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y separately published work icon The Writing Book : A Workbook for Fiction Writers Kate Grenville , Sydney : Allen and Unwin , 1990 Z410184 1990 single work non-fiction (taught in 13 units)
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y separately published work icon Making Books : Contemporary Australian Publishing David Carter (editor), Anne Galligan (editor), St Lucia : University of Queensland Press , 2007 Z1405089 2007 anthology criticism (taught in 3 units)
  • Is the Australian publishing industry flourishing or floundering?
  • What is the future of the book?
  • Has lifestyle replaced literary publishing?
  • Have new technologies revolutionised the nature of the industry?

'Making Books addresses these questions and many others in a wide-ranging study of contemporary Australian publishing. It also provides a sophisticated introduction to the structure and dynamics of the Australian publishing industry which turns over almost two billion dollars a year.

'Leading industry practitioners and academics analyse the industry in the context of social, cultural and legal forces. They write revealingly on the culture of the publishing house, editorial practice and policy, Bookscan, new technologies and the 'decline' of literary publishing.

'Making Books will be an indispensable companion for arts industry professionals, those in the publishing industry, and scholars of book history or publishing studies.' (Publisher's blurb)

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Description

This unit explores the procedures and principles of writing for publication in such fields as creative writing, report writing, and promotion. The emphasis is on practical problems of research, drafting, editing, and submitting manuscripts.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

On successful completion of this unit students should be able to:

1. conduct research for a variety of writing tasks;

2. competently use a range of literary devices and strategies;

3. draft, edit and self-publish a professional monograph;

4. seek out and respond to writers' marketing opportunities (publication, writing competitions or performances of their own written texts or scripts);

5. deal with basic self-management aspects of free-lance authorship (contracts, proposals, publicity, agents, copyright, and self-publishing);

6. Show an understanding of basic legal and ethical issues associated with publication.

UNIT CONTENT

1. Field experience of researching material for writing projects (especially use of observation, a writer's journal, and library resources).

2. Developing a writer's personal reference and resource collection (use of thesaurus, dictionary, books, style manuals, marketing guides, periodicals etc.).

3. Developing the students compositions (nonfiction, fiction, poetry or script) through various manuscript stages towards publication.

4. Participation in writing workshops and manuscript analysis.

5. Workshops aimed at giving students knowledge of the legal and ethical obligations of writers and some business aspects of writing (e.g. copyright, agents, contracts, promotion and self-publishing).

Assessment

Writing folio (including writer's notebook, textbook and workshop exercises) - 30%

Research Project - 30%

Monograph - 40%

Supplementary Texts

(2002). Style manual for authors, editors and printers. (6th ed.). Milton, QLD: Wiley.

(2004). The Australian writer's market place. Queensland Writers Centre.

Disher, G. (2001). Writing fiction. (2nd ed.). Sydney: Allen & Unwin.

Dunn, I. (1999). The writers guide. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.

Johnston, S. (2002). Where stories come from: Beginning to write fiction. NY: Longman.

Lodge, D. (1996). The practice of writing. London: Secker & Warburg.

Methold, K. (1998). Writing as a business. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.

Nile, R. (2002). The making of the Australian literary imagination. St Lucia: University of Queensland Press.

Rawlins, J. (2002). The writers way. (5th ed.). USA: California State University.

Stillman, F. (2000). The poet's manual and rhyming dictionary. London: Thames & Hudson.

Schwarz, S. (1995). Australian guide to getting published. Sydney: Hale & Ironmonger.

Thiel, D. (2005). Crossroads: Creative writing exercises in four genres. NY: Pearson Longman.

Walker, B. (Ed.). (2002). The writer's reader. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.

Windshuttle, K., & Elliot, E. (1999). Writing, researching, communicating. (3rd ed.). NSW: Halstead Press.

Other Details

Also available as WRT311S

Levels: Undergraduate
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