.
C+ 77-79 2.333 Satisfactory: Earned by work that indicates an adequate and satisfactory comprehension of the course material and the skills needed to work with the course material, and indicates the student has met the requirements for completing assigned work and participating in class activities.
C 73-76 2.000 Satisfactory: Earned by work that indicates a satisfactory comprehension of the course material and the skills needed to work with the course material, and indicates the student has met the basic requirements for completing assigned work and participating in class activities.
C- 70-72 1.667 Satisfactory: Earned by work that indicates a minimally satisfactory comprehension of the course material and the skills needed to work with the course material, and indicates the student has met the minimum requirements for completing assigned work and participating in class activities.
D+ 65-69 1.33 Passing: Earned by work that is unsatisfactory, but that indicates some minimal command of the course materials and some minimal participation in class activities that is worthy of course credit toward the degree.
D 60-64 1.000 Minimum passing grade: Earned by work that is unsatisfactory, but that indicates some minimal command of the course materials and some minimal participation in class activities that is worthy of credit toward the degree.
F Below 60 Failing: Demonstrates minimal to no understanding of all key learning outcomes and core concepts; work is unworthy of course credit towards the degree.

 

 
Here is a synopsis of my class expectations:

· This class welcomes beginning novelists, but is also aimed at writers who are well-underway on a novel and need further discussion and stimulation to continue or restart. We will cover a lot of basics fast, beginning with a survey of common terms for discussing novels and a look at novel structure in general. If you feel you need more of the basic terminology and ideas, please take a look at the teacher's book, Ten Strategies to Write Your Novel.
· For those with longer or revised manuscripts, this course may be repeated.
· This syllabus will be updated regularly online, so please check this web page at least once a week. Access to the website is also available from MSW's home page. Look at the top left.
· All writing and presentation selections should be from the novel you're working on.
· During the course, you may bring a total of up-to 50 manuscript pages for critique (some of these pages will be for the whole group, some only for the teacher). Assignments are optional and go only to MSW. Anything you turn in to MSW, however, including the presentation pieces and optional homework, counts towards the total of 50 pages to be reviewed during the semester.
· Please be prepared to discuss the work of classmates when they present.
· When you present to the whole class, get the piece to the at least 5 days before the class.
· Presentation pieces go to the instructor and whole class. Homework assignments go only to the instructor.
· You will receive a grade for this course unless you request a NonEvaluative mark. For the Non-Evaluative, please see the attached form. A copy of this request must be filed with the department. Send it by e-mail to kenneth.french@nyu.edu.
· No letter grade will be given below a B. To earn a B, you must complete 50 pages to the professor's satisfaction plus present work for critiquing by the class at least once. To earn an A, you must complete the 50 pages, present work for critiquing by the class at least twice, show evidence of having done any outside reading, plus participate fully in class discussions.

 

Here are various other policies of mine and NYU's:

 

NYU Policies: NYUSPS Policies regarding the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), Academic Integrity and Plagiarism, Students with Disabilities Statement, and Standards of Classroom Behavior among others can be found on the NYU Classes Academic Policies tab for all course sites as well as on the University and NYUSPS websites. Every student is responsible for reading, understanding, and complying with all of these policies. The full list of policies can be found at the web links below:

 

University: http://www.nyu.edu/about/policies-guidelinescompliance.html

NYUSPS: http://www.nyu.edu/about/policies-guidelinescompliance.html

 

 

 

 

 

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