BOOK ‘EM: Prof. William McKeen asks students to read about 10 books for Literary Journalism.
class act
Course: JOU 4301 Literary Journalism
Teacher: Prof. William McKeen
Literary lessons, literally
How long has the College been offering Literary Journalism?
I don’t know for sure. I think we’ve been offering the graduate version of the course, taught by retired Prof. Rob Pierce, since 1960. [Retired Prof.] Jean Chance [JM 1960, MAMC 1969] taught the undergraduate version for many years. She retired in 2003. She taught it once a year. I started teaching it in the fall semesters. Since becoming chair, I don’t have the time to teach it very often. I often teach three classes a semester.
What makes this course different?
It allows students to explore a more creative form of journalistic writing. Most of the traditional rules are lifted, which gives the author more freedom. Also, the hard news element is removed and students get to write about whatever and whomever they want, like the many literary journalists before them. Students also engage in class discussions about the assigned readings and writers. I view this as one of the last classes journalism students should take. In the other classes, you learn the rules. In this class, you learn to break them. Breaking the rules is something that must be earned.
What do you hope to accomplish with this course?
I just want to open people’s eyes to the possibilities of journalism. When we speak about the “future of journalism,” the talk is all about technology. That stuff will sort itself out. To my mind, the future is in the past – storytelling. Since hairy and hygienically challenged cavemen and women started sitting around campfires, human beings have always wanted stories. They still want stories – whether they are told in print, on the air or beamed directly into the cortex. This course focuses on the craft of storytelling.
What are students assigned?
Students have to read about 10 books throughout the semester by some of the best literary journalists in the country, including Hunter S. Thompson, Truman Capote, Joan Didion and Tom Wolfe. The more students read, the better writers they will become. On top of the reading assignments, students are required to write two to three feature stories. Students also adopt writers for the semester, give an in-class presentation on their lives, and write research papers on them.
What type of structure do you use for the course?
I feel the need to get things started, but then we end up making it into a free-for-all with everybody participating. I wish we could do more of that. One semester is not enough. We’ve had so much to read this semester, I just wish we had more time to talk. Seems we’re just getting started.
How has this course changed over the years? The course has varied from very story-heavy (students writing six pieces, reading three books) to very reading-heavy. I like the reading-heavy approach because students get to spend more time on their stories.
Has the College produced any literary journalists?
I’m sure we have. Most good journalists experiment with this at one time or another. Take Michael Connelly [JM 1980], for example. He worked as the crime beat reporter for the Los Angeles Times for many years before writing mystery novels. Connelly is a big supporter of reading, too. In fact, he said that’s what helped his writing style.
Have you done any research on literary journalism?
Jean Chance and I co-edited an anthology of smaller literary pieces that includes works by Ernie Pyle, Gay Talese and John Hersey. Also, I wrote a biography of Hunter S. Thompson several years back. I’m contracted with W.W. Norton & Company to do an oral-history biography of Thompson, called American Dreamer. It will appear in 2007 or 2008.
–Gordon Owen
