Storycraft explores the craftsmanship of imaginative storytelling. Through concurrent investigations of narrative fiction and speculative object making, this course bridges creative writing and the physical craft of making to communicate original ideas through the universal language of stories.

Language shapes both thought and space. This course engages the creative process as a dialogue between thinking and making, incorporating handmade puzzles and interactive objects as accessible storytelling devices that invite broader participation.

Students will analyze exceptional stories from literature, film, and television. They will craft objects in response to stories and write stories inspired by objects. Emphasizing tactile engagement, students will explore how well-crafted narratives and physical experiences—whether sculptural, functional, or interactive—can expand the civic imagination and make ambitious ideas more widely accessible.

The culmination of this course will ask students to craft their own short story, told through objects and language, which critically reimagines our future.

course relevance

Students from any field or background will practice and understand accessible communication, and engage with the creative process in novel ways.

course goals

Students will engage with original ideas through the universal craft of storytelling. 
Students will develop and apply a fearless, inventive, and accessible design process.
Students will build storytelling skills through regular practice and iteration. 
 

assessment structure

There will be a series of readings, film viewings, and exhibition visits that students will analyze and respond to weekly. There will be a number of assignments ask students to create something, either through writing or making. One of these assignments will be the mid-semester project, and one will be the final project which will include a student presentation and reading of their story. 

learning resources

Students will need to read Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino, and a number of other stories and readings, which will be provided as pdfs.