Creative Writing at WVU
Students can pursue a formal concentration in creative writing as part of the English major. Students can also major in another field and pursue a minor in Creative Writing. English majors take the required courses (four surveys, Shakespeare, and a linguistics course) plus a minimum of 15 hours of creative writing courses in fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction.
Courses at the introductory level are open to any student with an interest in creative writing. After successfully completing an introductory course, students can register for advanced courses including workshops and special topics courses in creative writing. Students who concentrate in creative writing must take a senior seminar, which serves as a capstone course, in which he/she completes a major writing project. This capstone course, English 418, cannot be taken until the student has accumulated nine hours of creative writing courses.
Additional Information
Contact: Professor James Harms
Phone: (304) 293-9720
Email: jharms@wvu.edu
For information about the MFA in creative writing, please go to: http://english.wvu.edu/graduate_studies/the_m_f_a_
Creative Writing Courses
- Fiction: An open enrollment introduction to the writing of fiction.
- Nonfiction: Introductory course in the writing of nonfiction.
- Poetry: An open enrollment introduction to the writing of poetry; practice in the basics of image, metaphor, line, form, sound and voice.
- Workshop: Fiction Advanced workshop in creative writing for students seriously engaged in writing fiction.
- Workshop: Poetry Advanced workshop in creative writing for students seriously engaged in the writing of a major group of poems.
- Topics in Creative Writing: Advanced work in creative writing; course content changes with genre of special topic (fiction, poetry, nonfiction).
- Seminar: Individual projects in creative writing pursued in a workshop setting.