Targeting an International Audience: Can Creative Writing Texts Cross the World Without Jet Lag?

摘要

Can there be a generic textbook for the teaching of creative writing that will serve the major English-speaking countries - the USA, the UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand? The author of such a text must ask a range of questions and, in attempting to answer them, will better understand the institutional, educational and cultural climate in which he or she functions. Some questions relate to content. For example, what local or international authors, critics and theorists should they include? What types of exercises? What commercial considerations might restrict them? Canvassing the types of books available raises further questions about creative writing's position in tertiary institutions. How and why is it taught and who teaches it? Reasons are explored (to support literary studies, to create audiences, to produce new writing, to educate apprentices, to train teachers, to provide creative therapy, etc.) and how they affect the text's pedagogical and theoretical orientation. Discussion of a case study chapter that targets an international audience (writing for children and young adults) demonstrates the problems of creating a book with transnational appeal. Crossing borders to discover other pedagogical strategies and fresh literary landscapes can invigorate the teacher-writer's professional practice.