Creative Writing
College of Liberal & Creative Arts
Interim Dean: Daniel Bernardi
Department of Creative Writing
HUM 380
Phone: 415-338-1891
E-mail: cwriting@sfsu.edu
Website: http://creativewriting.sfsu.edu
Chair: Maxine Chernoff
Undergraduate and Graduate Advisors: Carter, Caspers, Chernoff, Conboy, Dungy, Glück, Hoover, Langton, Mirosevich, Orner, Packer, Tigay
Faculty:
Professors: Carter, Caspers, Chernoff, Conboy, Dungy, Glück, Hoover, Langton, Mirosevich, Orner
Assistant Professors: Packer, Tigay
Programs
Bachelor of Arts in English: Concentration in Creative Writing
Master of Arts in English: Concentration in Creative Writing
Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing
Program Scope
The Department of Creative Writing offers undergraduate and graduate programs. The three degree programs emphasize the primary importance of the study and practice of imaginative writing in the genres of poetry, fiction, playwriting, and nonfiction. All three degree programs combine an intense workshop requirement and a variety of special topic creative process classes with requirements in the English Department. The core literature classes assure that students will continue to absorb and be trained in a study of the best literature of the past. In Creative Writing classes, students work with an active, publishing faculty. They learn by vigorous practice; by focused studies of craft; and by extensive reading, analysis, and discussion of their own work, as well as that of published authors.
The undergraduate major combines the academic specifications of the traditional English major with the experiential needs of the writing student. Students who enter this program should do so only under the strongly held assumption that they have abilities as writers that may be fostered and trained by such a discipline as is described here. It is hoped that this combined program of writing and literature will lead students to a cohesive study and discipline that combines breadth with intensity.
Accordingly, some greater latitude of choice in literature courses is allowed in the creative writing major. Studies will lead them to a degree in English with a creative writing emphasis. Ample guidance of the creative writing advisors helps insure that students will not be deprived of a sense of the history of literature. In this regard they will continue to be fully qualified as potential graduate students in English as well as prepared should they wish to continue as M.A. or M.F.A. candidates in a creative writing program.
The two graduate programs differ in scope. Both programs are distinguished by innovative classes. Both include seminars, opportunities for community projects, and a thesis. Students may apply for admission to either the Master of Arts in English with Concentration in Creative Writing (30 units) or the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing (54 units). In no case will a student be admitted to both programs simultaneously.
The Master of Arts in English with Concentration in Creative Writing serves a double purpose: to extend and broaden the student's familiarity with literature, and to provide the help of a faculty of professional writers and critics in developing the student's own potential as a professional writer. The Creative Writing Department has a strong core faculty and invites several visiting faculty each semester.
The Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing is regarded as the terminal degree in the field. The M.F.A. in Creative Writing offers extended experience in small seminars and in individual instruction with faculty. It also develops the student's understanding of the history and theory of literature and incorporates correlative patterns of study in elective areas such as other cultures, other arts, technical studies, and/or the teaching of writing.
Career Outlook
The career goal is to train and encourage writers of poetry, fiction, plays, and nonfiction. Many celebrated and distinguished writers are graduates of the department. In the job market, good writers are hard to find. The skills developed in creative writing translate well into corporate editing, publishing, teaching, and working for arts organizations.
Complementary Studies
Bachelor of Arts students must complete at least twelve units of complementary studies outside of the primary prefix for the major. (Note: Students may not use an alternate prefix that is cross-listed with the primary prefix for the major.)
Creative Writing majors will satisfy this requirement from within the major by taking 12 of the 15 units of literature classes required in the major, which are recognized in the major list of any or all of the following prefixes: ENG, AFRS, CWL, LTNS, WGS, HUM, AAS, MGS, or AIS.
Transfer students who have earned AA-T or AS-T degrees and are pursuing a similar B.A. degree at SF State are required to fulfill Complementary Studies requirements for their major only if these courses are included in the minimum units required for the major. Students should consult with a major advisor.
Bachelor of Arts in English: Concentration in Creative Writing
How GWAR is satisfied in for the English major, Concentration in Creative Writing:
C W 511 GW, C W 512 GW, or C W 513 GW. Completion of C W 301 Fundamentals of Creative Writing and second year written composition (ENG 214 or equivalent) with a grade of C- or better is a prerequisite for C W 511 GW or C W 512 GW or C W 513 GW.
English (B.A.): Concentration in Creative Writing — 42 units
Courses are 3 units unless otherwise indicated.
A. (6 units)
Fundamentals of Creative Writing and Fundamentals of Creative Reading; both are prerequisites to all other Creative Writing courses; C W 302 is prerequisite to ENG 460, ENG 461, ENG 462, and all other upper division English literature courses. C W 302 must be taken at SF State; upon completion of C W 302, courses from sections E. and F. may be taken at any time. C W 301 and C W 302 may be taken concurrently:
- C W 301 Fundamentals of Creative Writing
- C W 302 Fundamentals of Creative Reading
B. (3 units)
Course in the Craft Area selected from the following (must be taken after C W 301 and C W 302 and BEFORE workshop course).
- C W 511 GW Craft of Poetry - GWAR
- C W 512 GW Craft of Fiction - GWAR
- C W 513 GW Craft of Playwriting - GWAR
C. (15 units)
Courses in the Creative Process Area and /or Workshop Areas selected from the following (One of these courses must be chosen from variable topic process courses C W 510 OR C W 600. Seek advising for substitution.):
- C W 506 The Business of Creative Writing (creative process)
- C W 507 Writing on the Body (creative process)
- C W 510 The Creative Process - Variable Topic 1 (creative process)
- C W 514 Contemporary World Poetry (creative process)
- C W 520 Writers on Writing (creative process)
- C W 550 Poetry Center Workshop (creative process)
- C W 600 Special Topics in Writing - Variable Topic 1 (workshop)
- C W 602 Playwriting 2 (workshop)
- C W 603 Short Story Writing 2 (workshop)
- C W 604 Poetry Writing 2 (workshop)
- C W 605 Writing and Performing Monologues 2 (workshop)
- C W 609 Directed Writing for B.A. Students 3 (workshop)
- C W 640 Transfer Literary Magazine (creative process)
- C W 675 Community Projects in Literature 2 (creative process)
- C W 685 Projects in the Teaching of Creative Writing (creative process) (1 - 4)
- C W 699 Independent Study (creative process or workshop) (1 - 3)
D. (3 units)
- C W 601 Work in Progress (to be taken in last year)
E. (9 units)
Courses in the Literature Area, one course to be selected from three of the following four groups. (More course offerings in this category will become available over time.) Prerequisite for C W majors to take these courses is C W 302; once completed, courses from sections E. and F. maybe taken at any time.
American Literature
- AFRS 645 Literature of the Harlem Renaissance
- ENG 525 Studies in American Literature 1
- ENG 526 Age of the American Renaissance, 1830-1860
- ENG 527 American Literature, 1860-1914
- ENG 528 American Literature, 1914-1960
Literature in English Surveys or Age (of)
- ENG 460 Literature in English I: Beginnings to 17th Century
- ENG 461 Literature in English II: 18th and 19th Centuries
- ENG 462 Literature in English III: The Twentieth Century
- ENG 501 Age of Chaucer
- ENG 503 Medieval Rebel Writing
- ENG 512 18th Century British Women Writers
- ENG 514 Age of the Romantics
- ENG 522 Irish Literature
- ENG 630 Selected Studies 1
The Genre
- CWL 450 Literary Crossings
- ENG 521 Studies in 20th Century English Literature 1
- ENG 550 The Rise of the Novel
- ENG 552 Modern British Novel
- ENG 553 Classic American Novel
- ENG 554 Modern American Novel
- ENG 555 The Short Story
- ENG 558 Early Twentieth Century Poetry in the United States
- ENG 559 Middle and Late Twentieth Century Poetry in the United States
- ENG 570 Medieval and Renaissance Drama
- ENG 571 Shakespeare's Rivals
- ENG 573 American Drama
- ENG 574 Modern British Drama
- ENG 612 Serial Narrative
- ENG 630 Selected Studies 1
- MGS 465/ Modern Greek Poetry in Comparative Perspective
- CWL 465/ Modern Greek Poetry in Comparative Perspective
- C W 465 Modern Greek Poetry in Comparative Perspective
Individual Authors
- ENG 580 Individual Authors 1
- ENG 583 Shakespeare: Representative Plays
- ENG 584 Shakespeare: Selected Plays
- ENG 589 Milton
F. (3 units)
Three units selected from Writing from the American Experience or Global Literatures in English (substitution may be made with advisor's approval). (Prerequisite for C W majors to take these courses is C W 302; once completed, courses from sections E. and F. maybe taken at any time.):
Global Literatures in English
(More course offerings in this category will become available over time.)
- CWL 420 Studies in Comparative Literature 1
- CWL 423 Going Medieval: Comparative Medieval European Literature
- CWL 424 Multiucultural Middle Ages
- CWL 432/ From Ghost Stories to Short Stories: Japanese Fiction in Comparative Contexts
- HUM 532 From Ghost Stories to Short Stories: Japanese Fiction in Comparative Contexts
- CWL 440 "Typical American": Narratives of Multiculturalism in the Americas from 1492 to the Present
- ENG 565 Short Story: Global Literature in English
- ENG 630 Selected Studies 1
- ENG 631 Post-Colonial Literature in English
- ENG 632 Literature of Exile and Migration
- ENG 633/ Gay Love in Literature
- SXS 633 Gay Love in Literature
- JS 437/ Holocaust and Literature
- ENG 533/ Holocaust and Literature
- CWL 437 Holocaust and Literature
- JS 451/ Jewish Literature of the Americas
- ENG 451/ Jewish Literature of the Americas
- CWL 451 Jewish Literature of the Americas
- LTNS 560 Contemporary Latina/o Literature
- LTNS 679 Central American Literature: Roots to the Present
- MGS 465/ Modern Greek Poetry in Comparative Perspective
- CWL 465/ Modern Greek Poetry in Comparative Perspective
- C W 465 Modern Greek Poetry in Comparative Perspective
- MGS 497/ Modern Greek Literature
- C W 497 Modern Greek Literature
- SPAN 492/ Early Transatlantic Literature and Culture
- LTNS 492 Early Transatlantic Literature and Culture
Writing from the American Experience
(More course offerings in this category will become available over time.)
- AA S 322 Chinese American Language and Literature
- AA S 332 Japanese American Art and Literature
- AA S 352 Filipina/o American Literature, Art, and Culture
- AA S 372 Vietnamese American Literature
- AA S 512 Asian American Children’s/Adolescent Literature
- AFRS 400 Black Arts and Humanities
- AFRS 411 African and African American Literature
- AIS 360 Modern American Indian Authors
- CWL 425 Faulkner, Garcia Marquez, and Morrison
- ENG 525 Studies in American Literature 1
- ENG 630 Selected Studies 1
- ENG 614 Women Writers and Social Change
- HUM 470 American Autobiography
- JS 546/ 20th Century American Jewish Women Writers
- ENG 546/ 20th Century American Jewish Women Writers
- WGS 546 20th Century American Jewish Women Writers
- LTNS 305 Latina/o Studies Creative Writing Workshop
- LTNS 455 Resistance Literature of the Americas
- LTNS 560 Contemporary Latina/o Literature
- MGS 397/ Greek American Literature
- ENG 398 Greek American Literature
- WGS 541 Women Writers and Social Change
- WGS 548 Literature by U.S. Women of Color
- WGS 551 Queer Literatures and Media
- WGS 564 Women Writers and the Politics of Decolonization
G. (3 units)
Three units selected from Theory and Language Studies:
Theory and Language Studies
(More course offerings in this category will become available over time.)
- AFRS 646 Frantz Fanon’s Psychology of Violence, Negation and Liberation
- ENG 418 Grammar for Writers
- ENG 420 Introduction to the Study of Language
- ENG 422 History of the English Language
- ENG 429 Stylistics
- ENG 475 Fundamentals of Literary Analysis
- ENG 600 Theory of Literature
- ENG 601 Literature and Psychology
- ENG 602 Literature and Society
- ENG 611 Modern Criticism
- ENG 615 Imagery, Metaphor, and Symbol
- ENG 630 Selected Studies 1
- HUM 390 Images of Eroticism
- HUM 410 The Modern Revolution
- HUM 415 Contemporary Culture
- HUM 425 Thought and Image: Humanities
- HUM 432/ Nietzsche and Postmodernism
- PHIL 432 Nietzsche and Postmodernism
Master of Arts in English: Concentration in Creative Writing
Admission to the Program
Students interested in this program must submit a meaningful sample of their writing (15 to 20 pages of fiction or creative nonfiction, 15 to 20 poems, or a full-length stage play or two short plays), two letters of recommendation, and transcripts, along with the Creative Writing Department application form. Submissions should be sent to the Creative Writing Office by December 15 for the fall semester. Applicants from graduate creative writing programs at other colleges or universities may transfer six units to the M.A. program, on review and recommendation of the Creative Writing Admissions Committee and approval of the Division of Graduate Studies. For further clarification, contact the Creative Writing Department. Students accepted into the program with an undergraduate major that is not English are accepted conditionally. Admission to the M.A. does not imply admission to the M.F.A. Students who wish to earn both degrees must finish the M.A. before beginning the M.F.A. degree.
Written English Proficiency Requirement
Level One: Statement of purpose and writing sample (15 to 20 pages of fiction or creative nonfiction, or 15 poems, or 1 full-length play or 2 short plays) scored 8.0 or higher on a scale of 1 to 10 based on the following criteria: 1) fluency and precision of expression; 2) ability to embody and illustrate ideas creatively; and 3) appropriateness of the applicant’s interests, life experiences and goals to the program.
Level Two: Satisfactory completion of C W 893 Written M.A. Creative Project on the following criteria: thesis deemed by two faculty readers to be publishable in part or whole (book, chapbook and/or literary journals).
Selected upper division courses offered by the department may be used for the master's degree upon approval of a departmental advisor. Enrollment is not required in the semester of graduation.
English (M.A.): Concentration in Creative Writing — Minimum 30 units
Courses are 3 units unless otherwise indicated.
Program (9 units)
Writing courses selected from the following
- C W 803 Advanced Short Story Writing 3
- C W 804 Advanced Poetry Writing 3
- C W 807 Developing the Novel
- C W 808 Novel Writing 3
- C W 809 Directed Writing for Graduate Students 3
- C W 899 Independent Study
Creative Process (9 units)
courses selected from the following:
- C W 785 Graduate Projects in the Teaching of Creative Writing
- C W 806 The Business of Creative Writing
- C W 810 Seminar in the Creative Process 1
- C W 814 Contemporary World Poetry
- C W 820 Writers on Writing
- C W 825 Playwright's Theatre Workshop
- C W 840 Fourteen Hills Literary Magazine 2
- C W 850 Poetry Center Workshop
- C W 859 Practicum in Teaching
- C W 860 Teaching Creative Writing
- C W 866 Craft of Translation
- C W 875 Community Projects in Literature 2
- C W 899 Independent Study
Upper division/graduate literature courses (9 units)
Courses in the English, Comparative and World Literature, or Theatre Arts Departments, to be taken on advisement.
- C W 893 Written M.F.A. Creative Work
Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing
Admission to the Program
Students interested in this program must submit a meaningful sample of their writing (15 to 20 pages of fiction or creative nonfiction, 15 to 20 poems, or a full-length stage play or 2 short plays), two letters of recommendation, and transcripts, along with the Creative Writing Department application form. Submissions should be sent to the Creative Writing Office by December 15 for the fall semester.
Applicants from creative writing programs at other colleges or universities may transfer 9 units to the M.F.A. program, on review and recommendation of the Creative Writing Admissions Committee and approval of the Division of Graduate Studies. For further clarification, contact the Creative Writing Department.
Students in the Master of Arts in English with Concentration in Creative Writing at SF State who wish to enter the M.F.A. program are required to apply for admission and are subject to the same admission standards as are all other applicants. For students entering with an earned M.A. in English: Creative Writing from SF State, the M.F.A. is a 30-unit degree as described below.
Written English Proficiency Requirement
Level One: Statement of purpose and writing sample (15 - 20 pages fiction, or 15 poems, or 1 full-length play or 2 short plays) scored 8.0 or higher on a scale of 1 to 10 based on the following criteria: 1) fluency and precision of expression; 2) ability to embody and illustrate ideas creatively; and 3) appropriateness of the applicant’s interests, life experiences and goals to the program.
Level Two: Satisfactory completion of C W 893 M.F.A. Written Creative Work on the following criteria: work deemed by two faculty readers to be publishable as a book and evaluated along the following criteria: 1)ability to use the craft of the art form to illustrate ideas, vision, and imagination creatively, using fresh, precise language; 2)ability to suggest, via the craft to the art form, a subtext and themes that display the writers’ complex relationship with her/his ideas, vision, imagination, and form (story, poem, dramatic monologue and/or play); and 3)mastery of at least one genre form per the above.
Selected upper division courses offered by the department may be used for the degree upon approval of a department advisor. Enrollment is not required in the semester of graduation.
Priority in M.F.A. classes is given to classified M.F.A. students accepted in the genre of the course.
Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing — Minimum 54 units
Courses are 3 units unless otherwise indicated.
Writing Workshops at the M.F.A. Level (6 units)
A minimum of 6 units selected from the following:
- C W 852 M.F.A. Workshop in Creative Nonfiction 4
- C W 853 M.F.A. Workshop in Fiction 4
- C W 854 M.F.A. Workshop in Poetry 4
- C W 855 M.F.A. Workshop in Playwriting 4
- C W 856 M.F.A. Workshop in Short Plays 3
M.A./M.F.A. level Creative Process Directed Writing/Special Study/Writing Workshops (12 units)
Units selected from the following:
- C W 785 Graduate Projects in the Teaching of Creative Writing
- C W 803 Advanced Short Story Writing 3
- C W 804 Advanced Poetry Writing 3
- C W 806 The Business of Creative Writing
- C W 807 Developing the Novel
- C W 808 Novel Writing 3
- C W 809 Directed Writing for Graduate Students 3
- C W 810 Seminar in the Creative Process 1
- C W 814 Contemporary World Poetry
- C W 820 Writers on Writing
- C W 825 Playwright's Theatre Workshop 3
- C W 840 Fourteen Hills Literary Magazine 2
- C W 850 Poetry Center Workshop
- C W 853 M.F.A. Workshop in Fiction 4
- C W 854 M.F.A. Workshop in Poetry 4
- C W 855 M.F.A. Workshop in Playwriting 4
- C W 856 M.F.A. Workshop in Short Plays 3
- C W 859 Practicum in Teaching
- C W 860 Teaching Creative Writing
- C W 866 Craft of Translation
- C W 875 Community Projects in Literature 2
- C W 899 Independent Study
Creative Process courses at the M.F.A. level. (6 units)
Minimum of 6 units selected from the following:
Literature or Theatre Arts courses or Graduate Creative Process courses: (12 units)
Upper division/graduate (300 level and above) literature courses in the English or Comparative and World Literature or Theater Arts Departments, to be taken on advisement, with the consent of an M.F.A. advisor. Theater Arts courses include TH A 401, 660, 705.
Graduate Creative Writing process courses include C W 785, 806, 810, 814, 820, 825, 840, 850, 859, 860, 866, 875, 880, 881, 882, 899.
Correlative courses related to the candidate's interests and planned with the approval of the M.F.A. advisor. Sequences and patterns are especially appropriate. The English Department's course in the teaching of composition is an option in this sequence. For students planning a culminating project in playwriting, the following courses in Theatre Arts are acceptable: TH A 401, 660, 705). Other tracks include careers in Creative Writing, (C W 806, C W 840, C W 875 and C W 785), teaching Creative Writing (C W 859, C W 785, C W 860, C W 875), Book Arts (under development with the Art Department), and a different genre than the student’s own within the department. A poet, for instance, can have a fiction correlative. More specialized correlatives in other areas of study pertaining to the student’s interests as a writers can also be taken in consultation with an advisor.
- C W 893 Written M.F.A. Creative Work (6)
Priority in M.F.A. classes is given to classified M.F.A. students accepted in the genre of the course.
For students with a B.A. degree, the M.F.A. degree is 54 units as stated above.
For students with an earned M.A. in English: Concentration in Creative Writing from SF State, the M.F.A. degree requires an additional 30 units composed of the following elements:
Units chosen in M.F.A.-level workshops (C W 853, 854, 855, or 856) (6 units)
Units chosen in M.F.A.-level Creative Processes classes (C W 880, 881, or 882) 1, 4 (6 units)
Units selected in the Correlative area listed above (12 units)
- C W 893 Written M.F.A. Creative Work (6)
Footnotes
- May be repeated for credit when topics vary.
- May be taken for two semesters of credit.
- May be taken for three semesters of credit.
- May be taken for six semesters of credit.
