200

Students will examine roleplaying games (RPGs) in terms of the writing that forms and drives them. We’ll look at how roleplaying games are constructed, how their rules act as facilitators of both experiences and narratives, and how diverse types of writing are needed to create them. Various types of games will be studied, from simple interactive fiction games to complex rules systems like Dungeons & Dragons. We’ll work together to create rules, build worlds, and share adventures, and we’ll discuss the current state of RPGs as a potential career path for writers. Special guests from those who work in the RPG industry will help us along our path.

First in the sequence of creative writing courses, the prerequisite for all higher level creative writing. Conducted in an informal workshop format, the course provides practical experience in the writing and evaluation of poetry and short fiction. Basic forms, prosodies, techniques, genres, and the problems they pose are considered through study of historical and contemporary examples, and through writing assignments.

Students develop their rhetorical awareness and learn valuable lessons about the writing process and about how to connect writing skills to professional qualifications in a supportive environment.

This course introduces students to the field of composition-rhetoric, its origins and present day applications. Students will investigate historical and contemporary definitions, theories of, and figures in composition-rhetoric as well as critically analyze and produce texts with a deep awareness of rhetorical strategies underlying them.

Variable-content course; topic announced in the online Course Offerings each semester.