डॉ. बी. आर. अम्बेडकर विश्‍वविद्यालय दिल्ली
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar University Delhi
Established by The Government of NCT of Delhi

Course coordinator and team: SCCE Faculty

1. How does the course link with the vision of AUD?

This course aligns closely with the vision of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar University Delhi (AUD), which emphasizes critical inquiry, interdisciplinarity, and engagement with diverse and inclusive knowledge systems. By focusing on narrative non-fiction and literary journalism in India, the course fosters an understanding of cultural plurality and social reality. It encourages students to critically engage with non-fiction texts across multiple languages and English, while examining historical dynamics and ethical transformations. The course integrates creative practice with theoretical reflection, enabling students to develop critical self-reflexivity as writers and cultural practitioners. This emphasis on creativity, critical thinking, and socially grounded knowledge production resonates strongly with AUD’s pedagogical commitments.

2. How does the course link with the specific program (s) where it is being offered?

As a practice-based core course with a strong theoretical component, this course aligns with programs in Creative Writing and related disciplines that emphasize both creative production and critical engagement. It enables students to draw from contemporary Indian non-fiction traditions and literary journalism to inform their own writing practices. By engaging with diverse models and movements, the course strengthens students' ability to experiment with form, voice, and narrative strategies. It also cultivates an awareness of the socio-cultural, historical, and ideological contexts shaping literary production, thereby supporting the program's goal of nurturing reflective, skilled, and contextually aware writers.

3. Does the course connect to, build on, or overlap with any other courses offered in AUD?

Yes, this course directly builds on first-semester core courses and complements other courses in literature, cultural studies, and creative writing that engage with narrative theory and Indian literatures. While there may be conceptual intersections with courses on Indian writing or cultural studies, this course maintains a distinct focus on practice-based creative engagement with non-fiction forms; including biography, autobiography, memoir, and literary journalism, and on critically examining the intersection of literature and journalism.

4. Specific requirements on the part of students who can be admitted to this course:

None. According to the structure of the two-year postgraduate program, this course is designed for first-year students enrolled in the Creative Writing programme. It is a compulsory course and must be taken as a core requirement.

5. No. of students to be admitted

25

6. Course scheduling

semester

7. Course Details:

a. Summary:
The course has been conceived as a pedagogical engagement with the complex terrain of non-fiction writing within its linguistic plurality and cultural diversity. It provides a strong foundation in non-fiction writing and critical analysis of writing, examining the need to reflect on critical cultural issues Through a rigorous engagement with textual analysis and creative practice, the course explores forms of Literary/Narrative Non-fiction, such as biography, autobiography, memoir, diary, travel writing, personal essays, and other hybridized forms, and literary journalism. It attempts to understand the multiple schemata of creative writing through transitions, transmutations, and the intersection between journalism and literature. The course also encourages collaborative work, resulting in the making of a book written and edited by the students. The ultimate objective is to develop critical self-reflexivity, individual voice, and disciplined practice among students as emerging writers and cultural practitioners.

Objectives:
 

· Give students a strong foundation in non-fiction writing and critical analysis of writing.

· Examine the forms and mechanics of Literary/Narrative Non-fiction through rigorous textual analysis and production of texts.

· Introduce students to Literary Journalism as a specific genre of creative Non-Fiction, opening newer possibilities for learning and experimentation.

· Explore the intersection between journalism and literature, drawing parallels between creative, non-creative, journalistic, and literary-journalistic writing.

· Encourage collaborative work and produce a book written and edited by the students.

· Cultivate self-reflexivity regarding the role, agency, and ethical responsibilities of the writer as a cultural practitioner.

Expected Learning Outcomes

· Developed the practice of writing within the context of literary creative practice in their chosen form/genre.

· Developed the ability to use writerly devices effectively.

· Developed the practice of review and critique of peer writing.

· Developed an understanding of contemporary literary practice and discourse, and writing in the digital age.

· Engaged with questions of framing their own work within the larger contexts of literary production.

· Worked toward developing a disciplined practice in writing.

· Developed a journalistic and critical understanding of the finest reportage, essays, and anthologies written over the decades.

· Developed an individual portfolio of literary journalistic and narrative non-fiction writing.

 

Module I: Foundations of Narrative Non-Fiction & Literary Journalism (Weeks 1-3)

Description

This module serves as a foundation in reflective practice and introduces the subject of literary journalism and narrative non-fiction. It begins with a historical inflection to demonstrate how writers have experimented within specific genres, so that students can understand writing in terms of form, content, and practice. It addresses the basic premises of journalistic writing and its various aspects to deliberate upon the commonalities and differences between literature and literary-journalistic writing. Questions about continuity, discontinuity, intersections, and interconnections within contemporary Indian narrative landscapes will be explored.

Readings

· Walter Benjamin – The Storyteller

· Thomas Berner – The Literature of Journalism: Text and Context

· Norman Sims – True Stories: A Century of Literary Journalism & Literary Journalism in the Twentieth Century

· Ben Yagoda & Kevin Kerrane – The Art of Fact: A Historical Anthology of Literary Journalism

· Daya Pawar – Baluta (Trans. Jerry Pinto)

· Pankaj Mishra – From the Ruins of Empire

Module II: Textual Analysis, Characterization & Writerly Devices (Weeks 4-6)

Description

This module focuses on the rigorous engagement with textual analysis and characterization. Students will identify the use and efficacy of various devices and strategies of writing in the assigned readings. Discussions will cover characterization, narrative plotting, scene-setting, point of view, tone, and style within select texts. This module will explore how writers make choices while thinking through the relationship between form and content across biography, autobiography, memoir, and other hybridized expressions.

Readings

· Susan Sontag – At The Same Time: The Novelist and Moral Reasoning

· Sidonie Smith & Julia Watson – Reading Autobiography

· Samantha Young – Contemporary Historical Fiction

· Gabriel Garcia Marquez – Chronicle of a Death Foretold

· Nalini Rajan ed. – 21st Century Journalism in India

· Indra Sinha – Animal’s People 

Module III: Techniques of Research, Interviewing & Story Organization (Weeks 7-9)

Description

This module equips students with the technical skills required for non-fiction writing and literary journalism. Focus will be placed on techniques of research, interviewing, story organization, word choice, and self-editing. It addresses practical questions of framing work within larger contexts of literary production, and introduces students to workshop methods where they identify the efficacy of writing strategies in their own and peers' work.

Readings

· Patsy Sims – Literary Nonfiction: Learning by Example

· Boris Groys – Under the Gaze of Theory

· Daphne Patai – Theory’s Empire: An Anthology of Dissent

· Graeme Gilloch – Walter Benjamin: Critical Constellations

· Hayden White – The Value of Narrativity

· U.R. Ananthamurthy – Samskara: A Rite for a Dead Man (Trans. A.K. Ramanujan)

· Vivek Shanbag – Ghachar Ghochar (Trans. Srinath Perur)

Module IV: Collaborative Production & Book Project (Weeks 10-12)

Description

This module guides students through the elements of generating, shaping, editing, and revising their own writing in a collaborative environment. This cooperative process encourages students to work together to produce, edit, and compile a book written by the class. The module explores the mechanics of workshop leadership, peer critique, and review, and examines the role of discipline and collective feedback in contemporary publishing.

Readings

• Ray Bradbury – Zen in the Art of Writing
• Anthony Burgess – What is a Novel
• Zadie Smith – Feel Free
• Rahi Masoom Raza – A Village Divided (Trans. Gillian Wright)
• Laxmi Holmstrom ed. – The Inner Courtyard: Stories by Indian Women

Module V: Inter-generic Expressions, Ethics & the Practice of Writing (Weeks 13-16)

Description

This module explores inter-generic and hybrid forms of non-fiction, including fictocriticism, lyric essays, and oral histories. It engages with the philosophical and theoretical ideas related to literary journalism and the dynamics of space, contexts, and ethics. Topics will include the invasion of privacy, libel, and ethical considerations when representing real-world situations, alongside the role of writing in the digital age.

Readings

• Helen Flavell – Fictocriticism, Affect, Mimesis: Engendering Differences
• David Wood ed. – On Paul Ricoeur: Narrative and Interpretation
• Svetlana Alexievich – Voices from Chernobyl: The Oral History of a Nuclear Disaster [24]
• George Orwell – "Shooting an Elephant" & "Why I Write"
• B. Mangalam – On Wings Unbroken: An Encounter with Ambai
• Uday Prakash – Paul Gomra Ka Scooter (Indian Reading)

Assessment

First Mid Sem	Weekly Writing Portfolio / Assignments	30%
Second Mid Sem	Presentation and Workshop Leadership	20%
End Sem	Final Narrative Non-Fiction & Collaborative Project	50%

 

Pedagogy:

Instructional strategies:

• Theoretical grounding in narratology and non-fiction forms
• Lecture-based classes and reading-based discussions of key theoretical texts
• Class discussions and critique of assigned readings and student writing
• Seminars and practice-led workshops with peer review
• Regular interactions and workshops with invited writers of narrative non-fiction and literary jou