ENG 340 is a survey course in contemporary literature designed for students interested in creative writing. Students will be asked to read contemporary American authors such as Jennifer Egan, Lev Grossman, Joan Didion, Ben Lerner, Sheila Heti, James Wood, Curtis Sittenfeld, George Saunders and Karen Russell with special attention to prose style, structure, and the influence of modern and postmodern literary movements. Students will workshop each other's creative writing, informed by the aesthetic strategies they've gleaned from the reading material. Students will also receive an introduction to the culture and history of contemporary American book publishing and and literary magazine publishing.