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Literary Arts

Literary Arts

Through collaboration and community, the Literary Arts Department strives to create a
welcoming, innovative space to foster creative risk-taking, literary experimentation, and
mastery of the craft of writing across many disciplines and genres.

Overview

The Literary Arts Department offers an inventive and intensive exploration of the art and practice of creative writing. Our program is a comprehensive, dynamic, and innovative introduction to literary genres, styles, and techniques driven by a faculty who are both dedicated teachers and practicing, published writers. Rigorous, craft-oriented writing workshops—with literature and literary analysis folded into the curriculum—comprise the core of our program.

Literary Arts courses are differentiated to allow students at all experience and accomplishment levels to feel comfortable yet challenged. Courses include readings intended to inspire students via a diverse array of writers, both traditional and experimental, contemporary and canonical, from many intersecting cultures and identities. Literary Arts also focuses on project-based and collaborative learning, and students get hands-on experience in editing, designing, and producing publications.

Literary Arts Publications & Media

Our current Literary Arts print and online publications are:

OSA Telegraph: Class-produced online journalism site featuring articles, essays, interviews and more. Students work as writers, editors, proofreaders,and group leaders and also learn marketing and podcasting.

Senior Books: Lit Art’s penultimate, capstone class led by Jordan Karnes. Lit Arts seniors write, edit, publish, and promote their books in about 9 months. This includes regular workshops, one-on-one conferences, and of course deadlines! Come second semester, students meet once a week with CCA student mentors who will provide a full read/edit of their manuscripts, and have the opportunity to collaborate with a CCA designer on the cover of their book. Check back in May for the class of 2021's new books!

ARTS PATHWAYS

jordan karnes

Chair, Literary Arts
jordan karnes

jkarnes@oakarts.org

BIOGRAPHY

Jordan Karnes is a writer, poet, and teacher who chairs the Literary Arts department at Oakland School for the Arts, where they've taught for 9 years. Jordan runs the Sr Books program for Lit Arts, as well as the OSA Telegraph for middle school, and the Poetry and Creative-Nonfiction workshops for high school. Prior to joining OSA, Jordan received their MFA in Creative Writing at CCA, going on to work for McSweeney's Publishing in San Francisco. Jordan is the author of two collections, It Hasn’t Stopped Being California Here and More Silver Than Gold. In addition, they used to write a column on sports and gender for New Life Quarterly called "World's Greatest," and have written for The Believer, and contributed to New York Magazine’s The Cut podcast.