Welcome & Introduction
You have clicked on a website for those who aspire to be writers or at least to improve their writing skills. You may be confused because the class may be called Imaginative Writing, but may have CRW 2001 as the course initials.
For a long time, CRW 2001 at this college has been called "Imaginative Writing." Apparently, a long-ago committee decided that "imaginative writing" was more informative than, say, "Creative Writing." Either name probably has a defect. For example, you might argue that you could be creative in merely writing a menu for an Italian restaurant, and, of course, you would be right. Or you might assume that, in a course on "imaginative writing," you would be readings works of great imagination: perhaps about Alice journeying through Wonderland or John Carter being transported to Edgar Rice Burroughs' Mars. Again, you could be correct.
However, after you have primed the metaphorical pump with readings that are creative or imaginative, you will also be expected as a CRW 2001 student to try your own hand at short fiction, poetry, nonfiction or articles, or plays.
(Years ago, a student was shocked when the syllabus was distributed. She gasped, "You mean we're going to have to write in this class"" Alas, it's a cruel world.)
Writers and editors often say that writing is a lonely activity (and an arrogant one). Writers create by themselves and arrogantly believe they can people entire villages, cities, countries, and planets with entire populations of their own creations. Sequestered in a home office, they may labor months or years on a book manuscript, seemingly not needing others.
At a certain point, writers feel the need to seek out other writers: Poets understand the problems of other poets, just as plumbers can relate to the challenges that other plumbers face. The writers may commune and network at conferences, at parties, or workshops.
Your Motivation
A minister will say, "I don't care WHY they're in the church -- just the fact that they're here." Apparently he or she figures that a rousing sermon or warm fellowship would reach the visitors and bring them into the flock. In some respects, that principle may apply to this writing workshop.
Here are some possible motivations:
* "I need an easy college-credit course." (Although there are no formulas to memorize, the course may not be a cake-walk, particularly if you want your best writing to emerge.)
* "I like to write and mess around with words." (You should have fun then.)
* "This was a course that's on-line, so I figured, 'Why not?'"
* "I already have a college degree, and I want to refine the stuff I have until it's the best that I can make it."
* "I'm house-bound because of [a problem], and I can't get out to attend a writers' group or college class."
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