Biography

While literature has a long and illustrious history, it also is an exciting and evolving art form. In this course, we will investigate a survey of the best writing released in the last year, to answer the questions: what is the general state of writing today, what trends are occurring across genre and medium, and what exciting innovations are happening in the world of writing? Selections for this course will include a wide variety of award-winning short stories, novels, poems, nonfiction books, long form articles, films, and television programs across numerous genres. This reading list will be drawn from the nominees and winners of the National Book Award, Pulitzer Prize, O. Henry Prize, Booker Prize, Hugo Award, Locus Award, Nebula Award, Emmy Award, and Academy Award.

In addition to producing literary analyses of these texts, students will also participate in contemporary writing by producing their own creative writing in a variety of forms and genres. These pieces will respond to the texts we study, while also introducing innovations of their own, adding the newest examples to the exciting and evolving world of literature!