Winter 2026
ENG 507, section 1
Literature TA Practicum
CRN: 35481
Instructor TBA
This one-credit course introduces students to the fundamental concepts, techniques, and practices of teaching literature. We cover topics ranging from course design to planning discussion to grading. By the end of the course, students will design a class of their own.
ENG 535, section 1
Studies in Shakespeare: Editing Shakespeare
CRN: 42341
Rebecca Olson
In 2023, the Oregon State online textbook Romeo and Juliet—edited and revised by SWLF students—enjoyed more than 25,000 users in 148 countries. In2024, in an ongoing effort to make the edition even more accessible, students recorded an audiobook to accompany the edition. In this projects-based course, students will continue the project, taking next steps to publish and promote the audiobook. To prepare for that work, we will explore the print history of Shakespearean drama and recent scholarship about the poetics of editing and the influence of non authorial producers on the English literary tradition.
ENG 545, section 1
Studies in Nonfiction: Prose Experiments
CRN: 43425
Elena Passarello
In 1979, Lipps, Inc delivered their seminal plea for experimentation: “won’t you take me to Funkytown?” Does Funkytown still exist, and if so, where is the closest airport? What are the stakes of the municipality if Funkytown only funks on the page? And if the entire town is funky—all its essays, memoirs, stories—is the funkiness too diffuse to truly bring said funk? This course discusses the founding documents of literary Funkytown (by funk ancestors like Sei Shonagon and the OULIPO) plus contemporary amendments to the funky constitution (by Sarah Minor, Michael Ondaatje, etc), as well as funkmasters in non-literary traditions.
ENG 565, section 1
Studies in the Novel: The Novel Grows Up
CRN: 42325
Megan Ward
How have novels grown and changed since their birth in the eighteenth century? Where is the novel today? This class will follow the novel as it grows and changes – including through some awkward stages – to the present day. Emerging only a few hundred years ago, the novel is the newest genre of literature, and it’s also the most varied, as it amalgamates texts such as gothic tales, romantic quest narratives, and autobiographical testimony in order to become the rambling, varied, and fascinating stories that we love today.
ENG 570, section 1
Book as Metaphor
CRN: 39709
Karen Holmberg
This craft class explores the relationship between form and content through an exploration of artists’ books and of “bookness” itself. Taking inspiration from the ways book artists use structure and materials to convey meaning, we’ll invent our own meaning-ful and powerful poetic structures. Writers will be asked to present a piece of their writing as an artist’s book and to write a substantial new work in response to the techniques they encounter. Weekly creative writing experiments ask writers to respond to the plethora of book structures, adopting and adapting them for their own creation.
Most texts for the class will require visits to the Valley Library’s Special Collections.
ENG 575, section 1
Studies in Criticism: Critical Theory for Critical Times
CRN: 42326
Gottlieb, Evan
MA Experience
As 2025 rolls into 2026, it’s impossible to deny that we’re at yet another crucial inflection point—not to say full-blown crisis!—playing out on both practical and theoretical levels. Further, one could argue that today’s multiple crises (political, environmental, epistemological etc.) essentially demand that we rethink the assumptions that structure the very relationship between theory and practice. What critical methodologies can help us grasp our contemporary situation and prepare simultaneously to confront actively the forces threatening our individual and collective flourishing? Does criticism/critical theory even have a future? Do we?
ENG 580, section 1
Studies in Literature, Culture and Society: Intro to Post Humanisms
CRN 37620
Ray Malewitz
The perils and promises of 21st century geology, biology, medicine, and digital technology have encouraged American artists to create two antithetical visions of a “posthuman” future—one in which humans become increasingly untethered from their biological status as embodied creatures and another that pushes back against this fantasy, enlisting contemporary discussions of embodiment to rethink Enlightenment ideals of “the human.” Students will explore the significance of these contested ideas through fiction and critical theory.
FILM 552, section 1
Studies in Film: The Pleasure of Terror/The Terror of Pleasure: Horror Films, 1919-2025
CRN:39389
Jon Lewis
MA Experience
Why would anyone be interested in horror when the experience (of being horrified) is unpleasant? A quick laundry list of the presumed effects include disgust, revulsion, fear of death, of disease, of getting lost (in the woods), of strangers, of mutilation (loss of limbs/sight/beauty). Yet, the genre has endured on screen for over a century. And today horror films remain popular, trenchant, revealing (about our political culture). This class offers a close look at a selection of horror films dating back to the German expressionist classics The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Nosferatu on to more modern iterations of the genre like The Babadook and Get Out, throughout taking an interdisciplinary approach.
WR 506, section 2
Letterpress Intensive
CRN: 37140
Karen Holmberg
This 1 credit, 2-day course introduces students to the basic techniques of letterpress printing. During the intensive (providing 10 hours of instruction), students will learn:
•Basic history and terminology;
•Introductory design skills using typefaces, spacing, and ornaments;
•Hand type-setting;
•Operation of the proofing press and demonstration of the Chandler and Price hand press.
This course is required for students seeking supervised access to the Moreland Letterpress Studio during its open hours for the Winter term.
WR 524, section 1
Advanced Fiction Writing
CRN: 33377
Keith Scribner
Enrollment in this course is limited to graduate students who have been accepted into OSU's MFA in Creative Writing Program for fiction; other MFA students wishing to enroll must have instructor approval in advance.
WR 540, section 1
Advanced Nonfiction Writing
CRN 35357
Justin St. Germain
This graduate workshop will focus on discussing student writing and providing feedback to works in progress. Each member of the class will be required to submit original pieces of creative nonfiction for discussion, and provide thoughtful feedback to their peers. The class will also read published works as departure points for discussing specific craft issues. Note: enrollment in this course is limited to graduate students who have been accepted into OSU's MFA in Creative Writing Program for nonfiction; other MFA students wishing to enroll must have instructor approval in advance.
WR 541, section 1
Advanced Poetry Writing
CRN 34846
Instructor TBA
WR 541 is the MFA graduate poetry workshop: a course focused on rigorous discussions of student work and in-depth studies of published work as models and inspiration for the thesis and subsequent collections. Note: enrollment in this course is limited to graduate students who have been accepted into OSU's MFA in Creative Writing Program for poetry; other MFA students wishing to enroll must have instructor approval in advance.
WR 573, section 1
Thesis and Dissertation Writing
CRN 38546
Dennis Bennett
If you are struggling with writing your thesis or dissertation, this course provides you with a clear roadmap to success. We'll demystify the process by first identifying the expectations for a high-quality thesis/dissertation in your field. Then, we'll analyze how to meet those expectations through effective writing strategies. Leave the drama behind and craft a compelling piece of scholarly work.
WR 599
Teaching Practicum
Larison, John
Section 1
42340
This practicum is intended to help you prepare to teach the 200-level creative writing course in your genre. More generally, the course is designed to help you find your footing as a teacher of college-level creative writing. You’ll finish the practicum with the core materials (syllabus, schedule, sample assignments) for your 200-level class, with confidence in your ability to lead a creative writing classroom, and with the materials you’ll need to impress administrators at future job interviews.