Writing on the Edge: Crafting the Short-Form Urban Essay

A new nonfiction writing workshop class has been added to our spring course offerings.

ENG 484-304 Writing Workshop Topics. Writing on the Edge: Crafting the Short-Form Urban Essay, taught by Prof. Terry Sullivan, a Visiting Writer on the graduate writing faculty. The course will be offered at DePaul’s Loop Campus (State and Jackson) on an alternating Saturday schedule.

Terry Sullivan is a national freelance writer who built his career by writing on the edge: his columns, reviews and articles, appearing in such widely diverse publications as This Old House and Whiskey magazines, are urbane, sassy, ironic, playful, and always humorous. He was contributing writer to Gentleman’s Quarterly from 1987 to 2002 and wrote a monthly column for GQ for five years.

This course is an introduction to the urban short-form essay, a genre found in metropolitan magazines, in journals focusing on contemporary trends and culture, and in the lifestyle and leisure sections of newspapers. This workshop focuses on writing casuals, profiles, enthusiasms, contraria, humor, and the personal urban essay. Students will produce three essays of publishable quality.

Classes will meet on the following dates and times:

4/4: 9:00 to noon
4/18: 9:00 to noon, 1:00 to 4:00
5/2: 9:00 to noon, 1:00 to 4:00
5/16: 9:00 to noon, 1:00 to 4:00
5/30: 9:00 to noon, 1:00 to 4:00
6/6: 9:00 to noon

DePaul’s Loop Campus is easily reached by all CTA elevated and subway trains as well as by all METRA lines. Discounted parking is also available within a block of campus buildings.