Course

Writing Young Adult Fiction

Faculty
Language, Literature & Performing Arts
Department
Creative Writing
Course Code
CRWR 2204
Credits
3.00
Semester Length
15 Weeks
Max Class Size
20
Method(s) Of Instruction
Tutorial
Course Designation
None
Industry Designation
None
Typically Offered
To be determined

Overview

Course Description
This course focuses on writing Young Adult (YA) fiction, comprised of speculative, realism, romance, and a range of sub-genres. It includes instruction in the use of compositional elements such as imagery, point-of-view, characterization, setting, conflict, plot, and structure, as they relate to YA fiction. This course will introduce students to a range of published fiction samples—both short fiction and novel chapters—and craft approaches specific to YA genres. Verbal participation is key to this course, as there will be an emphasis on discussing peer student writing in the workshop.
Course Content
  • Students’ writing will form the bulk of the course content  
  • Published texts, including short stories and novel chapters, selected by the instructor
Learning Activities

In this course, students engage in a variety of learning activities such as lectures, group discussions and group work, craft analysis, in-class and self-directed writing, and peer-to-peer workshopping.

Means of Assessment

Assessment will be based on course objectives and will be carried out in accordance with the Douglas College Evaluation Policy.

Students are evaluated on the basis of three assignments submitted to the instructor and/or for class discussion in the workshop. These assignments may include a character study or portrait, a short story, and an opening chapter and synopsis of a novel, all of which will count for a minimum of 65% of the course grade. Other evaluations will include class participation, in-class writing, self-evaluation of and verbal and written feedback during in the workshop. Students will be provided with clear assignment guidelines, marking rubrics, workshop feedback forms, and will be encouraged to meet with their instructor for one-to-one and/or small group craft tutorials.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

  • Recognize different genres, styles within, and approaches to YA fiction;
  • Identify the major craft elements in works of published YA fiction, and apply these craft elements to their own writing;
  • Learn about the key conventions that are used in YA fiction, while also learning how to avoid imitation or cliché;
  • Develop a self-directed writing practice that is consistent with the production of quality written work;
  • Produce well-crafted YA fiction, with a focus on character development, character-driven conflict, and narrative structure;
  • Develop skills to productively give and receive feedback in the workshop;
  • Articulate notable craft choices made by their peers, and be able to suggest possible opportunities for peers to edit or strengthen their writing.
Textbook Materials

The instructor will create a list of published texts that have been made publicly available online, with clear citations of all authors and publishers. 

Requisites

Prerequisites

CRWR 1103 with a minimum grade of B

Corequisites

No corequisite courses.

Equivalencies

No equivalent courses.

Course Guidelines

Course Guidelines for previous years are viewable by selecting the version desired. If you took this course and do not see a listing for the starting semester / year of the course, consider the previous version as the applicable version.

(Current)

Course Transfers

These are for current course guidelines only. For a full list of archived courses please see https://www.bctransferguide.ca

Institution Transfer Details for CRWR 2204
Alexander College (ALEX) ALEX ENGL 2XX (3)
Camosun College (CAMO) CAMO CRWR 157 (3)
Capilano University (CAPU) CAPU ENGL 292 (3)
College of New Caledonia (CNC) CNC ENGL 2XX (3)
College of the Rockies (COTR) COTR CRWT 2XX (3)
Columbia College (COLU) COLU ENGL 2nd (3)
Fraser International College (FIC) No credit
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) KPU CRWR 2900 (3)
Langara College (LANG) LANG ENGL 2236 (3)
Selkirk College (SELK) SELK CWRT 2XX (3)
Simon Fraser University (SFU) SFU ENGL 2XX (3)
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU ENGL 2XXX (3)
Trinity Western University (TWU) TWU ENGL 2XX (3)
University Canada West (UCW) UCW ENGL 2XX (3)
University of British Columbia - Okanagan (UBCO) UBCO CRWR_O 205 (3)
University of British Columbia - Vancouver (UBCV) UBCV CRWR_V 2nd (3)
University of Northern BC (UNBC) UNBC ENGL 271 (3) or UNBC ENGL 2XX (3)
University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) UFV ENGL 2XX (3)
University of Victoria (UVIC) UVIC WRIT 2XX (1.5)
Vancouver Community College (VCC) VCC UTAR 2XXX (3)
Vancouver Island University (VIU) VIU CREW 322 (3)
Yorkville University (YVU) YVU GES 2XXX (3)

Course Offerings

Summer 2024