Writing Instructor/Faculty Associate
Alejandro Cuellar
Writing Instructor/Faculty Associate
His writing concentrates on American identity, biculturalism, and bilingualism, with a primary focus on Latinx and Latin American/Caribbean immigrant narratives. He has taught at UMass-Amherst, Smith College, and Holyoke Community College.
Home is where we live in every sense, but "Home" is more than the physical structure we reside in: it is also the psychological, societal, emotional, and even the mythical. In this course, we will read a variety of fiction and non-fiction and explore the importance of these spaces, be they physical or metaphysical, to the construction of "home" and more importantly, how these terms, whether we accept them wholly, shun them entirely, or experience via travel and immigration, dictate to us and others a sense of self and identity via our own writing. We will write a mix of critical essays, personal/reflective writings, and creative work as we also delve into the process of writing: topic selection, drafting, and a variety of techniques for revision, including peer review. Individual meetings with the instructor will be required. (key words: writing program)
In this course, we will look closely at the structure of longform prose, including non-fiction as well as fiction. We will read longform essays, a short story collection, and a novel, and we will consider how each is organized by paying close attention to how the craft of each serves the content, and vice versa. We will then read and workshop short stories, longform non-fiction, and novel excerpts by your peers, paying attention to craft in the service of content, and how all of that affects the reader's understanding of the piece. You will submit two pieces for workshop, and write one 3-5 page analytical essay that engages with the published material. Published works from Ta-Nehisi Coates, Octavia Butler, and Maggie Nelson may be included. This is an intermediate creative writing workshop and is ideal for rising Division III students. (keywords: writing, creative writing, workshop, fiction)
We will read short fiction and narrative essays from published authors in order to better understand the decisions they made and how those decisions serve their narratives. In other words, we will read and try to understand their decisions by trying to read them as writers would. Authors to include Ellison, Kincaid, O'Connor, Alexie, and Adichie. Students will write two creative pieces of writing, one non-fiction and one fiction, for discussion and workshop. Students will also meet individually with the instructor. Final portfolio will include one short critical essays that analyze the published writing, and revised versions of the pieces submitted for workshop. Enthusiastic participation during discussions, and revision, is expected.
In this course we will examine how narrators and narration drive and impose structure onto short stories. By doing so, we will begin to consider the role of the narrator in our own creative work. We will study the role narrators play into the function of the stories they tell, whether they feature in those stories or not. Thinking about the veracity of our narrators, we will approach storytelling by thinking about what these narrators add to our stories, and of course what they know and what they think they know, with respect to the story they are telling, and how all of that affects the reader's understanding of the piece. You will submit two stories for workshop, and write a short analytical essay (3-5 pgs) on one of the published works we read. (keywords: writing, creative writing, fiction, workshop)
The short novel is a unique form. It has all of the elements of pace found in a short story without the constraints of time and scope, and remains sufficiently expansive to allow for the presence of a broader-length narrative. In this course we will explore the parameters of various short novels--their structure, focus, intent, and scope--by trying to read them as writers would. We will discuss the choices of writers such as Morrison, Rhys, Baldwin, Moore, and Ferrante with respect to the above criteria--and attempt to determine the efficacy of the short novel as form. Students will write short responses to each reading, as well as three larger (3-5 page) papers. The overall aim of the course is to be a better writer by being a better reader.
Division III Writing Workshop: This workshop provides assistance to students who are engaged in large writing projects and research papers in any of Hampshire's five schools. The course offers a structured, three-hour block of time in which to write and receive feedback on pre-writing (brainstorming, outlining, etc.), writing, and revision. Special attention will be paid to the writing process: conceptualization, organization, and pacing oneself through work blocks and writing anxieties. In addition to having access to structured writing time, participants will have the opportunity to meet individually with the instructor(s). Because this class supplements work already in progress, no formal instructor evaluations will be provided and the completion of this workshop will not count as course credit or advanced learning activity.