published_or_final_version / English Studies / Master / Master of Arts

Photocopy of typescript. / Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

This creative project consists of an Introduction and one chapter from an untitled novel in progress.The Introduction includes a brief history of the artistic evolution of the novel and a discussion of problems which the novel imposes on the writer.The subject of the novel is the Donatelli family, an Italian immigrant family who lived in an eastern Pennsylvania city during the depression. Two essential conflicts are dramatized: that with the new culture and that between the differing values and goals of the first and second generations as represented by Luigi and his children, especially Vince, his younger son.

Deserts! Have Known contains a scholarly preface exploring why writers write, examining the characteristics offictionwriters, and addressing the importance of place, both emotional and geographical, in fiction. Four original short stories are included in this thesis. "Miracle at Mita" depicts an aging surfer trying to overcome his fear of commitment. "Coyote Man" explores a father's guilt and the isolation resulting from that guilt. "Time, and Time Again" traces a young woman's fear of marriage to her memory of her parents' relationship, and "Paraplegia" examines a young woman immobilized by her own lack of self-esteem. These stories are connected through their themes of isolation and reconnection.

This creative project includes five chapters of an original novel, sufficiently polished for submission to a publisher, plus a plot summary and a specific plan for marketing the novel. The novel was written in. a style utilizing the detailed and factual approach called "the new journalism." Though the story is entirely fictional, the writer employed the "saturation research" that is characteristic of the new journalism to make the story both realistic and plausible.The plan for marketing the novel explored various avenues of approach and proposed a specific plan for, first, getting an agent, and if that fails, finding a publisher. It outlined a philosophical approach to the problem that is based partly on information found in Writer's Market and other books on publishing, partly on the writer's professional experience and partly on advice she obtained from people she knew through her work in New York City. It dealt particularly withproblems a first-time novelist is likely to encounter.

The intent of this project is to study the use of multiple narrators who occupy the same space over a spread of time. While the subject matter has been one of intense study over the years, the approach to implore this technique of fiction has opened the characters, plot, and story to greater exploration.

Given the growing interest in fiction writing in Australia, seen in the rise in the number of festivals, writers' centres, how-to books, biographies and creative writing classes, it is surprising that very little research has been done within Australia on the nature of literary creativity itself. A review of international literature on creativity from areas such as the arts, history, psychology, sociology, cultural studies, business and education shows movement away from traditional and conventional ideas of creativity that focus primarily on the individual, towards more contextual approaches that reconceptualise creativity as the result of a dynamic system at work. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's tripartite model of creativity, which includes a field of experts, a domain of knowledge and an individual author, has been successfully applied to the arts and sciences in North America. It is argued that the systems model is also relevant to Australian fiction writing, a term which is used here to include novels in literature, popular fiction and genre fiction categories. This thesis is primarily based on in-depth interviews with 40 published Australian fiction writers. With over 400 publications between them, the individual writers interviewed represent a broad cross section of Australian fiction categories at both the national and international level. In addition to literary writers like Carmel Bird and Venero Armanno, this sample also incorporates writers in other genres such as Di Morrissey and Nick Earls (popular fiction), Paul Collins (science fiction and fantasy), Anna Jacobs (romance), Peter Doyle (crime) and Libby Gleeson and Gary Crew (children's and young adult fiction). Although the individual writers possess unique combinations of characteristics, biographies and processes, their collective responses demonstrate common participation in systemic processes of creativity. By analysing these responses in terms of Csikszentmihalyi's systems model, this thesis presents evidence that demonstrates a system of creativity at work in Australian fiction. The analysis of the collected data provides evidence, firstly, of how writers adopt and master the domain skills and knowledge needed to be able to write fiction through processes of socialisation and enculturation. Secondly, it is also the contention of this thesis that the individual's ability to contribute to the domain depends not only on traditional biological, personality and motivational influences but also socially and culturally mediated work practices and processes. Finally, it is asserted that the contribution of a field of experts is also crucial to creativity occurring in Australian fiction writing. This social organisation, comprised of all those who can affect the domain, is important not only for its influence on and acceptance of written works but also for the continuation of the system itself. The evidence shows that the field supports further writing as well as writing careers with many authors becoming members of the field themselves. In sum, the research demonstrates that, rather than being solely the property of individual authors, creativity in Australian fiction writing results from individuals making choices and acting within the boundaries of specific social and cultural contexts.

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The dissertation "And the Sea looked : a novel in the making" is an exploration of the creative process of a prose fiction novel called „And the Sea Looked‟. Following the lives of three women, the novel reflects on the idea that universal Peace (the end of all wars) will only be possible if individuals, through the power of their choices in the way they live their ordinary lives, strive to transcend the separations and imperfections of the Material World, ultimately finding a universal unity ("oneness") in the ideal love existing in Plato‟s superior, Divine World. The psychological creative process behind the making of the novel is investigated in-depth and a short critical interpretation of the novel is included. / English Studies / M.A. (English)