Grasping The Nettle: A Prose Fiction Workshop - ENG00165M

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Module summary

This module gives aspiring creative writers the opportunity to ‘grasp the nettle’ by developing ideas for or fragments of prose fiction into coherent, polished work within a supportive workshop environment. Over the course of the module you will discuss writing environments and routines, voice, characterisation, perspective, structure, dialogue, and other fundamental aspects of writing prose fiction. You will do this by critically examining work by successful short story writers and novelists, by engaging with reflective texts addressing the craft of writing prose fiction, by using peer and tutor feedback on your own creative work-in-progress to strengthen and polish it, and by learning how to be an effective editor of the creative work of your peers. Over the course of the semester you will receive peer and tutor feedback on four pieces of writing (max 1000 words each), for which you will be encouraged to experiment with both the short story form and with the opening of a longer piece of fiction. At the end of the module, you’ll submit a portfolio comprising your strongest creative work and a critical component engaging with the set texts. Each student on the module will be given the opportunity to meet with their tutor to devise a personal publication strategy for the submitted work, though this is not compulsory.

Module will run

Occurrence	Teaching period
A	Semester 2 2026-27

Module aims

The aim of this module is to nurture embryonic ideas or fragments of creative writing to develop into at least one coherent, polished piece of prose fiction (one complete short story, the opening to a novel or novella, or both). This will be done by taking a holistic view of the ‘life cycle’ of a piece of work, from exploratory notes to submission for publication. You will be supported to develop as a writer, developing enhanced understandings of key conventions, techniques and debates in the field of prose fiction. Ultimately the aim is to equip you with the technical, creative and intellectual tools you need to translate a creative impulse into a finished literary artefact.

Module learning outcomes

On successful completion of the module, you should be able to:

1. Demonstrate an advanced understanding of and engagement with key conventions in the genres of the short story and the novel/novella.

2. Demonstrate an advanced understanding of and engagement with key techniques in prose fiction, including voice, characterisation, perspective, structure, and dialogue.

3. Evaluate key debates within the field of creative prose fiction, and engage with them through the production of a body of creative work.

4. Produce written work which demonstrates an advanced proficiency in creative and critical thinking, research, and writing skills.

Indicative assessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	100.0

Special assessment rules

None

Additional assessment information

You will hand in an essay of 1,400-1,600 words in Week 6 of Semester 1 for the Postgraduate Life in Practice module. The main purpose of the essay is to ensure that the department can identify those students who may require additional assistance with academic writing skills.  Material from this essay may be re-visited in either one of the January essays or the dissertation. It is therefore an early chance to work through material that might be used in assessed work. The title topic of the essay, like the title topic of all assessed work for the degree, is left open to the individual student.

Indicative reassessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	100.0

Module feedback

You will receive feedback on all assessed work within the University deadline, and will often receive it more quickly. The purpose of feedback is to inform your future work; it is designed to help you to improve your work, and the Department also offers you help in learning from your feedback. If you do not understand your feedback or want to talk about your ideas further you can discuss it with your module tutor, the MA Convenor or your supervisor, during their Feedback and Consultation Hours.  

Indicative reading

• Deepa Anappara and Taymour Soomro (eds.), Letters to a Writer of Colour (Penguin, 2023)

• Atwood, Margaret, On Writers and Writing (Virago, 2015)

• Naomi Booth, Raw Content (Hachette, 2025)

• Jericho Brown (ed.) How We Do It: Black Writers on Craft, Practice, and Skill (Amistad, 2023)

• Jacqueline Crooks, The Ice Migration (Peepal Tree, 2018)

• Jo Hamya, The Hypocrite (W&N, 2025)

• Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft (Hodder & Stoughton, 2012)

• Zadie Smith, ed. The Book of Other People (Penguin, 2007)

• Kiley Reid, Such A Fun Age (Bloomsbury, 2019)

• Juan Rulfo, Pedro Paramo (Serpent’s Tail, 1993)

• Matthew Salesses, Craft in the Real World (Catapult, 2021)

• George Saunders, A Swim in the Pond in the Rain (Bloomsbury, 2021)

• Leila Slimani, trans. Sam Taylor, The Scent of Flowers At Night (Coronet, 2023)

• Wells Tower, Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned (Granta, 2009)

• Eley Williams, The Liar’s Dictionary (Penguin, 2020)