After decades of use in creative writing programs, the workshop method has come under a recent wave of attacks and criticism. Though revising and enhancing the workshop process is necessary, the writing workshop should remain a tradition in the education of young writers.

Increased attention on written response to literature has tended to eliminate other forms of student writing in literature classrooms. However, when we allow students to write fiction unrelated to a particular text, their commitment to and understanding of texts are enhanced. This can serve as a means of engaging students with reading. Eight…