Workshops

 

Response Process:

1. Submit your workshop pieces to Blackboard when they are due. They will all be due on the same day and same time.
2. Each student will be assigned a workshop group, and a specific week they will be “workshopped.” Each person will be workshopped 3 times total. You are only responsible for commenting on the pieces in your group (A, B, or C).
3. I will post the pieces to the Blackboard Discussion Board one week before workshop comments are due on their pieces. Everyone is required to comment on the posted workshop pieces in their group by the due date specified, which will be the Sunday after they have been posted (1 week turnaround).
4. Post your workshop response (150 words minimum) to each workshop piece in the comments of the Blackboard Discussion Board post I have created for that submission.
5. Replies to other classmates are not required but are encouraged.

Workshop Groups

These will shift due to the course having 22 students, to make sure work is evenly distributed. Groups will be posted to Blackboard.

Responding to your classmates’ work:

The goal when responding to a peer’s work is to help them get a sense of how others are reading their words. In essence, your job as a reader of a classmate’s draft is to provide reactions and advice that can help that classmate make their writing more effective. Here are some guidelines for doing that:

What to do with the workshop pieces at home:

• Read through the piece a couple of times until you get a sense of “what the piece is trying to do.’
• You are required to give at least 150 words of feedback on each piece in epistolary (letter) form to the writer. Remember to give the writer both positive feedback about what is working well and “constructive’ feedback in terms of suggestions for how to revise, noting points of confusion.
• Some things to look for (in terms of suggestions): places where the writing or narrative is unclear, places where the phrasing is awkward and needs to be reworded, (in poems) line breaks that interfere with comprehension, places where you think more description or detail is needed (or description or detail feels extraneous), issues with structure and coherence, or anything else you feel the writer should be aware of.
• Some things you can look for (in terms of letting the writer know what’s working): strong images, complex characters, effective similes or metaphors, (in poems) effective line breaks, fresh or imaginative descriptions or details, moving or insightful ideas, or anything else you liked.
• Be sure to begin your response by pointing out some of the things that worked well for you as a reader. Did the beginning draw you effectively into the piece? If so, tell the writer. Was there a scene or image that was especially vivid for you? Again, let the writer know.   Then move to identifying areas that might need to be revised: areas where you were confused, paragraphs that didn’t work well, gaps in the narrative, and so on. When possible, offer suggestions and solutions to such issues.
• Remember, the more specific you can be in your response, the more helpful your response is likely to be to the writer. Think about the kinds of response you find most helpful to your own writing, and try to give that same kind of response to your classmate.

 

If you are being workshopped:

• While it can be hard to remain quiet while others are critiquing your work, it is an excellent opportunity to see how your work is read–how it “stands on its own.’ Please do not respond to comments with defenses or explanations of your work. You may reply to the workshop comments on your piece with questions only.
• Try not to take any critique personally. It can be frustrating to have your work misread.   Remember, the opinions you hear in workshop are given with the best of intentions, but the work is ultimately your own.
• Don’t get discouraged! We could take any poem or story, by any famous writer, and find ways that it could work better. Great writing is created through revision (and, perhaps most of all, practice).

If you are workshopping someone else:

• Always be tactful and considerate of your classmates’ work. Treat others how you would like to be treated.
• Never assume that the speaker in a poem or narrator in a story is the writer. Whether the piece being workshopped is written from personal experience or not isn’t our business. Focus on the text as a piece of art, not a reflection of its author.
• This is not a place to tear a piece apart. Keep criticism constructive. At the same time, make sure to be honest with your suggestions for improvement–don’t lie or evade constructive criticism, because constructive criticism is how we learn.