tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post6890562988363204811..comments2024-03-11T07:25:29.540+00:00Comments on Nicola Vincent-Abnett: The debate on Creative Writing courses continues to rage...Nicola Vincent-Abnetthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04865608045342419682noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-52038958749486881062014-04-28T06:44:01.513+01:002014-04-28T06:44:01.513+01:00Using the advent regarding computer and also world...Using the advent regarding computer and also world-wide-web, many new job possibilities opened up. Freelance producing is actually certainly one of these. They have gain popularity due to the several positive aspects it provides. Article marketing is among the most fastest way regarding liquidating sparetime directly into bucks for many people the self employed whom are unable to have a standard work.<a href="http://www.coreforceworldwide.com/do-you-think-you-are-consistent-enough" rel="nofollow">creative writing techniques</a>Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01199347709969269647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-36365665791258628442013-03-07T05:47:05.312+00:002013-03-07T05:47:05.312+00:00I've done a BA and an MA in Creative Writing. ...I've done a BA and an MA in Creative Writing. I think these types of courses teach you to do a few things well - editing and redrafting, most notably. They give you a good means of judging your own work against that of other talented people (there are usually at least a few talented people on these courses).<br /><br />Did they help me network? Not really. Did I learn about the writing industry? Only a little, and nothing that I couldn't have figured out online. Do I regret taking them? The BA, no. The MA, yes. Irritatingly, my MA course was converted to a doctorate partway through, and the requirements of the existing MA courses were substantially reduced. I graduated for my MA alongside people who were a year behind me, and who had done literally a tenth of the work for the same qualification. Sigh.<br /><br />I saw some of those remedial grammar classes on my BA. But the sad truth is, they were necessary. While I didn't make any errors in my writing, certainly I couldn't attach the correct grammatical labels to everything. I only really became aware of the grammar of my own language when I learned a foreign language. By the by, I find this vastly improves your awareness of the subtleties of your own language. I highly recommend that writers become somewhat bilingual.Paul Grestyhttp://pwgresty.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-1231069946603428452013-02-19T16:24:09.784+00:002013-02-19T16:24:09.784+00:00By which I mean all the pro-writers left the room ...By which I mean all the pro-writers left the room feeling the same way about what happened in the room, and not necessarily that they would all agree with what I've said in this post... just to be clear. Smiles.Nicola Vincent-Abnetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04865608045342419682noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-72529203562365413112013-02-19T16:22:52.259+00:002013-02-19T16:22:52.259+00:00Hi Jon,
I was at an event at the weekend that got...Hi Jon,<br /><br />I was at an event at the weekend that got me thinking about this subject again, and my mind remains unchanged. Funnily enough all the pro writers in the room all felt the same way. The discussion on the writers forum attached to the event is over here if you'd like a look: http://forum.seh.ox.ac.uk/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=5Nicola Vincent-Abnetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04865608045342419682noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-63090487775691298102013-02-19T16:10:43.389+00:002013-02-19T16:10:43.389+00:00Fantastic post, Nik! Expect a link from my blog so...Fantastic post, Nik! Expect a link from my blog soon. :-)Jonathan Greenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00620480733147657628noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-86979574140832673462013-02-17T09:58:54.857+00:002013-02-17T09:58:54.857+00:00And your half of the debate is, as always, intelli...And your half of the debate is, as always, intelligent.Nicola Vincent-Abnetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04865608045342419682noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-10727031241749295152013-02-16T22:46:46.957+00:002013-02-16T22:46:46.957+00:00Well, I disagree with some of your points, but the...Well, I disagree with some of your points, but then this is one of the rare topics on which we do disagree! I home educated my children, and learned that you can teach anything through what excites you as a learner. My kids never picked up a reader or an 'educational' book to learn to read - they did so through Dr Who, or Warhammer, or animal books. An A level in Creative Writing would show how it was done, and through that, can lead people back into what was done: the literature that ultimately will build their skills as a writer and a reader. I don't do creative writing courses to learn how to write, extensive reading does that, but it tells me what to improve, what could be stronger, how I can produce the effect that I want. So, we disagree, but that's intelligent debate for you! Rx Rebecca Alexanderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00474010455394752000noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-34912180797870464562013-02-16T18:42:33.571+00:002013-02-16T18:42:33.571+00:00I'm not entirely sure how much I agree with th...I'm not entirely sure how much I agree with the first part of that thought, but the idea encapsulated in the final sentence is, I think, entirely apposite, and, perhaps, a little bit genius. I rather wish I'd thought of it. Brava!Nicola Vincent-Abnetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04865608045342419682noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-77621282688334696332013-02-16T18:33:58.834+00:002013-02-16T18:33:58.834+00:00Ros Jackson16 February 2013 17:31
I think it was a...Ros Jackson16 February 2013 17:31<br />I think it was at FantasyCon 2010 when Jo Fletcher, then working at Gollancz, said something along the lines of "we have enough great writers". I'm pretty sure the situation hasn't changed. To get fiction traditionally published is hard enough, but only exceptional writers get to make a living at it. <br /><br />So teaching teenagers creative writing is about as useful as teaching them how to be a government minister, or how to deal with the media as a celebrity.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-27589096979366172652013-02-16T15:24:44.530+00:002013-02-16T15:24:44.530+00:00Thank you. I've already gotten a decent amount...Thank you. I've already gotten a decent amount out of it. And these subjects occurring at the lower levels is also trouble for the teachers, who are all already being asked to multitask as it is.Lysanderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15250895148016810730noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-85438625890603938012013-02-16T14:50:30.292+00:002013-02-16T14:50:30.292+00:00I actually have fewer issues the further up the ed...I actually have fewer issues the further up the education ladder the courses happen, so you're not generally my target. It is a very tricky business, though, I think, and there are already so many gaps in our education system at the primary and secondary levels. <br /><br />I'm all for returning to core subjects and teaching them better. This sort of diversification doesn't seem to me to be good for anyone.<br /><br />Good luck with the MA and I hope you get what you want at the end of it.Nicola Vincent-Abnetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04865608045342419682noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6477143695543382552.post-26324108116088934592013-02-16T14:42:05.571+00:002013-02-16T14:42:05.571+00:00I can see sense in a course like this, it acts as ...I can see sense in a course like this, it acts as a more focused and direct path for someone interested in a specific direction. But they can also be like giving a person a toolbox with a notebook that has each tools name and nothing else. Then the expectation is this person should, logically because they have the tools, be able to build a chest of drawers from scratch with nothing but a few choice pieces of raw dead tree.<br /><br />But then I'm currently undertaking an MA in Writing for Screen and Radio so what do I know? Yes now I know more on the subject and I have the confidence to approach a career as a writer with more sense in my head, but I could also learn all this by buying a few books from Amazon. And someone who is self-taught can produce a piece of work just as good as someone who paid a few thousand pounds to get the same information from a different horses mouth.<br /><br />The only difference I can think of is I get to meet people in the business and have better chances of successful networking. For example, by asking a guest lecturer nicely I now could be interviewing someone from the production staff of Being Human. Possibly the head of the production company with whom he is an old friend and colleague.Lysanderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15250895148016810730noreply@blogger.com