Students have the opportunity to pursue a creative writing concentration within the English major. Students who are not English majors can declare a minor in creative writing.
The Creative Writing Concentration
The creative writing concentration is open only to English majors and requires three courses, including:
- One creative writing course at the introductory level in either prose or poetry (English 141 or 142); and
- Two creative writing courses from the intermediate level in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry (English 241, 242, and 243).
Only two creative writing courses may be counted toward the English major, so creative writing concentrators will take a minimum of 12 courses in English rather than 11. Beyond the three required courses, the department offers creative writing electives such as screenwriting and science writing so that students can deepen their practice as writers. Students may also apply to take part in a competitive multi-genre advanced workshop or complete a senior thesis in creative writing.
The Creative Writing Minor
The creative writing minor enables students who are not English majors to focus on the practice of creative writing, providing them with a solid grounding in literary reading as well as opportunities for interdisciplinary coursework.
The Creative Writing Minor requires six courses, including:
- One creative writing course at the introductory level in either prose or poetry (English 141 or 142);
- Two creative writing courses from the intermediate level in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry (English 241, 242, and 243);
- Two literature courses in the English department, one of which must be at the English 300 level or above;
- One elective, which could be another English course, or (with the consultation of the creative writing coordinator) could come from outside the English department.
In consultation with their advisors, students pursuing the creative writing minor take literature courses that amplify their creative interests and suit their abilities. For example, if a student is working primarily in fiction, she could enroll in a course on the novel. To fulfill a non 300-level course possibility, students can take a relevant introductory or intermediate English course (e.g., CRAW: Fiction, Poetry and Poetics), a creative writing elective (e.g. Introduction to Screenwriting), a writing course (e.g. Intermediate Academic Writing), or a relevant non-English course (e.g. creative writing in Spanish, studio art, or a relevant computer coding course). The point of these substitutions is to tailor the minor to the student’s interests. For example, a computer science coding course might serve a student interested in narrative video game development, while a course in photography or film production might serve a student interested in multimedia creative composition.