Southern Utah University

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Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Spring Semester 2026

Intermediate Creative Nonfiction Writing (Face-to-Face)

ENGL 3040-01

Course: ENGL 3040-01
Credits: 3
Term: Spring Semester 2026
Department: ENGL
CRN: 12162

Course Description

This course focuses on writing memoir, personal essay, portrait, and essay of place. Students also read literary journalism as well as these sub-genres to provide models for their own creative endeavors. (Spring) [Graded (Standard Letter)] Prerequisite(s): ENGL 2320 - Prerequisite Min. Grade: C-

Required Texts

Miller, Brenda and Suzanne Paola. Tell It Slant 3rd edition. ISBN:  978-1260454598

Learning Outcomes


By the end of this course, you will be able to:

  1. define what creative nonfiction is and is not, name and explain its conventions,
  2. situate yourself within contemporary creative nonfiction,
  3. name, analyze, and explain CNF craft in the works of others and in your own work,
  4. hone your writing process, and 
  5. write your own creative nonfiction essays using a variety of lengths, approaches, and craft foci.

Course Requirements

Module Portfolios (11% each, 55% total)


This bulk of the course is divided up into 5 modules worth 11% of your overall grade each. The goal of each module is to demonstrate your understanding of and proficiency with the craft tools of that module and those that came before it. There are required and optional elements for each module.

Required for each module portfolio is a completed CNF essay and a reflection discussion of its craft. The completed essay is required to write the reflection, but the reflection is what's graded, not your creative writing itself.

Optional in each module portfolio are the assignments that support your learning: readings, class notes, and exercises. I will assess your understanding of craft from whatever is included in your portfolio. In other words, the benefit of including in your portfolio the work you ought to be doing anyway is that I have more assurance through a diversification of assignments that you're "getting it." Though if you're confident in your analysis and reflective skills, you may leave out the optional components.

If participation and discussion on readings in class isn't generous, this grade category may adapt to include required in-class reading quizzes, reading responses, discussion questions and/or another alternate.


Workshop (10% of overall grade)


We will hold workshop periodically over the course of the semester. The goal of these workshops is to get your classmates' perspectives on your work, yes, but the most useful aspect of workshop is to give you an opportunity to analyze the craft in an unfinished essay. I rarely give feedback on workshop pieces; they are almost always essays I've already read and given you feedback on elsewhere.

Any time we workshop, you will complete three assignments. (1) You will submit your own, correctly formatted workshop draft. (2) You will read, annotate, and give end notes to your classmates. (3) You will complete a workshop digest, plan, and scoresheet.

Your workshop grade is determined by your classmates. They will give you a score based on the helpfulness of and effort behind your comments. I will mediate these scores.

Final Portfolio (35% of overall grade)


Your final assignment of the semester will be a portfolio of work, some of which will be new and some of which will be revisiting work you've been doing all semester long. The overall focus of this portfolio is to demonstrate that you understand, in theory and in practice, how successful CNF works.

The final portfolio will consist of (1) your essays from the semester, collected, ending with a revision of one of your semester's essays, (2) a paper wherein you will directly reference and discuss your own work to point out the variety of approaches and craft you used in your essays, as stipulated in the CNF Essay Checklist, (3) A short reflection on your revised essay discussing what you revised and how the essay works now (4) a recorded reading of the essay you're proudest of, and (5), a paper articulating your personalized definition of CNF which will include copious, direct, and specific references to the semester's readings as well as your own work this semester.


Course Outline

Weeks 1-4: Defining CNF, various approaches to writing CNF
Weeks 5-6: Point of view, persona, and writing other characters
Weeks 7-8: Truth, fact, research and speculation
Weeks 9-11: Scene, summary, musing, and time 
Weeks 12-13: Form and content
Weeks 14-16: Workshop, final prep and lingering questions

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work


Each assignment has a due date. That date is the date on which I will begin grading. You have a natural, built-in grace period though. If I haven’t finished grading the assignment yet, you can still turn your assignment in. Once I’ve entered a zero for your grade, that means I’m done grading that assignment and the grace period has ended. It’s a bit of a gamble to turn something in late; get your work done ASAP. If you really need to, email me and ask me how far out I am on grading. I can give you a rough ballpark. (Note that this late policy does not apply to the final or time-dependent assignments like workshop.)

Accepted late work will be given no feedback, only a grade, and may take significantly longer to be returned.

If you have something exceptional going on, talk with me ASAP. I may be able to work with you, but I also have to be fair to all students, so there are some issues my hands are tied on.

Computer or user error is not a legitimate excuse for late work, so submit early and double-check that your submissions were uploaded correctly and that they are the correct submissions. This is especially true for an online class.

I do not offer extra credit. If you haven't done as well on an assignment as you'd like or as well as you need to in order to maintain the grade you need, get in touch with me as soon as possible so we can discuss how you can do better in the future. 

Attendance Policy


Regular attendance is required. In order to pass the class, your final attendance percentage will need to be at or above 70%. That's very lenient. If someone is missing 30% of class, they're likely to fail without this intervention.

If you are every having issues that are keeping you from regular attendance (hospitalization or prolonged, serious illness, etc.) let me know as soon as possible. We will see what we can work out. Note, though, that coming to me at the end of the semester to highlight an issue that began in the early weeks of the semester leaves us with little wiggle room. Even if all you can do is jot a quick email that tells me something is up and you can't even work with me on it yet is better than nothing.

For University-Excused Absences, be sure you're following policy 6.30.

Course Fees

$12

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.