Creative Writing Track

Program Overview

Our top-ranked Creative Writing program pairs aspiring undergraduate students with professors and instructors who are award-winning working artists, to study in small, close-knit workshop classes that emphasize the fruitful symbiosis between close reading and inventive writing. Students are encouraged to take courses in writing poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and cross genre or hybrid forms, where they gain a robust understanding of the literary conversation in which they wish to participate, and enjoy careful individual attention to their own original work. In addition to growing as writers, readers, and thinkers, the workshop model trains students to give and receive criticism, problem-solve in creative and original ways, work effectively in a solo and self-disciplined way as well as in a collaborate group, and think broadly about the application of their work to their communities, in a living and evolving literary tradition.  Students go on to work in such areas as advertising, copywriting, writing for television and cinema, arts administration, digital content creation, magazine writing and editing, information analysis, book publishing, law, education, and more.

Requirements

Reading & Research

  • ENGL 2100 Ways of Reading Literature

Writing Foundations (choose one)

  • ENGL 3076 Writing With Style
  • ENGL 3046 Modern English Grammar
  • ENGL 3189 Critical Writing Workshop 

Culture & Diversity (choose one)

  • ENGL 2025 Catholic Themes in Literature
  • ENGL 2026 Introduction to Disability Literature
  • ENGL 2028 Theater & Performance Studies
  • ENGL 2029 Literature and Gender
  • ENGL 2030 Lit. & Environment
  • ENGL 2031 Film & Environment
  • ENGL 2032 Ecocriticism
  • ENGL 2041 21st Century American Drama
  • ENGL 2045 Queer Literatures
  • ENGL 2046 Social Justice & Literature
  • ENGL 2051 Outrageous Writings by Women
  • ENGL 2054 Women’s Literature
  • ENGL 2056 Holocaust Literature
  • ENGL 2073 Writing for Justice
  • ENGL 2074 Social Media & Society
  • ENGL 2080 Ethnic Literatures of the U.S. 
  • ENGL 2083 African American Literature Survey I
  • ENGL 2084 African American Literature Survey II
  • ENGL 2093 Cross Cultural Communication
  • ENGL 2130 Study Abroad Topics in English
  • ENGL 2141 Introduction to American Ethnic Literature 
  • ENGL 2142 Topics in American Ethnic Literature 
  • ENGL 2144 Social Media for Social Justice & Activism
  • ENGL 2161 Black Women Writers 
  • ENGL 2179 Modern Asian Fiction 
  • ENGL 2193 Intro. to Environmental Writing
  • ENGL 3049 Creative Writing & Social Change
  • ENGL 3079 Creative Writing and the Environment
  • ENGL 3081 Romanticism & the Invention of Nature
  • ENGL 3082 Environment in Literature & Film
  • ENGL 3083 Environmental Health Literature
  • ENGL 3103 Creative Writing & the Community
  • ENGL 3104 Poetic Justice
  • ENGL 3127 Intro. to Critical Race Theory
  • ENGL 3137 Queer Theory
  • ENGL 3177 Global English Fiction

Literary Traditions (choose one)

  • ENGL 2007 American Literature Survey I
  • ENGL 2008 American Literature Survey II
  • ENGL 2134 English Literature Survey I
  • ENGL 2135 English Literature Survey II
  • ENGL 2087 Pre-20th Century Literature
  • ENGL 2021 World Literature I
  • ENGL 2022 World Literature II
  • ENGL 2078 Bible Literature I
  • ENGL 2079 Bible Literature II
  • ENGL 3006 Introduction to Shakespeare

Fields of English (choose one from outside of your track)

    Literary and Cultural Studies (LCS) (for Creative Writing and RPW students)

  • ENGL 2035 Contemporary Novel 
  • ENGL 2046 Social Justice & Literature 
  • ENGL 2067 Topics in Film 
  • ENGL 2184 Comics/Graphic Novel  
  • ENGL 3090 Literature & Medicine

    Creative Writing (for LCS and RPW students)

  • ENGL 2010 Intro to CW Multi
  • ENGL 2011 Intro to CW Fiction
  • ENGL 2013 Intro to CW Nonfiction
  • ENGL 2015 Intro to Screenwriting
  • ENGL 2017 Intro to CW Poetry
  • ENGL 2027 Intro to CW Drama
  • ENGL 3085 Forms of Poetry
  • ENGL 3086 Forms of Fiction
  • ENGL 3087 Forms of Literary Nonfiction
  • ENGL 3096 Creative Writing & Literary Publishing 

    Rhetoric and Professional Writing (RPW) (for LCS and Creative Writing students)

  • ENGL 2159 Intro to Professional Writing 
  • ENGL 2070 Desktop Publishing 
  • ENGL 2074 Social Media and Society 
  • ENGL 2093 Cross Cultural Communication 
  • ENGL 2193 Intro to Environmental Writing 
  • ENGL 3072 Multimedia Writing 
  • ENGL 4091 Business Writing 
  • ENGL 4092 Technical and Scientific Writing 
  • ENGL 4093 Environmental Writing 

Please be aware that some courses have prerequisites. Most intermediate courses require one introductory course. Capstones require at least one intermediate course.

  • One Introductory Course – choose one of the following:
    ENGL 2010 Introduction to Creative Writing Multi: Poetry & Prose
    ENGL 2011 Introduction to Creative Writing: Fiction
    ENGL 2013 Introduction to Literary Nonfiction
    ENGL 2015 Introduction to Screenwriting
    ENGL 2017 Introduction to Creative Writing: Poetry
    ENGL 2027 Introduction to Creative Writing: Drama

  • One Forms Course – choose one of the following:
    ENGL 3085 Forms of Poetry
    ENGL 3086 Forms of Fiction
    ENGL 3087 Forms of Literary Nonfiction

  • Two Intermediate Courses – choose TWO of the following:
    ENGL 3015 Poetry and Sound
    ENGL 3022 Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy
    ENGL 3023 Writing the Mystery
    ENGL 3025 Writing Historical Fiction
    ENGL 3026 Writing Fiction with a Global Vision
    ENGL 3027 Writing Comic Fiction
    ENGL 3030 Writing the Love Poem
    ENGL 3031 The Poet as Actor: Persona and Voice in Poetry
    ENGL 3032 Music and Poetry
    ENGL 3033 Writing Prose Poetry and Flash Fiction
    ENGL 3034 Audiopoetics
    ENGL 3049 Creative Writing and Social Change
    ENGL 3053 Writing Fiction in the Digital Age
    ENGL 3054 Creative Writing Pedagogy
    ENGL 3055 Creative Writing from Real Life
    ENGL 3056 Writing Comic Poetry & Prose
    ENGL 3079 Creative Writing and the Environment
    ENGL 3085 Forms of Poetry
    ENGL 3086 Forms of Fiction
    ENGL 3087 Forms of Literary Nonfiction
    ENGL 3096 Creative Writing & Literary Publishing
    ENGL 3101 Reading & Writing Memoir
    ENGL 3102 Podcasting & Audio Storytelling
    ENGL 3103 Creative Writing & the Community
    ENGL 3104 Poetic Justice
    ENGL 3105 Writing Landscapes: Poetry
    ENGL 3107 Creative Writing in Contemporary Contexts
    ENGL 4012 Intermediate Creative Writing: Fiction
    ENGL 4013 Intermediate Literary Nonfiction
    ENGL 4017 Intermediate Creative Writing: Poetry

  • Two English Electives - choose two English courses at the 2000 level or above, for a total of 6 hours. No English elective credit is given for 2000 level composition courses (ENGL 2089 or its equivalent).

  • One Capstone – choose one of the following:
    ENGL 5112 Senior Writing Seminar: Fiction
    ENGL 5113 Senior Writing Seminar: Literary Nonfiction
    ENGL 5114 Senior Writing Seminar: Creative Writing and Research
    ENGL 5115 Senior Writing Seminar: Hybrid Forms
    ENGL 5117 Senior Writing Seminar: Poetry