Majoring in Creative Writing

The Creative Writing guides students in developing their writing craft, examining the literary and cultural contexts of their works, and expanding their readers’ understanding of what it means to live. Through course offerings and co-curricular opportunities, students carefully study contemporary modes and theories, gain professional experience in publishing, and creating their own original literary works. For students who desire added specializations, the major provides three optional concentrations: Narrative Studies, Publishing, and Activism.

Degree Requirements

Total program: 48 semester hours

Core Requirements

24 semester hours

CWRT 201Intro to Creative Writing4
or CWRT 204 Introduction to Prose Writing
CWRT 303Poetry Writing4
CWRT 305Literary Magazine Staff2,2
CWRT 336Latinx: The Magical & the Real4
CWRT 390Great Author Immersion2
CWRT 499Senior Seminar in Writing2
Select two of the following:8
CWRT 303
Poetry Writing (repeatable once)
CWRT 304
Advanced Fiction Writing
CWRT 324
Advanced Non-Fiction Writing
Total Semester Hours28

Elective Core

Select eight semester hours of the following:8
CWRT 305
Literary Magazine Staff
CWRT 307
Special Topics Writing & Lit 1
CWRT 309
Creative Writing Workshop
Total Semester Hours8
1

May be repeated 3 times

Literature Electives

Select 12 semester hours of the following:12
CWRT 307
Special Topics Writing & Lit
ENG 335
Los Angeles Fiction
ENG 385
Studies in Ethnic American Literature
ENG 430
Contemporary American Fiction
ENG 434
Studies in the American Novel
FREN 365
French Literature in Translation
SPAN 350
Indigenous Writer-Translator
Total Semester Hours12

 Narrative Studies Concentration

12 Semester Hours

CWRT 350Building a Novel4
TV 251Writing the Short Script4
TV 351Playwriting and Screenwriting I4
Total Semester Hours12

Publishing Concentration

10 -12 Semester Hours

JOUR 100News Reporting4
JOUR 115News Editing2-4
or JOUR 315 Syntax and Grammar for the Professional Writer
JOUR 317Graphic Production Processes and Design for Publications4
or JOUR 318 Survey of Multi-Media
Total Semester Hours10-12

Activism Concentration

12 Semester Hours

PLSC 445Race & Resistance in the 20th Century4
One of the following three courses:4
RCS 380
Feminist Rhetorics
RCS 390
Queer Theory and BIPOC Rhetorics
RCS 400
Voices of Revolution
THAR 370Theatre and Community4
Total Semester Hours12