If you think you've got what it takes to write a best-seller, a dynamic new course at UQ Ipswich could kick-start your new career.
Creative Writing and the Publishing Industry (COYS 2140) is part of the Bachelor of Contemporary Studies degree and enrolment is open to all students as well as to members of the community.
By semester's end each participant should have completed the first chapter and an outline of a novel plus a publishing proposal - all ready to send to a publisher.
This is a very practical advanced course, according to lecturer in contemporary studies Dr Toni Johnson-Woods.
And it's one of the first to be offered publicly via auditing, a process well-known in the USA but just starting to take off in Australia.
For an audit fee of $451 including GST, members of the community can take part in all aspects of the course except lecturer feedback.
They enjoy Web access to the course and can join lectures, seminars, group and intranet discussions - but while ideally they would complete all set exercises and other assessment work, nothing can be handed in for teaching comment or assessment.
Creative Writing and the Publishing Industry echoes a course Dr Johnson-Woods taught at the University of Nebraska, USA and draws on her experiences with the Brisbane Writers' Festival and as a reader for University of Queensland Press.
"It involves a lot of writing, reading and sharing ideas in a supportive environment," Dr Johnson-Woods said.
"There's lots of flexibility in how and when students complete the work but in the end they have to produce the goods.
"I don't control the group or impose my style on the outcomes - rather I facilitate the process, guide students in the technicalities and help them develop the discipline needed to produce publishable work."
The course covers both creative and publications processes and each student will focus on a chosen genre such as romance, science fiction, crime or fantasy. And published writers will lead six professional seminars on topics ranging from book contracts and e-publishing to dealing with agents and publishing houses.
For details on auditing Creative Writing and the Publishing Industry (COYS 2140), contact the University's Enrolments Officer, Continuing Education (telephone 3365 7575, fax 3365 7099, email icte.enrol@mailbox.uq.edu.au).
For more information, contact Dr Toni Johnson-Woods (telephone 3381 1567, fax 3381 1572).
