Unit information: Critical Issues in Contemporary Publishing in 2022/23

Unit name	Critical Issues in Contemporary Publishing
Unit code	ENGLM0076
Credit points	20
Level of study	M/7
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director	Dr. Mimi Thebo
Open unit status	Not open
Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units)	N/A
Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units)	Students can opt to take the placement unit instead
Units you may not take alongside this one
School/department	Department of English
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Unit Information

In this unit, students will read, discuss and analyse key issues in contemporary publishing. This unit will help students to: contextualise their own writing in the wider world of contemporary publishing; understand the roles and concerns of various individuals and organisations in the publishing world; and develop the skills needed to articulate their own responses to those issues and concerns.

Your learning on this unit

By the successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:

1. Examine the relationship of reading to their own creative practice and analyse the relationship between writing and its commercial and aesthetic contexts, articulating an understanding of the relationship between writing and genre, literary convention, publishing, performance, and different media.
2. Work independently, including by setting goals, managing workload and meeting deadlines.
3. Anticipate and accommodate requirements that may change when creating an original work. Be able to work productively and negotiate creative contexts that are ambiguous, uncertain and unfamiliar.
4. Evaluate the role of readers and audiences in realising texts and the ways that performance can impact an audience’s imaginative experience.
5. Use and develop information retrieval and analytical skills, including the ability to interpret, evaluate, synthesise and organise material.

How you will learn

Teaching will be in large 2 hour seminar/workshop style, where guest lecturers will provide an introduction to a role, issue or process within contemporary publishing, supported by an experienced tutor who may be called upon to support the guest lecturer to a smaller or greater extent (i.e. some guests will prefer to be interviewed, some will be happy to give a prepared talk). Students will normally participate in Q and A sessions after the formal talk.

How you will be assessed

A portfolio of writing to include:

Either:

1x 1500 word summative essay, explaining a key role in Publishing, Broadcasting, Events Management or other related industry and how it relates to contemporary literature or

Or:

1x 1500 word summative critical commentary on an interview with someone in a key role in Publishing, Broadcasting, Events Management or other related industry, analysing how the role relates to contemporary literature. (The interview itself should normally be included as an appendix.)

[ILOs 1, 2 and 5]. (30%)

And:

1 x 3500 summative portfolio (or equivalent, where continuous prose is not submitted) of professional writing (which may include, but not be limited to AI sheets, synopsis, cover letters, reviews, self-interview, press release, etc) [ILOs 2, 3, 4, 5]. (70%)

Resources

If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.

If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. ENGLM0076).

How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks, independent learning and assessment activity.

See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.

Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit. The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.