Prose and Poetry, MFA Nonfiction Specialization
Students enrolled in the nonfiction specialization will take workshops solely in nonfiction and continue to develop their creative and technical skills as both writers and readers. By the end of their coursework, students will have produced a strong body of new work or comprehensively revised a preexisting body of work.
Curriculum
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| Nonfiction Writing Workshops (7 units) | |
| Creative Non-Fiction Workshop | |
| Teaching Writing (1 unit) | |
| Seminar on Teaching Creative Writing | |
| Graduate-level literature courses taken from LIT, ENGLISH, COMP_LIT, or other departments of literary study (3 units) | |
| Electives (2 units) | |
| Poetry for Prose Writers | |
| Special Topics in Creative Writing | |
| Independent Study (not to exceed two units) | |
| Seminar on Journal Publishing | |
| Practicum in Teaching Creative Writing | |
| Practicum in Publishing | |
Students may request permission to take one additional workshop as an elective* | |
Students may take graduate-level literature courses as electives | |
| Capstone Writing (2 units) | |
| Capstone Preparation and Writing | |
| Capstone Writing & Revision | |
*Students may not take more than eight workshops total.
About the Thesis
The final project of the MFA program is a creative thesis, an original work of high literary merit (judged on the basis of art as well as craft). Prose work should be at least 140 double-spaced pages and no more than 170 pages. Poetic work should be between 35-50 single-spaced pages, with each poem on separate pages. The creative thesis is structured and revised under the supervision of a faculty member (or faculty mentor) and a second reader. The project may be one long piece or a series of shorter pieces. It may include or be an expansion of work written during the student's course of study as long as it represents a culminating effort to shape stories, prose pieces, a long piece, or a group of poems into a coherent, self-sufficient work. This large-scale project supplements the smaller-scale study of craft with the invaluable experience of creating a larger work. And for students who plan to pursue book-length publication after graduation, the master's creative thesis may be the first version of a work in progress. (Note: Students may not take writing workshops alongside thesis.)