Class Structure:

Creative writing classes are limited to 15 students! We follow a  workshop model--students bring original written work to class to be read and discussed by the whole class. The student then revises the work based on peer and professor comments. Creative writing classes also may include professor-student conferences for discussion of your work in progress. Students in creative writing classes are expected to attend the Visiting Writers Series readings.

Expectations:

• In beginning poetry, you will complete lots of writing prompts designed to introduce you to diverse poetic styles and techniques. Plan on  writing and revising 6-8 poems. In advanced poetry, your course might include an in-depth investigation of an individual poet or poetic subject, with poems and revisions focused around that subject. Plan on 6-8 poems with revisions.

• In beginning nonfiction (memoir, the personal essay, travel writing, journalism), expect to do weekly short assignments aimed at developing craft, along with one longer essay and revisions. In advanced nonfiction expect weekly short essays, one or more extended long essays with more intense revision, and maybe a radio or video essay.

• Beginning fiction students complete weekly writing exercises, along with two short story drafts, one of which you will revise. In advanced fiction students can expect greater emphasis on longer and more carefully revised work.

Celebrate! All graduating BFA candidates participate in a senior reading, a special event where every student reads a short piece of his or her best work, where the annual Creative Prizes are awarded, and each student is honored by gifts from the Writers Guild. This event, held in the spring of each year, is a celebration for students, their friends, and families.

The Seminar in Writing is the capstone course in the BFA Program; students take it in their final year, after all other writing requirements are complete. One goal in the Seminar is to collect the student’s best writing from earlier classes and present it in a final portfolio. In the seminar, students mainly focus on workshopping and revising old and new work. That writing, along with an artist's statement, self-assessment and annotated bibliography, makes up the portfolio. A copy of each student's portfolio is kept in the Creative Writing House library as a resource and archive for future students. The seminar also introduces students to such important issues as methods of manuscript submission, choosing and applying to graduate schools, finding writing-related jobs, and building a career as a writer.

Exit Interview:  In the exit interview, BFA candidates present their completed portfolio to representatives of the Creative Writing faculty. The student and his or her "exit committee" discuss the candidate’s work, progress as a writer, any ideas he or she may have for the future of  BFA the program, and his or her plans for after graduation.