In this course, students will gain a deeper understanding of contemporary fiction through analyzing short stories and participating in workshop. This course will place equal emphasis on generative writing and close reading. In the first weeks of the semester, we will work on “scaffolding” exercises, taking time to review and bolster our knowledge of the basic components of fiction. The bulk of the course will be workshop, in which students will read and constructively critique each other’s stories, and online discussions of assigned short stories, prompted by a student-led presentation. The semester will culminate in a final portfolio with a revision statement.

In this course, students will gain a deeper understanding of contemporary fiction through analyzing short stories and participating in workshop. This course will place equal emphasis on generative writing and close reading. In the first weeks of the semester, we will work on “scaffolding” exercises, taking time to review and bolster our knowledge of the basic components of fiction. The bulk of the course will be workshop, in which students will read and constructively critique each other’s stories, and online discussions of assigned short stories, prompted by a student-led presentation. The semester will culminate in a final portfolio with a revision statement.

This is a two-semester internship class that produces the student literary journal. You may enroll for the second semester (spring 2026) only if you’ve participated in the first semester (fall 2025). The next application process will open in early Spring 2026 for the Fall 2026/Spring 2027 editorship.

In this collaborative internship, we’ll learn how to read and edit well. We’ll begin by determining the type of publication that we want, and then we’ll brainstorm ways to boost quality submissions, promote events to raise publication funds, create marketing materials, and ultimately curate, design, and produce the 37th edition of The Cypress Dome, a journal of UCF student writing and art.

In this course, students will explore flash prose (work written in 500 to 1,500 words) as a subgenre of fiction and creative nonfiction, studying its mechanics and comparing its function and effectiveness to its longform counterparts. Students will also compare flash prose to prose poetry, understanding the bridges between “lyric” and “narrative.” This course will encourage hybridity and experimentation, pushing our definitions of genre and deepening our understanding of what we can do with lack, thus informing how students engage with other genres. Students will engage with flash prose through assigned readings, annotations, and creative imitations, a craft analysis paper, and workshop. At the culmination of the semester, students will submit a final portfolio of work drafted throughout the semester, along with an artist statement detailing their understanding of flash prose and its impact on their work.