
Curtis Crisler
Associate Professor of English
Purdue University Fort Wayne
Purdue University Fort Wayne
Associate Professor of English
I teach writing--poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, technical, expository, composition, etc.
I usually have 3 preps, which means, 3 different courses that I prepare for. I follow a syllabus that I design / construct before my classes meet. There is a calendar on the syllabus that the class and I follow. I prepare by doing any reading that we must do for that day on the calendar, and by attending to assignments and the like. We follow a number of things: peer, group, or workshop assignments. I work with the class to open up, and share their views. We do it all through reading and writing.
Here's the first step for everyone
Get over the fear of being successful. A lot of times we put ourselves in these arbitrary realms that success will change us (for the worse). In just believing that, we limit who and what we can be. We have to face our fear of success. We have to face that we will fail sometimes. We have to understand that failing sometimes, and dusting ourselves off, learning from our faults, and correcting them, will get us to where we want to be. The more we learn about our hinderances, the more we grow.
"When I went from architecture to poetry, many people questioned what I did: "How will you make any money as a poet?" "Why are you giving up architecture, are you sure you want to do that?"