MA Creative Writing

In this introductory unit, we’ll orient you with foundational knowledge and appropriate research methods. You’ll be challenged to reframe your practice, charting your journey as a writer-researcher and proposing a research paper at a student-led Research Symposium. This starting point will give you a clear focus for the rest of the course. 

Together, we’ll deep-dive into all the practical elements of the writer’s craft – from notebook use and idea generation to drafting and exchanging feedback. You’ll also interrogate the concepts surrounding the lore of the writer – from ‘inspiration’ to ‘writer’s block’. This will encourage you to break down your methodology and reflect on it intensively. 

In this unit we’ll take a wider view, looking at where the writer fits into the culture and society around them. This will involve considering their ethics, culture, activism, and public image. You’ll then develop a public-facing platform which articulates your emergent identity as a writer. 

Together, we’ll explore a range of imaginative genres across the full spectrum, from the grittily realistic to the wildly fantastic (e.g., science fiction, weird, speculative, solarpunk). You’ll explore how these often-subversive stories challenge geopolitical leadership and cultural norms, creating a space for intellectual growth and inclusive representation. With a profound understanding of these stories, you'll develop your own prose narrative sample. 

The Anthropocene is the current geological age, where human activity predominantly impacts the climate and environment. In this module, we’ll explore how the climate crisis and the UN’s sustainability goals can be woven into your literary vision. Together with your cohort, you’ll look at both classic and contemporary works to see how they engage with these pressing issues. 

Through current trends, emergent forms, and new opportunities, we’ll examine what distinguishes a 21st Century publication from literature that precedes it. With input from a variety of industry professionals – including agents, editors, publishers, book designers, and booksellers – you’ll learn about print and publishing culture from a multi-faceted perspective. 

In this unit, we’ll explore the power of linguistic nuance, individual word choices, and layout choices. Through the lens of current trends, emergent forms, and both classical and contemporary poets, you’ll develop a deep understanding of the current poetry scene. We’ll also help you cultivate your communication skills in online open mics, sharing your poetry and critical feedback with fellow students. 

With a focus on script-writing and emerging technologies, we’ll encourage you to think far beyond traditional literary formats. We’ll consider screenplays, podcasts, audio drama, graphic novels, interactive fiction and role-playing games, to name just a few. You’ll also hear avant-garde perspectives from guest speakers at the forefront of contemporary practice. 

We’ll support you in developing a professional proposal for what will be not only your Major Project, but also a real-world industry submission. You’ll research available markets and emergent publishing trends to identify a focus. By the end of this unit, you’ll be capable of confidently pitching substantial creative ideas – an essential skill for flourishing in your future career. 

This unit is the culmination of all the rigorous self-reflection, skills, and knowledge you've acquired throughout the course. You’ll produce a final written piece in a format of your choice (e.g., novel extract, short fiction, poetry, audio drama, stage script), accompanied by a critical reflective essay. 

Anyone who wishes to take their writing to the next level, committed beginners, those with some experience of writing maybe in a professional capacity, or those wanting a kind of like a shift in career or maybe a return to something they've neglected, like a creative aspect of their life after raising, you know, their family or, having a different kind of job or retiring and wanting to connect with that creative voice inside of them.

I believe what makes this particular MA stand out is its range of practical industry facing modules, that explore a range of genres and forms. It's addressing civic and environmental issues, within the publishing industry and in the wider world. So I think that kind of, like, multifaceted nature of it makes it interesting. It's engaged with real world issues and it's plugged into the industry and latest innovations within publishing.

So that kind of like the Venn diagram, I think is what makes it stand out, the kind of environmental focus, the civic focus, and the industry focus. But, you know, we want our students, to be future facing, adaptable, and resilient, in their writing practice, and this will serve them well for the rest of their writing career.

Well, they'll learn about the opportunities and challenges of postgraduate research. They'll learn what creative writing research is like at this level. They'll be interrogating their own practice, methodology, influences, examining every aspect of their writing, and pushed out of their comfort zone sometimes perhaps. I mean, they will always be taking the initiative with that, you know, onus of that through their self directed study. But, you know, we'll be gently nudging them out of their comfort zones, and really helping them to push their writing practice to the next level. We've got a whole range of really exciting cutting edge modules, looking at fantastic fiction, writing for the Anthropocene, environmental writing, publishing in the twenty first century, advanced poetics.

We've got a module on craft of the writer, the real nuts and bolts of being a writer and interrogating every aspect of the law of creative writing. There's so much law around creative writing, like the workshop, the writer's block, and so on, the muse. Are any of these these things real, or are they folklore?

So we'll be examining all of that. We'll be looking at what we call the writer in the world. So really public facing, civic engagement, you know, what can you do in your writing practice that will engage your communities of choice and make an impact real world impact. So a real range of courses, I think, give the students a rounded experience and really, substantial skill base to draw upon.

Well, greater flexibility and adaptability, with all the asynchronous materials, the lectures, resources, the forums. You can engage when it suits you, fitting into your busy schedule, a working week, caring commitments, and so on, other hobbies.

It's modular, and it's part time, so it fits around your life. And also, you know, you won't lose out on that human context, through the weekly online seminars and the tutorials, as well as the residential summer school, you'll have a chance to connect with your fellow students.

Q: What do you think makes the online Creative Writing MA with AUB really stand out?

I think for my module, the craft of the writer, I think it's just the attention to detail, and the focus on, you know, the tools and the strategies and the methods that may help you become a better writer. I assume that everybody who's signing up wants to end the course, with greater skills in writing and greater awareness of the things that they do, you know, their habits, their routines, and also a greater critical perspective on some of the things they're doing and and being able to delve into, some of the creative writing theory and the discourse and the debates around, certain approaches to craft. So I think that will help. Also, just hearing from a range of different perspectives from different module leaders to different tutors.

Some of it's more industry facing. Some of it's more about writing in the world, the community. I think that having that, that balance is important.

As students on the MA in creative writing, you are gonna be part of the graduate school. So we've got film, illustration, graphic design. All the other creative industries are represented here at AUB. You can be parts of that ecosystem, and that creates opportunities, collaborative opportunities.

So, yeah, that's gonna be one of the assets and aspects of this course is that you can be right from the outset part of this creative ecosystem which will then go out into industry when you might actually work with some of your fellow students out there in the real world.

Q: What credentials will I leave the course with?

Part of your biography is that you have advanced learning as a writer, and you've been to a university program or a conservatory, or you've worked with some incredible literary people, that's going to be impressive. At the end of the day, your CV or resume doesn't matter if the writing isn't good. So, yes, absolutely. I think it's very important to have a good background because it says you cared enough to work two years on a program.

On the other hand, how you present your material and if your material is good is ultimately the most important if you wanna sell it.

Q: Do you have any final tips for those considering applying?

Oh, certainly, I would suggest focus on a personal statement and a small selection of writing. Ten pages would be more than sufficient or a link to your website, your blog, to your author page, but the main thing is to show in the personal statement that you are, you know, up for learning, that you want to learn, that you want to do this particular course, what is it about this course that appeals to you, what skills you bring to this, what experience. The more life experience, the better. You might have all kinds of transferable skills from your professional life that you can bring to this. But mostly, I'm looking for enthusiasm and attitude.

Polished work is great, published work is great, but, you know, it's about being willing to change as a writer, to be challenged as a writer, and to change as a writer. I think that's got to be key. But just to show who you are, to give us a sense of you as a person, you know, talk about any relevant experience that you've had, why you want to learn at this time, why you want to go on this creative journey.

I think, you know, the world can be hubby. And so I think it's really wonderful to immerse yourself in, the craft, the experience of learning, and to have this opportunity with Outreach to such a tremendous, very, art palette of writing and opportunities. So I would immerse yourself students.