The Writer as Researcher
instructor: Megan Baxter
This five-week course begins January 12th.
ON SALE for $250 through 12/15/24.
A 5-week introduction to the techniques, tools, and use of research in creative writing, open to all genres. Through weekly lessons which include written lectures, reading, research activities, and writing prompts, this course is designed to help any writer who is embarking on a research journey. We’ll begin by examining brainstorming and associative techniques to help jump-start research then detail the best practices, and practical consideration for conducting interviews, traveling as a researcher, and using source material from books, archives, and online sources.
Finally, we’ll explore how we can use research creatively through world-building, conversation, and collaboration. Each week you’ll receive instructor feedback on your research activity and creative writing prompts. You’ll also get the chance to participate in an online peer workshop with fellow writers and researchers. This course is a great guide for writers of all genres who are considering conducting creative research.
The course is entirely asynchronous, through the Wet Ink platform. Log on according to your own schedule to participate in weekly activities and discussions.
Weekly schedule:
Week 1: Getting Started
This week we’ll begin by discussing concrete, initial steps that will help to make future research more productive and organized. We’ll explore brainstorming techniques and associative thinking exercises that will allow you to generate keywords, search terms, and critical themes. In addition, you’ll learn some simple organization tips that will allow you to keep your research easy to access and searchable during the writing process. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 2: The Interview
This week we’ll focus on the interview as a form of research. We’ll explore interview techniques and best practices. You’ll learn how to incorporate interview material into creative work and get a chance to practice interview skills with other class members. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 3: Travel
Traveling as a researcher is an essential and often overlooked form of information collection. This week we’ll explore how research-oriented travel can help you bring settings, histories, and characters to life in your creative writing. We’ll discuss how to organize and plan a research trip, and how to record the information you gather. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 4: To the Books!
This week we’ll explore the most traditional research material - the printed word. Books, magazines, dairies, blogs, letters, reference texts, and even recipes can be rich sources of information. We’ll discuss source collection, selection, and citation and how to navigate confirmation bias and information literacy. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 5: Using Research Creatively
In the final week of the class, we’ll discuss how to use the techniques we’ve learned in creative works, transforming information into world-building, conversation, and deeply imagined writing. We’ll explore best practices for acknowledging research in creative work, and how to defy genre expectations by adding researched material in unexpected ways. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Instructor bio:
Megan Baxter is a writer and educator who has published three books of creative nonfiction. Her most recent book, ‘Twenty Square Feet of Skin’ contains source material from journals, song lyrics, poetry, and scientific journals and required significant research as part of the writing process. She teaches college-level academic writing with an emphasis on collaborative approaches and critical thinking. Megan has always had a passion for research. She began college as a history major and ended up graduating with a degree in poetry. Her current project, a novel, has taken her to Italy, twice for research and has required her to explore everything from ancient plagues to Roman metallurgy. She lives in New Hampshire, where she runs her own small farm.
instructor: Megan Baxter
This five-week course begins January 12th.
ON SALE for $250 through 12/15/24.
A 5-week introduction to the techniques, tools, and use of research in creative writing, open to all genres. Through weekly lessons which include written lectures, reading, research activities, and writing prompts, this course is designed to help any writer who is embarking on a research journey. We’ll begin by examining brainstorming and associative techniques to help jump-start research then detail the best practices, and practical consideration for conducting interviews, traveling as a researcher, and using source material from books, archives, and online sources.
Finally, we’ll explore how we can use research creatively through world-building, conversation, and collaboration. Each week you’ll receive instructor feedback on your research activity and creative writing prompts. You’ll also get the chance to participate in an online peer workshop with fellow writers and researchers. This course is a great guide for writers of all genres who are considering conducting creative research.
The course is entirely asynchronous, through the Wet Ink platform. Log on according to your own schedule to participate in weekly activities and discussions.
Weekly schedule:
Week 1: Getting Started
This week we’ll begin by discussing concrete, initial steps that will help to make future research more productive and organized. We’ll explore brainstorming techniques and associative thinking exercises that will allow you to generate keywords, search terms, and critical themes. In addition, you’ll learn some simple organization tips that will allow you to keep your research easy to access and searchable during the writing process. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 2: The Interview
This week we’ll focus on the interview as a form of research. We’ll explore interview techniques and best practices. You’ll learn how to incorporate interview material into creative work and get a chance to practice interview skills with other class members. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 3: Travel
Traveling as a researcher is an essential and often overlooked form of information collection. This week we’ll explore how research-oriented travel can help you bring settings, histories, and characters to life in your creative writing. We’ll discuss how to organize and plan a research trip, and how to record the information you gather. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 4: To the Books!
This week we’ll explore the most traditional research material - the printed word. Books, magazines, dairies, blogs, letters, reference texts, and even recipes can be rich sources of information. We’ll discuss source collection, selection, and citation and how to navigate confirmation bias and information literacy. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 5: Using Research Creatively
In the final week of the class, we’ll discuss how to use the techniques we’ve learned in creative works, transforming information into world-building, conversation, and deeply imagined writing. We’ll explore best practices for acknowledging research in creative work, and how to defy genre expectations by adding researched material in unexpected ways. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Instructor bio:
Megan Baxter is a writer and educator who has published three books of creative nonfiction. Her most recent book, ‘Twenty Square Feet of Skin’ contains source material from journals, song lyrics, poetry, and scientific journals and required significant research as part of the writing process. She teaches college-level academic writing with an emphasis on collaborative approaches and critical thinking. Megan has always had a passion for research. She began college as a history major and ended up graduating with a degree in poetry. Her current project, a novel, has taken her to Italy, twice for research and has required her to explore everything from ancient plagues to Roman metallurgy. She lives in New Hampshire, where she runs her own small farm.
instructor: Megan Baxter
This five-week course begins January 12th.
ON SALE for $250 through 12/15/24.
A 5-week introduction to the techniques, tools, and use of research in creative writing, open to all genres. Through weekly lessons which include written lectures, reading, research activities, and writing prompts, this course is designed to help any writer who is embarking on a research journey. We’ll begin by examining brainstorming and associative techniques to help jump-start research then detail the best practices, and practical consideration for conducting interviews, traveling as a researcher, and using source material from books, archives, and online sources.
Finally, we’ll explore how we can use research creatively through world-building, conversation, and collaboration. Each week you’ll receive instructor feedback on your research activity and creative writing prompts. You’ll also get the chance to participate in an online peer workshop with fellow writers and researchers. This course is a great guide for writers of all genres who are considering conducting creative research.
The course is entirely asynchronous, through the Wet Ink platform. Log on according to your own schedule to participate in weekly activities and discussions.
Weekly schedule:
Week 1: Getting Started
This week we’ll begin by discussing concrete, initial steps that will help to make future research more productive and organized. We’ll explore brainstorming techniques and associative thinking exercises that will allow you to generate keywords, search terms, and critical themes. In addition, you’ll learn some simple organization tips that will allow you to keep your research easy to access and searchable during the writing process. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 2: The Interview
This week we’ll focus on the interview as a form of research. We’ll explore interview techniques and best practices. You’ll learn how to incorporate interview material into creative work and get a chance to practice interview skills with other class members. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 3: Travel
Traveling as a researcher is an essential and often overlooked form of information collection. This week we’ll explore how research-oriented travel can help you bring settings, histories, and characters to life in your creative writing. We’ll discuss how to organize and plan a research trip, and how to record the information you gather. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 4: To the Books!
This week we’ll explore the most traditional research material - the printed word. Books, magazines, dairies, blogs, letters, reference texts, and even recipes can be rich sources of information. We’ll discuss source collection, selection, and citation and how to navigate confirmation bias and information literacy. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Week 5: Using Research Creatively
In the final week of the class, we’ll discuss how to use the techniques we’ve learned in creative works, transforming information into world-building, conversation, and deeply imagined writing. We’ll explore best practices for acknowledging research in creative work, and how to defy genre expectations by adding researched material in unexpected ways. This week will include two readings, a reading questions, a research activity, and a writing prompt.
Instructor bio:
Megan Baxter is a writer and educator who has published three books of creative nonfiction. Her most recent book, ‘Twenty Square Feet of Skin’ contains source material from journals, song lyrics, poetry, and scientific journals and required significant research as part of the writing process. She teaches college-level academic writing with an emphasis on collaborative approaches and critical thinking. Megan has always had a passion for research. She began college as a history major and ended up graduating with a degree in poetry. Her current project, a novel, has taken her to Italy, twice for research and has required her to explore everything from ancient plagues to Roman metallurgy. She lives in New Hampshire, where she runs her own small farm.