ENG 2000: Story Development (online)

(cross-listed as DST_VS 2810 and COMMUN 2810). In this course, we will learn about storytelling across time and media, beginning with definitions and fundamentals of narrative and oral storytelling, theories of narrative and its cultural functions, and basic narrative analysis. We will then turn to the close study of structure, narration, character, plot, action, dialogue, and other narrative elements, with a wide variety of examples and prompts. Throughout the course, we will practice the development of our own stories in multiple versions and formats, with attention to the ways that formal structures such as blogs, tweets, podcasts, and scripts affect our storytelling strategies. By the end of the course, you will produce a short shooting script or equivalent project ready for production. Thus, the course functions as preparation for audio-visual production courses in Film Studies, Media Studies, Film and Media Arts, and Digital Storytelling degree programs.

Credit hours: 3