Reading as a Writer in Australia and China: Adapting the Workshop

Abstract

The Western writing craft workshop has been dominated by a narrow conception of ‘reading as a writer.’ An overview of Creative Writing as a discipline in Australia and China suggests that a broader conception of ‘reading as a writer’ would enrich teaching in both the Anglophone countries and Asia while it improves expression and enhances cultural understanding. A comparison of courses that focus on nonfiction at Flinders University in Australia and Sun Yat-sen University in China demonstrates how reading that takes into account a variety of subject aims and outcomes and reflects diverse cultural experiences can benefit native speakers, those who come from non-English speaking backgrounds and second-language learners. Sharing strategies to facilitate language learning and craft knowledge will improve expression and broaden cultural perspectives. In addition, the teaching of nonfiction, which must be pursued at a critical, craft and ethical level, highlights the social responsibility not only of professional writers who are studied but of apprentice writers as they work towards critical and creative competence.