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The Creative Writing Major

The undergraduate Creative Writing major at the University of Illinois, formerly known as the Rhetoric major, is one of the oldest of its kind in the country. Now in its seventh decade, the major combines small workshops (poetry, fiction, nonfiction) and a variety of literature courses.

Note: We also offer a Creative Writing minor. For an overview of our minor requirements, click here .

Members of UIUC's undergraduate Creative Writing Club

The undergraduate Creative Writing major at the University of Illinois, formerly known as the Rhetoric major, is one of the oldest of its kind in the country. Now in its seventh decade, the major combines small workshops (poetry, fiction, nonfiction) and a variety of literature courses. The result is a strong but flexible program of study that develops students' analytical and creative skills and prepares them for work or graduate study in any number of fields.

Members of UIUC's undergraduate Creative Writing Club

Students in the undergraduate program edit and publish an annual journal, Montage Arts Journal , which features poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and visual art by University of Illinois undergraduate student writers and artists. For more information about Montage , visit montagejournal.wordpress.com .

Through our program, writers shape their literary voices, develop distinctive styles, and intensify their written, critical, and editorial skills. Students write about what matters most to them and learn about contemporary literary publishing through developing their imaginative, expressive, and dynamic writing.

Creative Writing Major Requirements

Literature for creative writers (6 credit hours).

  • CW 100: Introduction to Creative Writing
  • CW 200: Reading for Writers

Craft (3 credit hours)

  • CW 243: The Craft Essay:  Creative Reading, Reflection, and Revision  

Creative Writing Workshops (12 credit hours)

Creative Writing majors must complete at least one of the following 3-course (9-hour) sequences:

  • CW 106: Poetry Workshop I
  • CW 206: Poetry Workshop II
  • CW 406: Poetry Workshop III
  • CW 104: Fiction Workshop I
  • CW 204: Fiction Workshop II
  • CW 404: Fiction Workshop III

The remaining 3 hours in this category can be satisfied by a fourth CW Workshop outside of the chosen sequence.  CW 404 and CW 406 may be repeated once for credit, but may not be repeated to fulfill this requirement.

Writing and Literature (3 credit hours)

3 hours of Writing and Literature coursework, either:

  • 3 hours of non-Workshop CW coursework (CW 460, or another approved non-Workshop CW course)
  • 3 hours of ENGL coursework

Additional Literature Coursework (12 credit hours)

12 additional hours of approved ENGL coursework, including:

  • 9 hours of approved ENGL Literature coursework
  • 3 hours of an ENGL Difference & Diaspora course

For more information on the Creative Writing major and minor, please visit our listings in the Academic Catalog:

  • Creative Writing Major - full, detailed requirements
  • Creative Writing Minor - full , detailed requirements
  • Creative Writing Courses

The faculty of the Creative Writing Program represent a diverse range of writing and teaching styles and interests and are actively working in various genres and media, including poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, theater, and film. Faculty members have received numerous awards and fellowships. A small selection of these includes the Yale Series of Younger Poets, the Native Writers' Circle Award of the Americas Lifetime Achievement Award, the American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize in Fiction, the FC2 National Fiction Competition, a Whiting Award, the A. Poulin Jr. Poetry Prize, the Kate Tufts Discovery Prize, the William Peden Prize, the Academy of American Poets Award, the Bakeless Prize, Wallace Stegner fellowships, and fellowships from the NEA, Guggenheim Foundation, Yaddo, MacDowell, Bread Loaf, Sewanee, and many others.

Follow the links below to learn more about our undergraduate Creative Writing program's core faculty members:

Ángel García

Janice N. Harrington

Amy Hassinger

Christopher Kempf

Julie Price

John Rubins

Ted Sanders

Alex Shakar

Corey Van Landingham

David Wright

Ángel García

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University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Illinois, united states.

The Master of Fine Arts degree at the University of Illinois provides students with the opportunity for graduate study and professional training in the writing of fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction. The program offers guided study and practice in the writing of short stories, novels, poetry, plays, and such creative nonfiction as the belletristic essay, biography, autobiography, and memoir. It also provides the high level of training required for professional editing and publication, and trains writers to become teachers of writing, supplying them with the terminal degree appropriate for university teaching. Our magazine, Ninth Letter, affords our students practical experience in the production and editing of a major literary journal. Research assistantships with the Ninth Letter and its website are awarded on a semester-by-semester rotation.

The MFA program is affiliated with an English Department routinely ranked among the highest in the nation. The department's creative writing faculty features several distinguished poets and fiction writers with national and international reputations.

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a world-class research and teaching institution. The university library has more than eight million volumes, making it the third largest academic library in the country after Harvard and Yale. Its many specialized collections are open to faculty and students. Illinois also provides a sophisticated computing environment and offers free Internet accounts and Web space to all students.

university of illinois creative writing mfa

Contact Information

608 S. Wright St. Department of English Urbana Illinois, United States 61801 Email: [email protected] https://english.illinois.edu/admissions/graduate-admission/mfa-creative-writing

Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing +

Undergraduate program director.

The Creative Writing major at the University of Illinois, known formally as the Rhetoric major, is one of the oldest of its kind in the country. Now in its sixth decade, the major combines small workshops (poetry, fiction, nonfiction) and a variety of literature courses. The result is a strong but flexible program of study that develops students' analytical and creative skills and prepares them for work or graduate study in any number of fields. Over the years, the program has produced many successful writers, but it is in the give-and-take of the workshop, in the nurturance of all of the writers who take part, that success is measured.\nThe University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign offers a BA in English (Major in Rhetoric). A minimum of 15 hours in workshop courses and 15 hours in literature courses are required of the Rhetoric major. No thesis is required except of students working toward Honors.

Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing +

Graduate program director, janice n. harrington.

Primitive; Catching a Storyfish; The Hands of Strangers; Even the Hollow My Body Made is Gone; The Chicken Chasing Queen of Lamar County; Going North; Busy-Busy Little Chick

http://www.janiceharrington.com/; creativewriting.english.illinois.edu/faculty/janice_harrington/

Ted Sanders

The Starlit Loom: The Portal and the Veil; The Harp and the Ravenvine; The Box and the Dragonfly; No Animals we Could Name.

http://tedsanders.net/the-keepers/; http://creativewriting.english.illinois.edu/faculty/ted_sanders/

Alex Shakar

Luminarium; The Savage Girl; City in Love.

http://alexshakar.com/; https://www.english.illinois.edu/people/ashakar

David Wright

Away Running; Fire on the Beach

http://www.davidwrightbooks.com/; https://www.english.illinois.edu/people/wright3

Amy Hassinger

After the Dam; The Priest's Madonna; Nina

http://www.amyhassinger.com/; https://www.english.illinois.edu/people/amyh3

Corey Van Landingham

https://www.coreyvanlandingham.com/

Ángel García

Teeth Never Sleep

https://poets.org/poet/angel-garcia

Christopher Kempf

Late in the Empire of Men

https://www.christopherkempf.com/

Publications & Presses +

Ninth Letter

Visiting Writers Program +

Recent visiting writers include Dave Eggers, Carl Phillips, Linda Gregerson, David Baker, Chen Chen, Brian Evenson, Ishion Hutchinson, Donika Kelly, Margaret Luongo, Jenny Offill, and George Saunders.

Reading Series +

The Robert J. Carr Visiting Author Series ( https://calendars.illinois.edu/list/7210 )

Kaplan Family Writer in Residence Series ( https://calendars.illinois.edu/list/7210 )

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College Of Liberal Arts And Sciences

Program for writers.

UIC offers a PhD in English with creative dissertation and also an MA in English with creative manuscript.

The MA is considered preparation to enter an PhD program, either in literature or creative writing; or a degree to prepare a writer to enter jobs in publishing, public relations, high school or community college teaching, grant writing, corporate writing, and other communications fields.

UIC’s PhD is suitably academic and scholarly, blending thorough studies in critical theory and literature with in-depth immersion in the writing of fiction, poetry or creative nonfiction. The program is usually completed in 5 or 6 years. In that time students prepare themselves to work as professors with 3 or 4 solid individually designed teaching areas. In the same time, students also become skilled and imaginative college composition instructors, and have opportunities to broaden expertise in this area if desired. PhD students in the Program for Writers also teach beginning creative writing courses in their genre, and may teach introductory literature courses as well. All PhD students are offered teaching assistantships.

The student who finishes a PhD with creative dissertation also graduates with a book-length MS of poetry, fiction or creative nonfiction. Some students are able to complete more than one book. Students in the program are encouraged to seek publication before they finish the program. There are opportunities for assistance in learning the literary market and how to present oneself to it. The Program for Writers Workshops welcome new drafts as well as revisions of drafts seen in earlier workshops. Workshops are offered in short fiction, the novel, creative nonfiction, and poetry. A student-run reading series presents public readings of works-in-progress by both PhD and MA students in the program.

The 2-year Program for Writers MA is designed to provide intensive work in a particular genre plus an advanced overview of literary and cultural studies. A 3-year option can include secondary teaching certification. The MA is designed as a stepping-stone to PhD work but it also prepares students for community college or high school teaching, careers in publishing or editing, and other professional areas. Students complete the MA with a partial MS, or portfolio, roughly 75-150 pages (prose), somewhat shorter for poetry (40-50 pgs). The project could consist of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction. Excerpts from novels or from a longer creative nonfiction piece are allowed, as are combinations of fiction and nonfiction. Some students do complete a book-length manuscript. MA and PhD students are in writing workshops together, so master’s students benefit from the combined years of experience and a wide range of aesthetics.

Be sure to review our admissions information, as well as MA degree requirements and PhD degree requirements.

Creative Writing Faculty

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Master of Fine Arts In English | Humanities and Social Sciences | SIU

Humanities and social sciences.

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SIU Creative Writing classroom

There are advantages to earning a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing degree that are difficult or time-consuming to achieve without the degree. In fact, one of the most important advantages to the M.F.A. is time — time to focus on your craft, and time saved by learning about writing, writing opportunities and the writing world on your own.

Our faculty are all well-known, respected authors and sought-after for readings, anthologies and awards. Our association with Southern Illinois University Press and our long-standing tradition of hosting various literary festivals and readings make our home community an active part of the greater writing community — and that means expanded opportunities for our graduate students.

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Assistantships

Almost all MA, MFA, and PhD students hold graduate assistantships, which provide stipends for the academic year and full remission of tuition. The annual stipend, which comes with tuition remission, ranges from $13,000 to $14,500, depending on the degree. Assistantships are renewable to students in good standing: up to twenty-four months for MA students, up to thirty-two months for MFA, and forty-eight for PhD. Graduate students in good standing who have taught freshman English (ENGL 101 and 102) are also eligible to teach a variety of courses to broaden their teaching expertise, including literature courses, and to serve as tutors in the program’s Writing Center.

Most graduate assistants are assigned to the University’s first year writing program, in which they have full responsibility for two sections of composition each semester. An extensive series of pre-semester workshops, a semester-long seminar in the teaching of college composition, and a mentoring system complement graduate work and assist in professional development. Summer teaching is also available to a limited number of graduate students.

First, the workshops. As is fairly standard in many writing programs, you’ll read your work and critique your peers work in a collegial environment led by our faculty.

You’ll also work one-on-one with our writing faculty. And you’ll produce a thesis of original work, for which you will work closely with your advisor.

You should expect to work in a variety of forms — in both poetry or fiction as your chosen focus. We introduce our writing students to a variety of styles and personalities, from traditional to experimental and even including new technology and non-traditional venues for publication and storytelling.

Our small program size provides an excellent student-teacher ratio, and encourages both formal and informal apprenticeship and tutorial relationships. While no academic program can promise to create writers, our M.F.A. program strives to provide committed, talented writers the guidance, instruction, support, and community that will help them produce their best work.

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Center for Virtual Expression

Our fiction program focuses on professionalization regardless of subject matter or genre. Our fiction writers have found success in literary journals and at literary publishing houses, as well as at large commercial houses, with literary fiction, science fiction, fantasy fiction, slipstream fiction, horror fiction, and crime fiction.

The fiction program also supports podcasting, audiobook creation, game narrative, virtual reality narrative, 360-degree video-making, Twitter fiction, subreddit fiction, and other forms of technological narrative. You need not be versed in these new approaches to storytelling, but you'll need to be open-minded, given the wide opportunities available with these novel venues.

How to apply

The application deadline is January 1 for prospective students wanting the concentration of literary studies and rhetoric and composition. There is no deadline for applications for the English Studies concentration. However, to ensure full consideration for summer or fall admission, applicants should complete the Graduate School’s application by April 20 . To ensure full consideration for spring admission, applicants should complete the application by November 15 .

The application will ask you to submit a CV, statement of purpose, writing sample, and three letters of recommendation, in addition to transcripts and other basic academic information. Please consult the following documents for advice on application materials, statements of purpose, and writing samples.

  • Statement of Purpose Guidelines
  • Writing Sample Guidelines

While GRE scores (general or subject tests) are not required for admission to the MA, MFA, or PhD programs, students are still encouraged to submit these scores. The minimum GPA for admission to SIU Carbondale’s Graduate School is 2.7 (of 4.0).

Contact Information

Ryan Netzley Director of Graduate Studies Faner  2276 1000 Faner Dr Carbondale, IL 62901 618-453-6845 [email protected]

Fanner Hall on SIU campus

Roosevelt University

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Master’s in Creative Writing, MFA

Roosevelt's MFA program provides access to a close-knit community of writers as well as the opportunity to participate in Chicago's world-class literary scene. Working closely with faculty and classmates, students develop their craft and expand their artistic horizons, with the ultimate goal of completing a book-length thesis. The program's focus on prose allows writers to explore the possibilities of various genres, including the novel, the memoir, the short story and the lyric essay.

Admission Requirements

Sample courses, career opportunities, admission info.

Location:  Chicago Start Term:  Fall, Spring

  • Online Application
  • Application Fee
  • Official transcripts from all previously attended colleges/universities within the United States. Coursework completed outside the U.S. requires a Foreign Credential Evaluation to be submitted.
  • Resume/curriculum vitae
  • Letter of intent outlining your personal and professional goals, why you are interested in this program, and how it will help you achieve your goals
  • Writing sample (20 pages) demonstrating your abilities within a chosen specialty. For fiction , submit at least three different pieces of fiction (short stories, novella or a novel excerpt). For creative nonfiction , submit at least three pieces of creative nonfiction (personal essays, memoir excerpts, a chapter from a biography or other work in progress).
  • Two letters of recommendation
  • English Language Proficiency : All international students and individuals who completed a degree program outside the United States are required to meet this requirement.

Sample MFA Creative Writing Courses

  • Fiction Forms Workshop
  • Creative Nonfiction Forms Workshop
  • Literary Magazine Internship

View the course catalog for the MFA in Creative Writing .

Career Opportunities for Creative Writing

While this is a fine arts program with the goal of developing literary skill, MFA graduates have opportunities wherever compelling writing and strong critical thinking are needed. Our graduates have gone on to become authors, both full-time and part-time, and they also work in education, publishing, journalism, marketing, advertising and arts administration.

Why Roosevelt for your MFA

Woman seated outdoors reading a book in front of a window with potted plants on the window sill.

Paths for Every Genre

Students and faculty at Roosevelt embrace a broad range of styles and forms, from literary to experimental, mystery to science fiction and fantasy.

Speaker presenting in front of an audience inside the Auditorium Library.

Gain Literary Journal Experience

MFA candidates have the opportunity to work on our nationally distributed literary journal, Oyez Review , and participate in our public reading series.

Man selecting a book from a large bookshelf full of books.

Local Publishing Connections

Partnerships with various local festivals, publishers and schools provide opportunities for networking and professional development.

“Our intimate class size gives us space to nurture each MFA candidate's unique voice, and our Chicago-based writing faculty of award-winning, internationally-recognized writers is committed to getting each thesis ready for publication.”

Jessica Chiang Proud Alum & Program Director, Creative Writing

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university of illinois creative writing mfa

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Undergraduate Admissions

Majors : find your calling..

Need help? Start here.

Creative Writing

College of Liberal Arts & Sciences

What is Creative Writing?

As a Creative Writing major, you’ll learn how to develop your own individual voice. You'll also learn to produce original works in fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction. Coursework consists of creative writing classes, and classes in English, history, and culture. Small writing workshops that focus on giving and receiving feedback will teach you to communicate your ideas to others. You’ll also develop your skills in these areas:

  • Communication
  • Problem-solving 

Career Options

  • Arts administration
  • Communications
  • Creative writing
  • Entertainment
  • Library & information science

Post-Graduation Success 1

80% employed or continuing education

60% employed after graduation

18% attending graduate school

2% volunteering

$39,000 average starting annual income

Sample employer destinations: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, School of Labor and Employment Relations, University of Illinois at Chicago, College Of Dentistry, XciteSteps View All

Sample grad school destinations: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of California, Irvine, University of San Francisco View All

Program Resources

Review criteria, first-year major-specific criteria.

  • Demonstrated understanding of and interest in the major

View All Review Criteria

Transfer Criteria

Graduation & retention 2.

4.0 years to degree

93% first-year retention rate

72% four-year graduation rate

85% six-year graduation rate

Annual Program Costs 3

Illinois resident.

  • Tuition: $12,712
  • Fees: $4,928
  • Expenses: $18,222
  • Total: $35,862

Non-Resident

  • Tuition: $31,832
  • Expenses: $18,562
  • Total: $55,322

International

  • Tuition: $34,280
  • Total: $57,770

Related Majors

1 Post-graduate data was collected through the Illini Success initiative , which primarily relies on self-reported survey data sources. Statistics are aggregated from the past three years. Please note that total compensation may be greater than annual salary as other forms of compensation (e.g., signing bonus, commission, benefits) are not included. For more information on Illini Success data and methods, please visit the Illini Success website . For average wage or salary information five years after entry into an occupation, visit the My Next Move website .

2 Graduation and retention data comes from several majors within a similar interest area. Graduation and retention data comes from several majors within a similar interest area. Data may not yet be available for newly created programs. Years-to-degree data is only available for programs from which you can earn a degree. Retention and graduation rates are only available for programs that you can apply directly into. Retention rates reflect retention to the university, not necessarily retention within the major.

3 "Expenses" are estimated and include books, supplies, housing, and other living expenses. The exact amount you’ll pay depends on where you decide to live, the meal plan you choose, and your overall lifestyle. To learn more about costs, please visit the Office of Student Financial Aid website . To learn the average monthly student loan payment over a period of 20 years based on estimated cost, visit the Illinois College2Career website .

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College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences > Academics > English > Graduate Programs > Creative Writing and Publishing (MFA)

Creative Writing and Publishing (MFA)

Tell your story in long-form.

DePaul’s MFA in Creative Writing and Publishing will prepare and empower you to write a novel or memoir, or a collection of poetry or stories while at DePaul. You’ll work across genres under the mentorship of distinguished authors and poets. With courses in Copyediting, Book Publicity, Book Design, Teaching Creative Writing, and Teaching English you’ll have the choice of a career in publishing or teaching. The Creative Writing and Publishing MFA culminates with a required master’s thesis of publishable quality. You may also earn a graduate certificate in

  • Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)
  • Teaching English in Two-Year Colleges
  • Digital Humanities

Courses are offered weekday evenings on the Lincoln Park Campus or online.  You can earn the degree in as little as two years.

Tap into a creative community

You’ll have the chance to get editorial and publishing experience with publications like Big Shoulders Books, Poetry East , Crook & Folly and Slag Glass City . Internship opportunities exist at Chicago-area community colleges as well.

Application Deadlines

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, though we encourage you to submit your application materials 10 to 12 weeks prior to the quarter in which you wish to enroll.

Submit an online application, official transcripts, current résumé, a 500–750-word reflective essay, letters of recommendation and writing portfolio.

Required Courses

You’ll take six workshop courses, one topic course, four electives, and complete a thesis.

of College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences graduates were employed, continuing their education or pursuing other goals within six months of graduation

The median salary for Creative Writing and Publishing graduates was $52,000.

Alumni Network

With a network of 8,900 fellow College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences master’s-level graduates in Chicago and beyond, you have a variety of opportunities to grow your professional and academic connections.

Scholarships & Aid

Graduate school is an investment in your future. Learn more about the financial aid and scholarship opportunities available to you.

Contact Information

For more information about applying, contact The Office of Graduate Admission at (773) 325-7315 or [email protected] .

Take the next step

We’ll send you our viewbook with information about the degree, admission requirements and upcoming info sessions. Let’s get started.

University Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

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Creative Writing Guide: Home

  • Writers' Tools
  • Literary Magazines (A-E)
  • Literary Magazines (F-L)
  • Literary Magazines (M-Q)
  • Literary Magazines (R-Z)
  • Other Literary Magazines
  • Literary Prizes & Publishers

Introduction to the Creative Writing Guide

The guide includes lists of the literary magazines in the library holdings; useful titles for inspiration, publication and reference; and information on literary prizes and Web resources related to creative writing.

Finding Books

Step One: UIUC Online Library Catalog

There are two ways to search the UIUC Library catalog. Both offer the same content but the method of searching and presentation of results varies.

  • Through the new Primo Library Catalog . This catalog requires you to register with a login and a password to request materials. It also lets you search books in I-share (see below for more details.)
  • Through the Library Easy Search . This interface lets you search the UIUC catalog for books, articles, journals and media. . 

Getting the actual book: When you locate your item you have two choices.

Print books

You can request the item and pick it up at any of the departmental libraries. Or, you can retrieve the book yourself from either the main stacks or the departmental library where the book is located. If you choose this option, make sure you jot down the location and call number of the item.

Electronic Books

Access will depend on the publisher. In some case you will be able to download full books via PDF. In others you might be able only to view the book online. In all cases the Library follow the publisher's requirements.

Step Two: I-Share

Once you have verified that the book you are looking for is either not located in the UIUC catalog or all copies are checked out, you may order it through Primo Library Catalog and selecting "All I-share Libraries." Items typically arrive within 5-10 days and you will receive an email when the item is available for pick up.

Step Three: Interlibrary Loan

If the item is not available in the UIUC catalog or through I-Share, then your next stop will be Interlibrary Loan and Document Delivery . First, keep your full citation handy -- you'll need it. Second, login to the ILLiad server using your NetID and password. From the ILLiad main menu, select "Request a Book." Be sure to fill out as much of the form as possible, including the source of your citation. This will ensure that ILL can place your request in a timely manner. You'll be notified by email when your item is ready to be picked up.

WorldCat  -You can search WorldCat to find books on your topic, which might not be in the UIUC nor the I-share catalog. Once you find a title of interest, you can order it through Interlibrary Loan

More Help with the Library Catalog

Best Websites for Creative Writing

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  • Last Updated: Nov 6, 2023 11:03 AM
  • URL: https://guides.library.illinois.edu/creativewritingguide

This is an attempt at creating an objective ranking of graduate creative writing programs.

For further and more detailed information on how the scores are generated see the methodology page.

Lists of authors without graduate creative writing degrees or whose degree status is unknown are available. Send questions, comments and corrections to [email protected] .

Disclaimer: No endorsement of these ratings should be implied by the writers and writing programs listed on this site, or by the editors and publishers of Best American Short Stories , Best American Essays , Best American Poetry , The O. Henry Prize Stories and The Pushcart Prize Anthology .

Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing

Master Fine Art Graduate

The Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing is a terminal degree and the appropriate credential for the teaching of creative writing. According to the Associated Writing Programs, the MFA in creative writing is considered the equivalent of the Ph.D. in literature, linguistics, or composition. Holders of the degree from Chicago State University will not only be able to teach courses in creative writing, but courses in African American literature, African literature, Third World literature, as well as non-Black literature. The MFA degree focuses on the study of writing through the practice, performance, and publication of original work.

Visiting Writers

Throughout the academic year, writers of prestige and established literary reputation serve as visiting writers at CSU. MFA students have an opportunity to participate in writing workshops or seminars conducted by established poets, novelists, short story writers, playwrights, and scriptwriters. Visiting Writers include Martin Espada, Honree Fannon Jeffers, Thomas Sayers Ellis, Roger Bonair-Agard, Crystal Wilkinson, Kevin Coval, Frank Walker, Achy Obejas, and Sterling Plumpp. 

Program Objectives

  • Upon completion of the program students will be able to demonstrate:
  • A thorough understanding of literary standards and schools of criterion, as applied in fiction, non-fiction, poetry, play writing, and script writing.
  • The ability to analyze creative literary works using the appropriate dictionary terms and standards.
  • A knowledge of literary periods as well as an understanding of how historical contexts impact a literary work.
  • Technical and artistic skill in crafting their own writing.
  • A knowledge and an appreciation of literature produced by writers of diverse cultural backgrounds.
  • Ability to use technology in producing or critiquing literary works.
  • Skills and knowledge base needed to publish work of literary worth.
  • Ability to teach creative writing at the community college and four-year university levels.
  • Independent work as an active creative writer, i.e., publication and performance as a novelist, poet, short story writer, playwright or screenwriter.

The Gwendolyn Brooks Center for Black Literature and Creative Writing

The MFA program is housed in the The Gwendolyn Brooks Center for Black Literature and Creative Writing.  Founded in 1990, The Gwendolyn Brooks Center is a literary and cultural center invested in researching, teaching, and disseminating information about acclaimed Black writers, especially the life and works of Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000), former Poet Laureate of Illinois and Distinguished Professor of English at CSU.  The goal of the Brooks Center is to strengthen the humanities in general and promote the study of Black writers to a local, national, and international community of students, faculty, and the general public.  The Center's broad selection of culturally insightful and academically stimulating programs include the annual Gwendolyn Brooks Writer's Conference, Black History Month Video and Film Festival, and Women's HIstory Month Lecture and Workshop Series, and The Conjure Woman Writing Writing Workshops.  The Center publishes a bi-annual literary journal, Warpland:  A Journal of Black Literature and Ideas, featuring the works of renowned, emerging, and new writers.

MFA graduates have books in print with Simon and Schuster, Main Street Rag, Third World Press, Urban Books and Willow Press, and have received the following awards, fellowships and prizes:  Fulbright and Cave Canem fellowships, Transitions Abroad Narrative Writing Contest, Elixir Poetry Prize finalist, The Guild Complex Nonfiction Award finalist, and The Essence Magazine bestseller list.  Their work has appeared in national juried literary journals such as Crab Orchard Review, Reverie, Caylx and Sage Publications.  Since the first graduating class in 2003, six students have gone to Ph.D. programs.  Half have received their doctorate degrees in English/Creative Writing and three are ABD from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and Milwaukee, The University of Illinois, Chicago, and the State University of New York, Albany and Binghamton.  Finally, our graduates hold tenure-track teaching positions/administrative appointments at Wiley College, University of New Haven, The New School in New York, the City Colleges of Chicago, Purdue University, Lane College, DePaul University, and Columbia College, Chicago.

MFA Faculty(and recent publications):

Kelly Norman Ellis, Director

Tougaloo Blues, Spaces Between Us:  Poetry Prose and Art on HIV/AID co-editor, M.L. Hunter.

Brenda E. Aghahowa

Grace Under Fire: Barbara Jordan's Rhetoric, Praising in Black and White.

Sandra Jackson-Opoku

Hot Johnny (and the women who loved him) (2001); Sea Island Summer (2001); The River Where Blood is Born (1998).

Quraysh Ali Lansana

They Shall Run:  Harriet Tubman Poems , Role Call:  A Generational Anthology - Editor.

Nnedi Okorafor

Zahrah the Windseeker, The Shadow Speaker, Long Juju Man, and Who Fears Death.

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MFA... P.S.: a professionalization series for writers September, October, February, and March session topics. February's topic is alternative and non-academic career prep.

MFA...P.S.: A Professionalization Series for Writers

MFA...P.S. is an every-other-year professionalization series designed to prepare creative writers for life after college and/or graduate school. This event is open to everyone, including doctoral students in Literature and Writing Studies and, this year, undergraduate students.

Our third meeting will focus on applications for alternate and non-academic jobs. Attendees will learn about career databases, alumni outcomes, resumes and cover letters, and interview prep. 

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MFA Thesis Workshops Spring 2024

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university of illinois creative writing mfa

Why Mentorship Matters: a Roundtable

Featuring the editors of ‘Feminists Reclaim Mentorship’ and other panelists

Nancy K. Miller, Tahneer Oksman, Melissa Coss Aquino, Michelle Yasmine Valladares, Sharifa Hampton, and Angela Veronica Wong

university of illinois creative writing mfa

Chai & Chat with Chris Dombrowski

The CCNY MFA in Creative Writing Presents Chai & Chat with Chris Dombrowski

Author of The River You Touch Tuesday, February 28, 5:00 – 6:30pm, Rifkind Center (NAC 6/316)

university of illinois creative writing mfa

In My Eyes, You Are Beautiful: A Reading & Conversation with David Unger

CCNY’s MFA in Creative Writing Reading Series Fall 2023 presents: David Unger Novelist, Translator & Professor A Reading and Conversation to Celebrate […]

university of illinois creative writing mfa

Join us at the Elaine Sexton Workshop

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Mostly dividing his time between New York City and Tehran, Iran, Salar regularly publishes personal essays and short stories, plus numerous translations of other authors that appear in journals across the world.

A professor at the City University of New York’s CITY COLLEGE campus in Harlem, he teaches workshops in the English Department’s MFA program and also serves as Director of Undergraduate Creative Writing. Website: salarabdoh.com

university of illinois creative writing mfa

Author Website

Spring 2020

Spring 2019

Portrait of Michelle Valladeras

She has been anthologized in Language for a New Century: Contemporary Poetry from the Middle East, Asia & Beyond, and The HarperCollins Book of English Poetry by Indians . Her honors include a Pushcart Prize Nomination and she was awarded “The Poet of the Year” by the Americas Poetry Festival of New York. She is currently working on a book about faith called Searching for Tara.

university of illinois creative writing mfa

Naima’s second novel,  Didn’t Never Know , is the story of the integration of a public high school in a small Southern town, which sets off a chain of events that bonds two families together in unexpected and complicated ways over the course of their lives. It is forthcoming from Grand Central Publishing.

Naima’s stories and essays have appeared in the  New York Times , the  Rumpus ,  Aster(ix) ,  Kweli ,  The Paris Review Daily , and elsewhere. She has taught writing to students in jail, youth programs, and universities. Naima is currently visiting faculty at the MFA program at City College in Harlem and Antioch University in L.A.

university of illinois creative writing mfa

Unger has been a featured writer in book festivals in San Juan, Miami, Los Angeles, Guatemala, Sharjah, Managua, Bogotá, Lima, La Paz, Oaxaca, and Guadalajara.

university of illinois creative writing mfa

She received her B.A. and M.A. from the University of Arizona, and her Ph.D. from Stanford University.  She teaches a range of subjects from feminist and critical literary theory, poetics, film studies, contemporary literature, and women’s literature.

university of illinois creative writing mfa

He has taught poetry and nonfiction workshops. An independent book editor with an interest in the ways writers engage with the culture, he has also led MFA courses in publishing and authorship.

university of illinois creative writing mfa

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Adult creative writing classes encourage learning beyond the university

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When Emily Cataneo and Arshia Simkin graduated from their Masters of Fine Arts in creative writing  program in 2019 , they realized there weren't many opportunities outside of a university setting to improve creative writing.   

From there,  Redbud Writing Project , the Triangle’s only adult creative writing school , was born.

Founded by Cataneo and Simkin in 2019, the project works to provide writing classes and opportunities for adults regardless of  restrictions on time, money or resources. 

"There was a huge appetite for an offering like this in the community and so, almost five years later, here we are," Cataneo said . 

The organization is headquartered  in Raleigh and offers classes at satellite locations in Chapel Hill, Durham, Pittsboro and Carrboro, i ncluding at Golden Fig Books and Flyleaf Books .  

According to  Simkin, the organization attempts to make courses fun and engaging, while maintaining rigorous, college-level content in order to push students to write their best work.

Redbud is committed to the principles of compassion , empathy and candor, according to their website. The classes strive to inspire and create a safe space to share written work, while providing honest feedback.

“I think that people come to our classes and feel excited about writing but it's also important that they get feedback on ways to make their writing even better and suggestions and ideas for how to continue to progress,” Cataneo said.

Fiction teacher Matthew Buckley Smith   said he provides specific feedback that acts less like advice and more like guided questions in order to point his students in the right direction. 

Kaye Usry, a student at Redbud, began her journey with the organization in 2019 after seeking feedback on a personal project. Since then, she has taken various classes, including the "Writing the Novel" course, and has written a full novel.

Usry  said  students have the chance to workshop their peers’ work throughout the courses, which both improves the class’ creative writing and strengthens the course community.

“The classes are only six sessions, but I've made some really good friends through those classes, because it's such an intimate thing to share your writing with someone else and to make comments on someone else's writing," she said . "Because it's such a personal thing, even if you're not writing about yourself.”

Along with giving feedback on written works, teachers will assign readings that expose students to different voices, styles and moods, Usry said.

“In the class I took, we read " Never Let Me Go " by Kazuo Ishiguro, and we read an Elena Ferrante novel as well,” Usry said . “I didn't know about either of those authors and I've since come to love both of them.”

According to Simkin, Redbud makes every possible effort to incorporate scholarships and free community-based classes at partner organizations, including the Durham Center for Senior Life . These classes serve historically underrepresented groups in the creative writing field, such as BIPOC writers, domestic violence survivors, low income seniors and those who wish to share personal stories of reproductive injustice.

“We partnered with Planned Parenthood to do a class where people could learn how to write the issues affecting them around reproductive care,” Simkin said.

The project offers six-week courses , which vary in subject based on when they're taught. In the past, topics included sci-fi writing, poetry, feminist works, horror  and parenthood. Three of this month's classes, "Fiction I," "Writing the Body" and "Writing the Novel" are currently full.  

Cataneo said the courses are designed to be pieced together into the equivalent of an MFA. 

Redbud has become a place where like-minded writers with a common interest can form interpersonal connections, something which was particularly appealing for students in the years since the COVID-19 pandemic, she said.  

“Today, four out of six [students] said that they worked remotely and part of the reason they were signing up was to meet people,” Smith said . “So they tend to be pretty sweet and open people.”

Many of the teachers have seen the bonds formed through Redbud extend beyond the classroom, Cataneo said. Last year, she ran into former students hanging out when she was at a coffee shop.

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"Some people have creative writing groups themselves, and those groups have been meeting continuously for years," she said . "In some ways those friendships naturally form, but we also have specific, more official ways that we work to create community, too."

They host readings at the end of the six-week sessions where students can socialize, share their work and have a glass of wine to celebrate their accomplishments in the course.

@laneycurrin8

@dthlifestyle | @dthlifestyle

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Helpful links, mfa in creative writing faculty.

  • The Graduate School
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Hal Ackerman

Instructor, Writing for Stage & Screen [email protected]

  • Former co-chair of the Screenwriting Program at UCLA.
  • His play, Testosterone: How Prostate Cancer Made a Man of Me, received the William Saroyan Centennial Prize for Drama and won Best Script at the 2011 United Solo Festival.
  • He has sold material to all the broadcast networks and major studios.
  • His book Write Screenplays That Sell…The Ackerman Way is now in its third printing.

Khris Baxter

Instructor, Writing for Stage & Screen [email protected]

  • Screenwriter, producer, and the founder of Lost Mountain Entertainment.
  • Developed and financed a wide range of projects in partnership with Cross Creek Pictures and Echo Lake Entertainment.
  • Co-produced “Above the Shadows,” which won the Audience Award at the 2019 Brooklyn Film Festival.
  • Teaches Writing for Film & TV at Dickinson College.
  • Serves as a judge for the Virginia Film Office’s annual screenwriting competition.

Peter Behrens

Instructor, Writing for Stage & Screen [email protected]

  • Screenwriter, essayist, and fiction writer.
  • Author of four books of fiction, including “The Law of Dreams,” which won the Governor-General’s Award and has been published in nine languages.
  • His stories, essays, and reviews appear in The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, NPR’s All Things Considered, and many anthologies.
  • Former Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford University and former fellow at Harvard University’s Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study.

Cathy Smith Bowers

Instructor, Poetry [email protected]

  • Poet Laureate of North Carolina from 2010-2012.
  • Her poems appear widely in publications such as The Atlantic Monthly, The Georgia Review, Poetry, The Southern Review, and The Kenyon Review.
  • Author of five collections of poetry.

Morri Creech

Associate Professor, Poetry Writer in Residence, Queens University of Charlotte [email protected]

  • Author of four collections of poetry, one a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.
  • His poems appear in Poetry, The New Criterion, The New Republic, The Southwest Review, The Hudson Review, Crazyhorse, Critical Quarterly, Sewanee Review, Southern Review, and  elsewhere. 
  • He has received the Stan and Tom Wick Award, a Ruth Lilly Fellowship, and a fellowship from The Louisiana  Division of the Arts.

David Christensen

Instructor, Writing for Stage & Screen [email protected]

  • Executive producer at the National Film Board of Canada where he oversees a slate of documentary, interactive, and animation productions made nationally and internationally.
  • Two Oscar-nominated films and multiple premiers at Berlin, Sundance, Toronto, and New York film festivals.

Ann Cummins

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of a story collection and novel.
  • Recipient of a Lannan Foundation Literary Fellowship.
  • Stories appear in The New Yorker, McSweeney’s, Antioch Review, The Best American Short Stories, and The Anchor Book of New American Short Stories.

Jonathan Dee

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of eight novels.
  • His novel “The Privileges” was a finalist for the 2010 Pulitzer Prize and winner of the 2011 Prix Fitzgerald and the St. Francis College Literary Prize.
  • A former contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, a senior editor of The Paris Review, and a National Magazine Award-nominated literary critic for Harper’s.
  • Received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Guggenheim Foundation.

Kristin Dombek

Instructor, Nonfiction [email protected]

  • Author of “The Selfishness of Others: An Essay on the Fear of Narcissism,” which has been translated into multiple languages, and “How to Quit,” forthcoming soon.
  • Essays appear in The New Yorker, Vice, The New York Times Magazine, Harper’s, London Review of Books, n+1, The Financial Times, The Paris Review, and Best American Essays.
  • Recipient of fellowships from the MacDowell Colony and the Rona Jaffe Foundation.
  • Has taught at Queens College/CUNY and Princeton.

Shelley Evans

Instructor, Writing for Stage & Screen [email protected]

  • Has written teleplays for ABC, CBS, Showtime, USA Network, Hallmark Movies and Mysteries, and Lifetime Television.

Elizabeth Gaffney

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of two novels.
  • Has also translated three novels and a memoir from German.
  • Resident artist at Yaddo, the MacDowell Colony, and the Blue Mountain Center.
  • Former staff editor at The Paris Review, and currently serves as the editor-at-large of A Public Space.

Myla Goldberg

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Bestselling author of four novels, including “Bee Season,” which was a New York Times Notable Book and winner of the Borders New Voices Prize. It was adapted to film and widely translated.
  • Has also published an essay collection, a children’s book, and short stories that have appeared in Harper’s.
  • Teaches also in the fiction programs at Sarah Lawrence and NYU.

Emily Fox Gordon

Instructor, Nonfiction [email protected]

  • Author of a novel, a collection of personal essays, and two memoirs, one of which was a New York Times Notable Book.
  • Her work appears in Boulevard, Salmagundi, The American Scholar, and Southwest Review, and has been anthologized in the Anchor Essay Annual.
  • Has taught writing workshops at Rice University, the University of Houston, The New School, the University of Wyoming, and the MFA program at Rutgers/Camden.
  • Recipient of two Pushcart Prizes.

Trish Harnetiaux

Instructor, Writing for Stage & Screen [email protected]

  • Her play “Tin Cat Shoes” premiered in 2018 kicking off Clubbed Thumb’s Summerworks (Playwrights Horizons Superlab).
  • Three other plays have been published by Samuel French.
  • Executive producer on the off-beat comedy series “Driver Ed” which premiered at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival.
  • She has been a resident at MacDowell, Yaddo, The Millay Colony, and SPACE at Ryder Farm.

Marcus Jackson

Instructor, Poetry [email protected]

  • Author of two poetry collections.
  • His poems appear in The New Yorker, Harvard Review, The New York Times, and The Cincinnati Review.

Fred Leebron

Program Director, Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Former Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford and Fulbright Scholar.
  • Author of five books of fiction, including “Six Figures,” which was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year and became a feature-length film.
  • Co-editor of “Postmodern American Fiction: A Norton Anthology;” and co-author of “Creating Fiction: A Writer’s Companion.”
  • Recipient of an O. Henry Award, a Puschart Prize, a Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown Fellowship, and two fellowships from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.

Instructor, Poetry

  • Author of six books of poetry, including “The Carrying,” which won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry.
  • Her book “Bright Dead Things” was named a finalist for the National Book Award, a finalist for the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award, and a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award.
  • Currently the Poet Laureate of the United States and a MacArthur Foundation “Genius” Fellow.

Rebecca Lindenberg

Instructor, Poetry [email protected]

  • Author of two poetry collections, including the winner of the 2015 Utah Book Award.
  • Awarded an Amy Lowell Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Grant, a Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown Fellowship, and a residency grant from the MacDowell Arts Colony.
  • Her poetry, lyric essays, and criticism appear in The Believer, Poetry, McSweeney’s Quarterly, American Poetry Review, Conjunctions, and Iowa Review.

Rebecca McClanahan

Instructor, Poetry and Nonfiction [email protected]

  • Author of eleven books, most recently “In the Key of New York City: A Memoir in Essays” and a revised edition of “Word Painting: The Fine Art of Writing Descriptively,” which has sold nearly 50,000 copies.
  • Her work appears in Best American Essays, Best American Poetry, Kenyon Review, Georgia Review, and in anthologies published by Doubleday, Norton, and Penguin.
  • Recipient of two Pushcart Prizes, the Glasgow Award in nonfiction, and four fellowships from the New York Foundation for the Arts and the North Carolina Arts Council.

James McKean

Instructor, Poetry and Nonfiction [email protected]

  • Author of three books of poems and two books of essays.
  • His poetry and nonfiction appear in Poetry, The Atlantic Monthly, The Georgia Review, The Southern Review, The Pushcart Prize Anthology, The Best American Sports Writing, and Poetry Northwest, and have been featured in Ted Kooser’s American Life in Poetry.

Orlando Menes

Instructor, Poetry [email protected]

  • Author of five poetry collections.
  • His poems appear in Poetry, Ploughshares, Harvard Review, The Antioch Review, Hudson Review, Shenandoah, Callaloo, and The Southern Review.
  • Editor of “Renaming Ecstasy: Latino Writings on the Sacred.”
  • Has published translations of poetry in Spanish, including My Heart Flooded with Water: Selected Poems by Alfonsina Storni.

Daniel Mueller

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of three short story collections.
  • His work appears in The Missouri Review, The Iowa Review, Story Quarterly, Story, The Mississippi Review, Henfield Prize Stories, and Playboy.
  • He is the director of the Creative Writing program at the University of New Mexico.

Brighde Mullins

Instructor, Writing for Stage & Screen [email protected]

  • Her plays have been developed and produced in New York, Dallas, Salt Lake City, London, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.
  • Recipient of an NEA Fellowship in Playwriting, a Whiting Foundation Award, a United States Artists Fellowship, and a Guggenheim Fellowship.
  • She has held residencies at Lincoln Center, New York Stage and Film, MacDowell, and Yaddo. She is a Usual Suspect at New York Theatre Workshop and has been a Core Member of the Playwrights’ Center in Minneapolis.
  • Has taught at Harvard, Brown, and the University of Southern California.

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of three novels, including “The Perfect Man,” which won The Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for the Best Book of Europe and South Asia.  His work has been translated into eight languages. 
  • Recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and a PEN Beyond Margins Award. 
  • Has been a writer-in-residence at the University of Missouri, Western Michigan, and Northwestern University.

Jenny Offill

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of three novels, including “The Department of Speculation,” named one of the 10 Best Books of 2014 by the New York Times, and shortlisted for the Pen/Faulkner Award and the L.A. Times Fiction Award.
  • Co-editor of two anthologies: “The Friend Who Got Away” and “Money Changes Everything.”

David Payne

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • NY Times Notable author of five novels and a memoir.
  • His work appears in The New York Times, Libération, The Washington Post, and The Oxford American.
  • Has taught at Bennington, Duke, and Hollins.

Susan Perabo

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of two story collections and two novels.
  • Her fiction appears in Best American Short Stories, Pushcart Prize Stories, New Stories from the South, One Story, The Iowa Review, The Missouri Review, and The Sun.
  • She is a Writer in Residence and professor of English at Dickinson College.

Instructor, Nonfiction and Poetry [email protected]

  • Author of multiple books of poetry, nonfiction, and fiction, two of which won the Library of Virginia Book of the Year Award.
  • He is a professor of English at William and Mary College in Virginia.

Robert Polito

Instructor, Poetry and Nonfiction [email protected]

  • Author of numerous books of poetry and nonfiction, including “Savage Art: A Biography of Jim Thompson,” which received the National Book Critics Circle Award.
  • Editor of the Library of America volumes “Crime Novels: Noir of the 1930s & 1940s” and “Crime Novels: American Noir of the 1950s,” as well as “The Selected Poems of Kenneth Fearing.”
  • His poems and essays appear in The New Yorker, The New York Times Book Review, Best American Poetry, Beast American Essays, and Best American Film Writing.
  • Recently served as President of the Poetry Foundation.

Patricia Powell

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of three novels. 
  • The recipient of a PEN New England Discovery Award and a Lila-Wallace Readers Digest Writer’s Award.
  • Has taught at Harvard University, U-Mass, MIT, and Mills College.

Steven Rinehart

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of a story collection and a novel.
  • The recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the James Michener Center, and the Virginia Center for the Arts.
  • Writes and ghostwrites for a former US President, Fortune 100 CEOs, entrepreneurs, and social activists.
  • He teaches at the Gallatin School of NYU.

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of 12 books of fiction.
  • A two-time National Book Award Finalist, and an Edgar Award Nominee.

Elissa Schappell

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of two books of fiction, including “Use Me,” a runner-up for the PEN/Hemingway Award, a New York Times “Notable Book” and a Los Angeles Times “Best Book of the Year.”
  • Co-editor of two essay anthologies: “Money Changes Everything” and “The Friend Who Got Away”
  • Her fiction and nonfiction appear in One Story, McSweeney’s, BOMB, Interview, the KGB Bar Reader, The Paris Review, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Elle, Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, and Real Simple.
  • She has taught at NYU, Texas State, and Columbia University.

Dana Spiotta

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of five novels, which have won the St. Francis College Literary Prize and have been a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the National Book Award.
  • Recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Rome Prize from the American Academy in Rome, and the American Academy of Arts and Letters John Updike Prize in Literature.
  • She also teaches at Syracuse University.

Maxine Swann

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of three books of fiction.
  • Awarded an O. Henry Prize, a Pushcart Prize, and her work has been included in The Best American Short Stories of 1998 and 2006.

Héctor Tobar

Instructor, Fiction and Nonfiction [email protected]

  • Author of five books of fiction and nonfiction, published in ten languages, including the New York Times bestseller “Deep Down Dark,” which was adapted into a feature film.
  • Work appears in Best American Short Stories, L.A. Noir, The New Yorker, and The Los Angeles Times, and he is currently a contributing writer for the New York Times opinion pages.
  • He is an associate professor at the University of California, Irvine.

Ashley Warlick

Instructor, Fiction [email protected]

  • Author of four novels.
  • Recipient of an NEA Fellowship and the Houghton Mifflin Literary Fellowship.
  • Her work appears in The Oxford American, McSweeney’s, Redbook, and Garden and Gun.
  • She is a partner at M. Judson, Booksellers and Storytellers in Greenville, SC.

IMAGES

  1. The Creative Writing MFA Handbook: A Guide for Prospective Graduate

    university of illinois creative writing mfa

  2. MFA Creative Writing

    university of illinois creative writing mfa

  3. MFA

    university of illinois creative writing mfa

  4. MFA in Creative Writing

    university of illinois creative writing mfa

  5. MFA in Creative Writing

    university of illinois creative writing mfa

  6. The Top 15 Best Creative Writing MFA Programs in the US

    university of illinois creative writing mfa

COMMENTS

  1. Our MFA in Creative Writing

    The faculty of the Creative Writing Program represent a diverse range of writing and teaching styles and interests. Faculty members work and teach actively in a wide variety of genres and media, including poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, juvenile fiction, theater, and film.

  2. MFA in Creative Writing

    The Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Creative Writing is a three-year, terminal degree program that provides students with graduate study and professional training in the writing of fiction and poetry with our distinguished graduate faculty.

  3. Creative Writing, MFA

    Online and Site- Based Graduate Programs. Creative Writing, MFA. Overview. Degree Requirements. Learning Outcomes. Contact Information. CONTACT INFORMATION. Course Name Course Title Degree Name [email protected] Course Website. Advisor Name [email protected] 123-867-5309 123 College St. Champaign, IL 61820.

  4. MFA in Creative Writing Curriculum and Requirements

    The Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing is a three-year program combining professional training in creative writing with literary study. Students in this program specialize in fiction or poetry and complete at least 12 units (or 48 hours) of coursework as follows:

  5. MFA Application Requirements

    Applicants to the M.F.A. program in Creative Writing are required to: Application Submit an online Application for Admission to the Graduate College. Please note that this requires an application fee, which you can read more about here .

  6. MFA Application Checklist

    MFA in Creative Writing MFA Application Checklist MFA Application Checklist Use this checklist to confirm a complete application to the MFA Program in Creative Writing: Application submitted online. All unoffical transcripts (undergraduate and graduate) uploaded to online application.

  7. The Creative Writing Major

    The undergraduate Creative Writing major at the University of Illinois, formerly known as the Rhetoric major, is one of the oldest of its kind in the country. Now in its seventh decade, the major combines small workshops (poetry, fiction, nonfiction) and a variety of literature courses. Note: We also offer a Creative Writing minor.

  8. AWP: Guide to Writing Programs

    608 S. Wright St. Department of English Urbana Illinois, United States 61801 Email: [email protected] https://english.illinois.edu/admissions/graduate-admission/mfa-creative-writing DEGREE PROGRAMS Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing + Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing + FACULTY Janice N. Harrington

  9. Creative Writing Faculty

    The University may also allow third parties to place Cookies on your device that collect and use anonymous information about your visits to, and interactions with, our websites to personalize advertisements and promotional materials for University goods and services.

  10. University of Illinois Fully Funded MFA in Creative Writing

    The University of Illinois offers a three-year fully funded MFA in creative writing. Graduate study & professional training in the writing of fiction and poetry

  11. Program for Writers

    Program for Writers UIC offers a PhD in English with creative dissertation and also an MA in English with creative manuscript.

  12. Master of Fine Arts In English

    First, the workshops. As is fairly standard in many writing programs, you'll read your work and critique your peers work in a collegial environment led by our faculty. You'll also work one-on-one with our writing faculty. And you'll produce a thesis of original work, for which you will work closely with your advisor.

  13. Creative Writing MFA Programs in Illinois

    The MFA in Creative Writing at the University of Illinois is typically completed in three years and combines literary study and analysis with creative writing training. Students can choose fiction or poetry as their specialty and will complete five creative writing units, two literature units, and three elective units in addition to their final ...

  14. MFA Creative Writing

    Master's Degree Program. Hone your unique voice and dive deep into the study of storytelling with an MFA in creative writing and literature from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. UAF's rigorous three-year program prepares MFA creative writing students to become engaging teachers, critical thinkers and fearless writers dedicated to the art ...

  15. Master's in Creative Writing, MFA

    Dean, College of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences. Vince Francone. Associate Teaching Professor of English. Jessica Anne Chiang. Visiting full-time Lecturer in Creative Writing. Roosevelt's MFA program provides access to a close-knit community of writers as well as the opportunity to participate in Chicago's world-class literary scene.

  16. Major Detail

    What is Creative Writing? As a Creative Writing major, you'll learn how to develop your own individual voice. You'll also learn to produce original works in fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction. Coursework consists of creative writing classes, and classes in English, history, and culture.

  17. PDF Creative Writing, MFA

    1 The Department of English offers a program of study in Creative Writing leading to the Master of Fine Arts degree. We welcome qualified students who wish to pursue their interests in fiction or poetry writing. Graduate Degree Programs in Creative Writing Creative Writing, MFA (p. 1) Admission

  18. Creative Writing MFA

    DePaul's MFA in Creative Writing and Publishing will prepare and empower you to write a novel or memoir, or a collection of poetry or stories while at DePaul. You'll work across genres under the mentorship of distinguished authors and poets. ... DePaul University Welcome Center 2400 N. Sheffield Ave. Chicago, IL 60614 (773) 325-7315 ...

  19. Home

    DIY MFA The folks at DIY MFA believe you can access the benefits of an Master in Fine Arts without having to go the traditional (expensive) route. It all comes down to a simple but powerful combination: writing with focus, reading with purpose and building your community.

  20. creativewritingmfa.info

    This is an attempt at creating an objective ranking of graduate creative writing programs. For further and more detailed information on how the scores are generated see the methodology page. The List. Program ... MFA: CA: University of Illinois at Chicago: 400: 233: 200: 166: Fiction, Poetry, CNF: MA, PhD: IL: University of British Columbia ...

  21. MFA Creative Writing

    The MFA Creative Writing Program recently launched a podcast, Writers in the World . Host Grant Deam, a current MFA student, interviews current students, faculty, and visiting writers about MFA programs, artistic and personal journeys, elements of craft, and more. New episodes will be released weekly, every Monday.

  22. Chicago State University

    The Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing is a terminal degree and the appropriate credential for the teaching of creative writing. According to the Associated Writing Programs, the MFA in creative writing is considered the equivalent of the Ph.D. in literature, linguistics, or composition. Holders of the degree from Chicago State University ...

  23. Illinois Mobile App Master Calendar

    Originating Calendar Creative Writing Upcoming Events. MFA...P.S. is an every-other-year professionalization series designed to prepare creative writers for life after college and/or graduate school. This event is open to everyone, including doctoral students in Literature and Writing Studies and, this year, undergraduate students.

  24. MFA Thesis Workshops Spring 2024

    Nicole holds an MLA in Africana studies from the University of South Florida and an MFA in creative writing from New York University. She is the executive director at Cave Canem Foundation, Inc. ... His two books are poetry are Clay (Trio House Press, 2013) and Theory of Devolution (University of Illinois Press, 2002).

  25. Adult creative writing classes encourage learning beyond the university

    When Emily Cataneo and Arshia Simkin graduated from their Masters of Fine Arts in creative writing program in 2019, they realized there weren't many opportunities outside of a university setting ...

  26. MFA in Creative Writing Faculty

    Hal Ackerman Instructor, Writing for Stage & [email protected] Former co-chair of the Screenwriting Program at UCLA. His play, Testosterone: How Prostate Cancer Made a Man of Me, received the William Saroyan Centennial Prize for Drama and won Best Script at the 2011 United Solo Festival. He has sold material to all the broadcast networks and