Sustaining Momentum: How to Continue the Nonfiction Book

(EGL 126)

The booming popularity of creative nonfiction reflects our widespread interest in true stories, no matter what the genre: memoirs, biographies, history, essays, long-form journalism, and others. For writers, the form offers both personal and practical benefits: an opportunity to understand and share our lives or interests, as well as increasing opportunities to publish. Many of our most popular and respected authors write nonfiction, from Annie Dillard and Joan Didion to David Foster Wallace and Dave Eggers. This series of courses is designed for those who are wishing to write, or are in the process of writing, a book-length work of creative nonfiction. The series began in the Fall with an introductory course. It continues this Winter with “Sustaining Momentum: How to Continue the Nonfiction Book,” and will conclude in the Spring with “Completing the Nonfiction Book.” By the end of the process, writers should have a book proposal ready to submit to agents and publishers.

Sustaining Momentum: How to Continue the Nonfiction Book

It is often said that the hardest part of writing a book is getting started. But many questions remain even after a writer finds a voice and drafts an opening section. This course will explore ways to prevent hitting the proverbial wall in the middle of a long writing project. We will focus on practical methods of transitioning from a great idea or a good start to a manageable and realistic project. Topics of discussion will range from the larger issues of scope and structure to functional matters such as time management and research methods. We will read established nonfiction texts with an eye for structure and process, and students will continue to shape and sharpen their projects with the help of peer and instructor feedback. This course will be useful to anyone who has begun a long-form nonfiction project.

Please note: This course has a different schedule than what was printed in the Winter catalogue.

Justin St. Germain , Former Stegner Fellow; Marsh McCall Lecturer

Justin St. Germain received an MFA from the University of Arizona. His memoir, Son of a Gun, will be published by Random House. His fiction and reviews have appeared in ZYZZYVA, Western American Literature, and other journals. St. Germain’s story “Tortolita" is forthcoming in Best of the West 2010.