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Columbia University Creative Writing: A Comprehensive Guide

columbia university creative writing

By Eric Eng

a female student with her teacher

Located in New York City, Columbia University is renowned for academic excellence. One of its programs, the Columbia University Creative Writing, offers an in-depth exploration of journalism and writing skills.

If you’re aiming to become a writer or have an interest in journalism, this guide highlights the program’s details and the opportunities it offers. Explore how this course could be the foundation for your writing career.

What is the Columbia University Creative Writing Program?

Located in the heart of New York City, Columbia University is a renowned hub for arts, culture, and academia. Among its many esteemed programs, the Creative Writing course stands out, especially for aspiring writers and journalists. So, what makes this program unique?

Program Highlights

At its core, this course offers more than just academic learning; it immerses you in the world of writing. Designed for high school students with a flair for writing and storytelling, the program aims to nurture your talent, equipping you with the tools and guidance you need.

Intensive Learning Experience

Over six days, you’ll study journalism and creative writing. Instead of traditional lectures, you’ll experience hands-on training, tackle real-world challenges, and participate in interactive sessions. Workshops on narrative techniques and investigative journalism ensure a comprehensive learning experience.

Embracing Diversity

A standout feature is the program’s emphasis on diversity. In our globalized world, stories transcend geographical borders. To resonate with a global audience, understanding diverse perspectives is crucial. The program welcomes students from various backgrounds, enriching discussions and broadening horizons.

Mentorship from Experts

The course boasts a lineup of veteran journalists, renowned authors, and top media professionals. Imagine receiving feedback on your article from an award-winning journalist or delving into character development with a bestselling author. Such interactions inspire and push you to excel.

Future-Ready Approach

While the course enhances your writing and journalistic skills, it also prepares you for the evolving world of journalism. With the rise of digital media and multimedia storytelling, it’s essential to be versatile. This program ensures you’re ready for these dynamic shifts.

The Creative Writing course at Columbia University is more than just academic learning. It’s a transformative journey where you’ll find your voice, refine your skills, and emerge as a confident storyteller. If you’re a high school student passionate about writing, consider this program a stepping stone to your dreams.

Students doing some research in the library

The Origins and Purpose of the Program

Columbia University addresses pressing issues in academia and beyond. The creative writing program at Columbia is a clear reflection of this commitment.

Addressing the Industry’s Diversity Challenge

The dawn of the 21st century brought about significant global changes. With the rise of the internet and global communication, our world has become more interconnected.

This newfound connectivity, however, spotlighted a pressing issue in many sectors, including journalism: a stark lack of diversity. By 2001, the journalism industry was predominantly represented by a single demographic. Recognizing this, Columbia University launched a program to bridge this gap.

Embracing True Diversity

While racial diversity was a primary concern, the program’s founders understood that diversity goes beyond just ethnicity. It includes religious background, political beliefs, socio-economic status, gender, and more. The program’s design ensures inclusivity, welcoming students from all walks of life. This approach aims to enrich the journalistic landscape with varied perspectives.

Shaping Holistic Journalists

The program’s goal goes beyond teaching writing skills. It seeks to mold individuals who are globally aware, understand diverse perspectives, and can effectively communicate these views. Through workshops, you’ll engage in discussions and debates and delve into various topics.

Practical training ensures you’re not confined to just theory. You’ll experience real-world journalism, understanding its challenges and rewards. Field trips further enhance this, offering a firsthand view of the industry.

The Creative Writing program at Columbia is not just an academic pursuit. It’s a movement aiming to reshape journalism, making it more inclusive and representative of our diverse world. If you’re passionate about writing and wish to make an impact, this program offers the perfect blend of skill development and awareness.

Who is Eligible?

Columbia University, a renowned institution in academia, offers a unique creative writing program that combines academic rigor with creative freedom. But who can join this esteemed course? Let’s explore the eligibility criteria and what the university looks for in its applicants.

High School Students Welcome

The program isn’t an exclusive club for a select few. It champions inclusivity and diversity. If you’re a high school student, regardless of your year, you’re eligible to apply. This approach ensures a blend of fresh ideas and experienced insights, enhancing the learning environment.

Diverse Backgrounds Encouraged

While Columbia University might be associated with elite academic circles, this program breaks such notions. It welcomes students from all racial, cultural, and socio-economic backgrounds. This diversity ensures that the narratives created resonate globally, mirroring the world’s vast experiences.

Seeking Passionate Individuals

The program values passion above all. Are you deeply passionate about journalism in its many forms, from broadcasting to online media? If so, this course aims to nurture and amplify your enthusiasm.

Traits of an Ideal Applicant

You might wonder what sets apart a standout applicant. Here are some insights:

  • Curiosity: A journalist’s strength lies in asking the right questions. If you’re curious about the world, you’re already on the right path.
  • Varied Experiences: Volunteering, traveling, or participating in exchange programs can enrich your perspective.
  • Portfolio : If you’ve written articles, blogs, or any other pieces, showcasing them can be beneficial. It’s a testament to your dedication.
  • Recommendations: Endorsements from teachers or mentors can strengthen your application, highlighting your commitment.

The Creative Writing program at Columbia University is more than just academics; it’s a transformative experience. If you’re a high school student passionate about journalism, this course offers an unparalleled opportunity to hone your skills and make a mark in the literary world.

View of students taking an exam.

Key Features of the Columbia University Creative Writing Program

Columbia University’s commitment to academic excellence is evident in its diverse range of programs. One such standout is the Creative Writing program, tailored for aspiring writers and journalists. Let’s explore what makes this program unique.

A Comprehensive Curriculum

Central to the program is a curriculum designed to meet the evolving needs of the journalism industry. In our interconnected world, journalists frequently interact with diverse cultural backgrounds. The program trains you to communicate effectively across these cultures, ensuring authentic and relatable narratives.

Beyond just writing, you’ll learn to lead teams, manage projects, and make crucial editorial decisions. The program also emphasizes the significance of diverse voices in journalism, ensuring you value varied perspectives. In a time of misinformation, it’s vital to uphold ethical standards in journalism.

Here, you’ll adopt strong ethical values, ensuring you maintain integrity in your work. Networking is crucial in journalism. The program offers ample opportunities to connect with industry professionals and also provides guidance on mapping out your professional journey.

Affordability and Accessibility

Higher education can be financially challenging. With this in mind, the program ensures that financial constraints don’t hinder your talent. There’s no application fee, and if you’re selected, expenses like airfare, lodging, and meals are covered, making the program accessible to all.

How Does Columbia University Creative Writing Prepare Students for the Future?

Located in the heart of New York City, Columbia University is renowned for its commitment to academic excellence and innovation. Its Creative Writing course stands out, especially for its modern approach to journalism and writing. Let’s explore how this program equips its students to the evolving world of journalism.

Adapting to the Digital Age

The digital age has transformed traditional writing tools. This program ensures you become proficient in the latest digital tools. You’ll learn about content management systems, digital storytelling platforms, social media analytics, and multimedia integration. Such training ensures you’re ready for modern newsrooms and media houses.

Perfecting Storytelling

While tools change, the essence of journalism remains storytelling. Here, you’ll refine your ability to craft compelling narratives for diverse audiences. Whether you’re diving into investigative journalism, sharing human-interest stories, or creating multimedia content, you’ll acquire the skills to produce impactful stories from multiple perspectives.

Understanding Global Perspectives

Today’s journalists often report from various global locations, engaging with a range of cultures. This program prepares you to approach stories with cultural sensitivity. Through interactive sessions, you’ll learn to appreciate different communities’ nuances, ensuring your narratives remain authentic and respectful.

Maintaining Ethical Integrity

In a time when misinformation is rampant, a journalist’s role as a truth-bearer is paramount. Ethics is a cornerstone of this program. You’ll not only learn the principles of journalistic ethics but also how to apply them in real scenarios, from source confidentiality to balancing public interest and privacy.

Expanding Your Network

In journalism, connections can lead to unique stories and opportunities. This program offers numerous networking chances. You’ll interact with experienced journalists during guest lectures and attend industry events, helping you establish valuable contacts for your future career.

Columbia University’s writing program is more than just a course; it’s a comprehensive training ground. By merging traditional journalistic principles with contemporary tools and techniques, it ensures graduates are ready to tackle the challenges of modern journalism. Whether you aspire to work in traditional newsrooms, digital platforms, or freelance, this program provides the foundation you need.

Three students talking in a table.

Important Dates and Deadlines

Columbia University, renowned for its commitment to academic excellence, offers a range of programs across various disciplines. One such program that stands out is the Creative Writing course, which attracts students worldwide. If you’re considering this program, it’s essential to be aware of the crucial dates and deadlines.

Timelines in academia provide structure, offering clarity and allowing you to plan both academic and personal commitments. This becomes especially important if you’re traveling from a different state or country.

For those eyeing the 2023 cohort, here are some dates to remember:

  • Application Status: The application window for 2023 has closed. However, if you’re interested in future cohorts, regularly check the program’s official announcements to stay updated.
  • Program Duration: The intensive week-long session runs from July 15-21, immersing students in the world of journalism and providing a mix of theoretical and practical experience.
  • Venue: The 2023 session takes place in Washington, D.C. This location offers a rich backdrop, filled with history and political significance, providing ample learning opportunities for budding journalists.

If you’ve secured a spot for 2023, here’s how to prepare:

  • Travel Plans: If you’re from outside Washington, D.C., start your travel preparations early to find better deals and reduce last-minute stress.
  • Lodging: Familiarize yourself with the city’s accommodation options, especially if you’re considering an extended stay.
  • Preparation Material: Some programs recommend readings or preparatory materials. Look out for such resources to ensure you’re well-prepared for the sessions.

In conclusion, the Creative Writing program at Columbia University is a unique opportunity for aspiring writers and journalists. Whether you’re part of the 2023 cohort or considering future sessions, staying informed and prepared will help you make the most of this experience.

View of a male student writing on a table.

Tips for Aspiring Applicants

Located in New York City, Columbia University offers diverse academic programs. One that stands out is their Creative Writing course, which attracts writers and journalists globally. If you’re considering this program, here are some tips to enhance your application:

Know the Program

Before applying, understand the program thoroughly. It’s not just about improving writing skills but also about understanding journalism, storytelling techniques, and various writing styles. Familiarize yourself with the course structure, faculty, and alumni achievements. This will help you tailor your application and show your genuine interest.

Show Your Enthusiasm

The admissions team values candidates with a strong passion for journalism and writing. Highlight your previous works, such as workshops, internships, or personal projects. Emphasize what you learned from each experience and how it deepened your interest in further studies.

Celebrate Diversity

Journalism thrives on varied voices. The program values applicants with diverse experiences and perspectives. Share your unique experiences, challenges, or viewpoints. It’s not just about racial or ethnic backgrounds but also about showcasing different mindsets and experiences.

Gather Strong Recommendations

A good recommendation can make a difference. Seek endorsements from teachers, mentors, or professionals in journalism or writing. Choose those who are familiar with your work and provide specific examples of your achievements.

Stay Informed

Ensure you’re updated with any changes in the application process by checking the official program website. This proactive approach can help you avoid last-minute issues. Gaining admission into Columbia University’s writing program offers unparalleled learning experiences and networking opportunities. By following these tips, you can present a compelling application, showcasing your skills, dedication, and unique voice.

a man sitting at the front row and holding a pen looking at the camera

What Opportunities Await After Completing the Columbia University Creative Writing Program?

Columbia University, renowned for its commitment to academic excellence, offers a variety of programs. Among them, the creative writing program stands out. If you’re considering this course or have recently completed it, you’re likely curious about the opportunities that await. Let’s delve into the potential paths you can pursue.

Standing Out in the Job Market

Having a degree from a recognized institution like Columbia University can give you an advantage. You won’t just carry the prestige of the university; you’ll also bring the skills and experiences you’ve gained. Whether you’re eyeing roles in print media, digital platforms, or broadcasting, you’ll find yourself well-prepared.

Landing Roles in Renowned Firms

Many graduates secure positions in esteemed media houses and publishing firms, such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and HarperCollins. The program’s rigorous training and industry exposure prepares you to take on significant roles early in your career.

Further Studies

The world of journalism and literature is vast. Some graduates choose to specialize further, pursuing advanced degrees in journalism, literature, or related fields. While Columbia offers advanced courses, many also find opportunities in other top institutions worldwide.

Internships and Workshops

One of the program’s highlights is its industry connections. You’ll have access to internships with leading media houses and publishing firms. These internships provide invaluable real-world experience. Additionally, you can benefit from workshops, seminars, and guest lectures, expanding your network and learning from industry experts.

Starting Your Own Venture

Not everyone opts for traditional employment. With the skills you acquire, you might decide to launch your own media platform, publishing house, or content agency. The program’s emphasis on modern tools ensures that if you choose to freelance, you’re ready for the digital age.

The Creative Writing program at Columbia University isn’t just an academic course—it’s a stepping stone. As a graduate, you’ll have the tools, knowledge, and connections to navigate the dynamic world of journalism and literature. Whether you aim to join a top media house, continue your studies, or carve an independent path, a world of opportunities awaits.

Columbia University Creative Writing is more than just a program; it’s a community of budding writers and journalists eager to make their mark in the world.

With its comprehensive curriculum, esteemed mentors, and commitment to diversity, it offers students a unique platform to kickstart their journalism journey. Whether you’re a high school student passionate about writing or a parent seeking the best opportunities for your child, this program is undoubtedly worth considering.

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The Creative Writing Department offers writing workshops in fiction writing, poetry, and nonfiction writing. Courses are also offered in film writing, structure and style, translation, and the short story.

For questions about specific courses, contact the department.

Registration Procedures and Course Approval

All creative writing classes have limited enrollments and require instructor or departmental approval prior to registration.

Students should visit the Writing Department's website below for details and instructions.

Registration Procedures

BEGINNING FICTION WORKSHOP WRIT1100W001 3 pts

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. The beginning workshop in fiction is designed for students with little or no experience writing literary texts in fiction. Students are introduced to a range of technical and imaginative concerns through exercises and discussions, and they eventually produce their own writing for the critical analysis of the class. The focus of the course is on the rudiments of voice, character, setting, point of view, plot, and lyrical use of language. Students will begin to develop the critical skills that will allow them to read like writers and understand, on a technical level, how accomplished creative writing is produced. Outside readings of a wide range of fiction supplement and inform the exercises and longer written projects.

Course Number

Times/location, section/call number, beginning fiction workshop writ1100w002 3 pts, beginning fiction workshop writ1100w003 3 pts, beginning fiction workshop writ1100w004 3 pts, beginning fiction workshop writ1100w005 3 pts, beginning nonfiction workshop writ1200w001 3 pts, beginning nonfiction workshop writ1200w002 3 pts, beginning nonfiction workshop writ1200w003 3 pts, beginning poetry workshop writ1300w001 3 pts, beginning poetry workshop writ1300w002 3 pts, intermediate fiction workshop writ2100w001 3 pts.

Intermediate workshops are for students with some experience with creative writing, and whose prior work merits admission to the class (as judged by the professor). Intermediate workshops present a higher creative standard than beginning workshops, and increased expectations to produce finished work. By the end of the semester, each student will have produced at least seventy pages of original fiction. Students are additionally expected to write extensive critiques of the work of their peers. Please visit  https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate  for information about registration procedures.

INTERMEDIATE FICTION WORKSHOP WRIT2100W002 3 pts

Approaches to the short story writ2110w001 3 pts.

The modern short story has gone through many transformations, and the innovations of its practitioners have often pointed the way for prose fiction as a whole. The short story has been seized upon and refreshed by diverse cultures and aesthetic affiliations, so that perhaps the only stable definition of the form remains the famous one advanced by Poe, one of its early masters, as a work of fiction that can be read in one sitting. Still, common elements of the form have emerged over the last century and this course will study them, including Point of View, Plot, Character, Setting and Theme. John Hawkes once famously called these last four elements the "enemies of the novel," and many short story writers have seen them as hindrances as well. Hawkes later recanted, though some writers would still agree with his earlier assessment, and this course will examine the successful strategies of great writers across the spectrum of short story practice, from traditional approaches to more radical solutions, keeping in mind how one period's revolution -Hemingway, for example - becomes a later era's mainstream or "commonsense" storytelling mode. By reading the work of major writers from a writer's perspective, we will examine the myriad techniques employed for what is finally a common goal: to make readers feel. Short writing exercises will help us explore the exhilarating subtleties of these elements and how the effects created by their manipulation or even outright absence power our most compelling fictions.

INTERMEDIATE NONFICTION WRKSHP WRIT2200W001 3 pts

The intermediate workshop in nonfiction is designed for students with some experience in writing literary nonfiction. Intermediate workshops present a higher creative standard than beginning workshops and an expectation that students will produce finished work. Outside readings supplement and inform the exercises and longer written projects. By the end of the semester, students will have produced thirty to forty pages of original work in at least two traditions of literary nonfiction. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate  for information about registration procedures.

TRADITIONS IN NONFICTION WRIT2211W001 3 pts

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. The seminar provides exposure to the varieties of nonfiction with readings in its principal genres: reportage, criticism and commentary, biography and history, and memoir and the personal essay. A highly plastic medium, nonfiction allows authors to portray real events and experiences through narrative, analysis, polemic or any combination thereof. Free to invent everything but the facts, great practitioners of nonfiction are faithful to reality while writing with a voice and a vision distinctively their own. To show how nonfiction is conceived and constructed, class discussions will emphasize the relationship of content to form and style, techniques for creating plot and character under the factual constraints imposed by nonfiction, the defining characteristics of each authors voice, the authors subjectivity and presence, the role of imagination and emotion, the uses of humor, and the importance of speculation and attitude. Written assignments will be opportunities to experiment in several nonfiction genres and styles.

INTERMEDIATE POETRY WORKSHOP WRIT2300W001 3 pts

Intermediate poetry workshops are for students with some prior instruction in the rudiments of poetry writing and prior poetry workshop experience. Intermediate poetry workshops pose greater challenges to students and maintain higher critical standards than beginning workshops. Students will be instructed in more complex aspects of the craft, including the poetic persona, the prose poem, the collage, open-field composition, and others. They will also be assigned more challenging verse forms such as the villanelle and also non-European verse forms such as the pantoum. They will read extensively, submit brief critical analyses, and put their instruction into regular practice by composing original work that will be critiqued by their peers. By the end of the semester each student will have assembled a substantial portfolio of finished work. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate  for information about registration procedures.

TRADITIONS IN POETRY WRIT2311W001 3 pts

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. 

“For those, in dark, who find their own way by the light of others’ eyes.” —Lucie Brock-Broido

The avenues of poetic tradition open to today’s poets are more numerous, more invigorating, and perhaps even more baffling than ever before. The routes we chose for our writing lead to destinations of our own making, and we take them at our own risk—necessarily so, as the pursuit of poetry asks each of us to light a pilgrim’s candle and follow it into the moors and lowlands, through wastes and prairies, crossing waters as we go. Go after the marshlights, the will-o-wisps who call to you in a voice you’ve longed for your whole life. These routes have been forged by those who came before you, but for that reason, none of them can hope to keep you on it entirely. You must take your steps away, brick by brick, heading confidently into the hinterland of your own distinct achievement.

For the purpose of this class, we will walk these roads together, examining the works of classic and contemporary exemplars of the craft. By companioning poets from a large spread of time, we will be able to more diversely immerse ourselves in what a poetic “tradition” truly means. We will read works by Edmund Spencer, Dante, and Goethe, the Romantics—especially Keats—Dickinson, who is mother to us all, Modernists, and the great sweep of contemporary poetry that is too vast to individuate.

While it is the imperative of this class to equip you with the knowledge necessary to advance in the field of poetry, this task shall be done in a Columbian manner. Consider this class an initiation, of sorts, into the vocabulary which distinguishes the writers who work under our flag, each of us bound by this language that must be passed on, and therefore changed, to you who inherit it. As I have learned the words, I have changed them, and I give them now to you so that you may pave your own way into your own ways, inspired with the first breath that brought you here, which may excite and—hopefully—frighten you. You must be troubled. This is essential

TRANSLATION SEMINAR WRIT3011W001 3 pts

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Students do not need to demonstrate bilingual ability to take this course. Department approval NOT needed. Corequisites: This course is open to undergraduate & graduate students. This course will explore broad-ranging questions pertaining to the historical, cultural, and political significance of translation while analyzing the various challenges confronted by the arts foremost practitioners. We will read and discuss texts by writers and theorists such as Benjamin, Derrida, Borges, Steiner, Dryden, Nabokov, Schleiermacher, Goethe, Spivak, Jakobson, and Venuti. As readers and practitioners of translation, we will train our ears to detect the visibility of invisibility of the translators craft; through short writing experiments, we will discover how to identify and capture the nuances that traverse literary styles, historical periods and cultures. The course will culminate in a final project that may either be a critical analysis or an original translation accompanied by a translators note of introduction.

BODY & WORD WRIT3037W001 3 pts

Our writing often appears primarily as a product of cognitive faculties, and we easily overlook the profound influence our bodies exert on our thoughts and, consequently, our writing. Our perception of language itself is tied to how we perceive our physical selves. We can understand our bodies materially, as intricate structures of bone, muscle, and cells, or kinesthetically, through movement, force, and tone, intertwined with a spectrum of sensations like pain and pleasure, which intersect with our psychological and emotional landscapes. Through a series of movement exercises, readings, and writing assignments, this seminar delves into the profound impact a deeper understanding of our bodies and their movement can have on our writing, and conversely, how writing can influence our bodily experiences. Using various artistic mediums such as dance, film, literature, and fine arts, we aim to enhance our ability to articulate and write the body's presence and movement through space and time. Students from all concentrations are encouraged to join.

WORD. ARTWORK. MIRROR. MULTIPLY: THE VISUAL ARTS AS A POETICS OF SENTENCE, LINE, AND FORM WRIT3038W001 3 pts

In Teresa Margolles’ Aire/Air, 2003, two air conditioning units cool an otherwise empty exhibition space. Exhaled by the air conditioners, inhaled by gallery audience, the water once washed the bodies of unidentified murder victims in Mexico City’s public mortuaries. Invisible, yet tangible. Permeating. A year prior to the first installation of Aire/Air, 2003 , Jenny Boully published The Body: An Essay —a book of largely blank pages, articulated through footnotes. In 2016, Solmaz Sharif’s poetry collection Look examined the physical and linguistic devastation of anglophone imperialism in a lexicon of erasure, redaction, and rupture. What can be understood from approaching Margolles’ Aire/Air, 2003 , Boully’s The Body: An Essay, and Sharif’s Look not as individual entities but as constellation, as works in orbit. What insights—critical and craft-based—might emerge in this triangulation of visions, subject matter, and techniques? If artworks and literature are positioned as mirrors, not to reflect but to multiply one another infinitely, how will each illuminate, complicate, and expand the other?

By examining literary nonfiction and poetry through the lens of the visual arts, by travelling the critical and formal “vocabularies” of one medium towards another, Word. Artwork. Mirror. Multiply: The Visual Arts as a Poetics of Sentence, Line, and Form invites students to radically rethink how they approach the sentence or line. Working from the premise that an exploration of one artform’s genres, methods, shapes, and traditions better clarifies the mechanisms, possibilities, and even boundaries of another, the course asks that students consider those material “impossibilities” of the written word and page, not as endings, but as beginnings, as opportunities for experimentation, originality, and the strange. How can writing walk us around, above or beneath its subject matter? How can an object of study imperceptibly permeate the “room” of the page? How can it rupture, correlate, multiply, map across dimensions?

Each week, students will receive a generative prompt (either to complete in class or after) specific to the themes and concerns of the relevant reading materials. These are opportunities to experiment as the work will not be workshopped or critiqued. Twice during the semester, students will lead discussions on assigned books, artworks, craft essays, and criticism and theory. At the end of the term, students will submit a final portfolio consisting of a project of their own design.

Readings may include work by Jenny Boully, Solmaz Sharif, Robin Coste Lewis, Aisha Sabatini Sloan, Andrés Cerpa, Natalie Diaz, Layli Long Soldier, Eloisa Amezcua, Derek Jarman, Maggie Nelson, Kassia St. Clair, Donika Kelly, Elena Passarello, Rajiv Mohabir, and others. Art may include works by Teresa Margolles, Song Dong, Rachel Whiteread, Delcy Morelos, Regina José Galindo, Walter De Maria, Mona Hatoum, Seba Calfuqueo, Melissa Cody, Jenny Holzer, Roni Horn, Wu Tsang, and others.

ADVANCED FICTION WORKSHOP WRIT3100Q001 3 pts

Building on the work of the Intermediate Workshop, Advanced Workshops are reserved for the most accomplished creative writing students. A significant body of writing must be produced and revised. Particular attention will be paid to the components of fiction: voice, perspective, characterization, and form. Students will be expected to finish several short stories, executing a total artistic vision on a piece of writing. The critical focus of the class will include an examination of endings and formal wholeness, sustaining narrative arcs, compelling a reader's interest for the duration of the text, and generating a sense of urgency and drama in the work. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate for information about registration procedures.

ADVANCED FICTION WORKSHOP WRIT3100Q002 3 pts

Senior fiction workshop writ3101q001 4 pts.

Seniors who are majors in creative writing are given priority for this course. Enrollment is limited, and is by permission of the professor. The senior workshop offers students the opportunity to work exclusively with classmates who are at the same high level of accomplishment in the major. Students in the senior workshops will produce and revise a new and substantial body of work. In-class critiques and conferences with the professor will be tailored to needs of each student. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate for information about registration procedures.

VOICES & VISIONS OF CHILDHOOD WRIT3118W001 3 pts

How to build a person writ3121w001 3 pts, apocalypses now writ3125w001 3 pts, the ecstasy of influence writ3132w001 3 pts.

What does it mean to be original? How do we differentiate plagiarism from pastiche, appropriation from homage? And how do we build on pre-existing traditions while simultaneously creating work that reflects our own unique experiences of the world?

In a 2007 essay for Harper ’ s magazine, Jonathan Lethem countered critic Harold Bloom’s theory of “the anxiety of influence” by proposing, instead, an “ecstasy of influence”; Lethem suggested that writers embrace rather than reject the unavoidable imprints of their literary forbearers. Beginning with Lethem’s essay—which, itself, is composed entirely of borrowed (or “sampled”) text—this class will consider the nature of literary influence, and its role in the development of voice.

Each week, students will read from pairings of older stories and novel excerpts with contemporary work that falls within the same artistic lineage. In doing so, we’ll track the movement of stylistic, structural, and thematic approaches to fiction across time, and think about the different ways that stories and novels can converse with one another. We will also consider the influence of other artistic mediums—music, visual art, film and television—on various texts. Students will then write their own original short pieces modeled after the readings. Just as musicians cover songs, we will “cover” texts,  adding our own interpretive imprints.

SENIOR NONFICTION WORKSHOP WRIT3201W001 4 pts

Seniors who are majors in creative writing are given priority for this course. Enrollment is limited, and is by permission of the professor. The senior workshop offers students the opportunity to work exclusively with classmates who are at the same high level of accomplishment in the major. Students in the senior workshops will produce and revise a new and substantial body of work. In-class critiques and conferences with the professor will be tailored to needs of each student. Please visit  https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate  for information about registration procedures.

HYBRID NONFICTION FORMS WRIT3214W001 3 pts

Writing about art writ3215w001 3 pts.

This course will introduce students to writing about visual art. We will take our models from art history and contemporary art discourse, and students will be prompted to write with and about current art exhibitions and events throughout the city. The modes of art writing we will encounter include: the practice of ekphrasis (poems which describe or derive their inspiration from a work of art); writers such as John Ashbery, Gary Indiana, Eileen Myles, and others who for periods of their life held positions as art critics while composing poetry and works of fiction; writers such as Etel Adnan, Susan Howe, and Renee Gladman who have produced literature and works of art in equal measure. We will also look at artists who have written essays and poetry throughout their careers such as Robert Smithson, Glenn Ligon, Gregg Bordowitz, Moyra Davey, and Hannah Black, and consider both the visual qualities of writing and the ways that visual artists have used writing in their work. Lastly, we will consider what it means to write through a “milieu” of visual artists, such as those associated with the New York School and Moscow Conceptualism. Throughout the course students will produce original works and complete a final writing project that enriches, complicates, and departs from their own interests and preoccupations.

SCIENCE AND SENSIBILITY WRIT3217W001 3 pts

Life stories writ3225w001 3 pts.

In this seminar, we will target nonfiction that tells stories about lives: profiles, memoirs, and biographies. We will examine how the practice of this kind of nonfiction, and ideas about it, have evolved over the past 150 years. Along the way, we will ask questions about these nonfiction forms: How do reporters, memoirists, biographers, and critics make sense of their subjects? How do they create work as rich as the best novels and short stories? Can criticism explicate the inner life of a human subject? What roles do voice, point-of-view, character, dialogue, and plot—the traditional elements of fiction—play? Along the way, we’ll engage in issues of identity and race, memory and self, real persons and invented characters and we’ll get glimpses of such key publications as The Atlantic Monthly, The New Yorker, Esquire, Harper’s, and The New York Review of Books. Some writers we will consider: Frederick Douglass, Louisa May Alcott, Walt Whitman, Henry Adams, Joseph Mitchell, Lillian Ross, James Agee, John Hersey, Edmund Wilson, Gore Vidal, Gay Talese, James Baldwin, Vladimir Nabokov, Janet Malcolm, Robert Caro, Joyce Carol Oates, Toni Morrison, Joan Didion, and Henry Louis Gates Jr. The course regularly welcomes guest speakers.

ADVANCED POETRY WORKSHOP WRIT3300W001 3 pts

This poetry workshop is reserved for accomplished poetry writers and maintains the highest level of creative and critical expectations. Students will be encouraged to develop their strengths and to cultivate a distinctive poetic vision and voice but must also demonstrate a willingness to broaden their range and experiment with new forms and notions of the poem. A portfolio of poetry will be written and revised with the critical input of the instructor and the workshop. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate  for information about registration procedures.

Ecopoetics WRIT3321W001 3 pts

“There are things / We live among ‘and to see them / Is to know ourselves.’”

George Oppen, “Of Being Numerous”

In this class we will read poetry like writers that inhabit an imperiled planet, understanding our poems as being in direct conversation both with the environment as well as writers past and present with similar concerns and techniques. Given the imminent ecological crises we are facing, the poems we read will center themes of place, ecology, interspecies dependence, the role of humans in the destruction of the planet, and the “necropastoral” (to borrow a term from Joyelle McSweeney), among others. We will read works by poets and writers such as (but not limited to) John Ashbery, Harryette Mullen, Asiya Wadud, Wendy Xu, Ross Gay, Simone Kearney, Kim Hyesoon, Marcella Durand, Arthur Rimbaud, Geoffrey G. O’Brien, Muriel Rukeyser, George Oppen, Terrance Hayes, Juliana Spahr, and W.S. Merwin—reading several full collections as well as individual poems and essays by scholars in the field.

Through close readings, in-class exercises, discussions, and creative/critical writings, we will invest in and investigate facets of the dynamic lyric that is aware of its environs (sound, image, line), while also exploring traditional poetic forms like the Haibun, ode, prose poem, and elegy. Additionally, we will seek inspiration in outside mediums such as film, visual art, and music, as well as, of course, the natural world. As a class, we will explore the highly individual nature of writing processes and talk about building writing practices that are generative as well as sustainable.

21STC AM POETRY & ITS CONCERNS WRIT3365W001 3 pts

The lyric has often been conceived of as timeless in its content and inwardly-directed in its mode of address, yet so many poems with lasting claim on our attention point unmistakably outward, addressing the particulars of their times.  This course will examine the ways in which an array of 21st poets have embraced, indicted, and anatomized their cultural and historical contexts, diagnosing society’s ailments, indulging in its obsessions, and sharing its concerns.  Engaging with such topics as race, class, war, death, trauma, feminism, pop culture and sexuality, how do poets adapt poetic form to provide meaningful and relevant insights without losing them to beauty, ambiguity, and music?  How is pop star Rihanna a vehicle for discussing feminism and isolation?  What does it mean to write about Black masculinity after Ferguson?  In a time when poetry’s cultural relevancy is continually debated in academia and in the media, how can today’s poets use their art to hold a mirror to modern living?  This class will explore how writers address present-day topics in light of their own subjectivity, how their works reflect larger cultural trends and currents, and how critics as well as poets themselves have reflected on poetry’s, and the poet’s, changing social role.  In studying how these writers complicate traditional notions of what poetry should and shouldn’t do, both in terms of content and of form, students will investigate their own writing practices, fortify their poetic voices, and create new works that engage directly and confidently with the world in which they are written.

STORIES WITHIN STORIES WRIT3404W001 3 pts

The science fiction writer Ursula K. Le Guin, in her sly, radical manifesto of sorts “Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction,” proposes an idea of the “bottle as hero”: instead of conflict serving as our central organizing theory for narrative, she suggests that “the natural, proper, fitting shape of the novel might be that of a sack, a bag.” In other words: a container. These containers needn’t only apply to novels, I contend, but many types of literary narratives, whether they are classified as fiction, nonfiction, poetry, or some hybrid of forms.

With this in mind, the generative cross-genre craft seminar Stories within Stories aims to uncover beautiful and practical approaches to gathering small narratives into a larger, cohesive whole. Readings will include Svetlana Alexievich’s devastating novels in voices, Percival Everett’s incendiary novel-within-a-novel Erasure , Ted Chiang’s mesmerizing historical fantasy, Robin Wall Kimmerer’s braided essays of restoration, Nâzım Hikmet’s epic in verse Human Landscapes from My Country , Renee Gladman’s cross-disciplinary approaches to writing and drawing, Yevgenia Belorusets’s dispatches from Ukraine, Edward Gauvin’s identity-memoir-in-contributors’ bios, Saidiya Hartman’s speculative histories, Gary Indiana’s gleefully acerbic roman à clef Do Everything in the Dark , Alejandro Zambra’s standardized test-inspired literature, W. G. Sebald’s saturnine essay-fiction, and Lisa Hsiao Chen’s meld of biography and autobiography, as well as fiction and nonfiction by Clarice Lispector, Vauhini Vara, Eileen Myles, Olga Tokarczuk, and Julie Hecht, among other texts. 

In addition, we will also read essays on craft and storytelling by Le Guin, Gladman, Zambra, Lydia Davis, Walter Benjamin, Garielle Lutz, Ben Mauk, and more. What we learn in this course we will apply to our own work, which will consist of regular creative writing responses drawn from the readings and a creative final project. Students will also learn to keep a daily journal of writing.

FICTION WORKSHOP WRIT5100R001 6 pts

Fiction workshop writ5100r002 6 pts, fiction workshop writ5100r003 6 pts, fiction workshop writ5100r004 6 pts, fiction workshop writ5100r005 6 pts, fiction workshop writ5100r006 6 pts, fiction workshop writ5100r007 6 pts, fiction workshop writ5100r008 6 pts, fiction workshop writ5100r009 6 pts, fiction workshop writ5100r010 6 pts, fiction workshop writ5100r011 6 pts, nonfiction workshop writ5200r001 6 pts, nonfiction workshop writ5200r002 6 pts, nonfiction workshop writ5200r003 6 pts, nonfiction workshop writ5200r004 6 pts, poetry workshop writ5300r001 6 pts, poetry workshop writ5300r002 6 pts, poetry workshop writ5300r003 6 pts, poetry workshop writ5300r004 6 pts, poetry workshop writ5300r005 6 pts, special projects workshop writ5500r001 6 pts, cross-genre seminar writ6010q001 3 pts.

CROSS-GENRE SEMINAR

CROSS-GENRE SEMINAR WRIT6010Q002 3 pts

Cross-genre seminar writ6010q003 3 pts, cross-genre seminar writ6010q004 3 pts, cross-genre seminar writ6010q005 3 pts, cross-genre seminar writ6010q006 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r001 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r002 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r003 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r004 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r005 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r006 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r007 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r008 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r009 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r010 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r011 3 pts, fiction seminar writ6110r012 3 pts, nonfiction seminar writ6210r001 3 pts, nonfiction seminar writ6210r002 3 pts, nonfiction seminar writ6210r003 3 pts, nonfiction seminar writ6210r004 3 pts, nonfiction seminar writ6210r005 3 pts, nonfiction seminar writ6210r006 3 pts, nonfiction seminar writ6210r007 3 pts, poetry seminar writ6310r001 3 pts, poetry seminar writ6310r002 3 pts, poetry seminar writ6310r003 3 pts, poetry seminar writ6310r004 3 pts, poetry seminar writ6310r005 3 pts, translation workshop writ6400q001 3 pts, translation workshop writ6400q002 3 pts, translation workshop writ6400q003 3 pts, translation seminar writ6410r001 3 pts.

TRANSLATION SEMINAR

TRANSLATION SEMINAR WRIT6410R002 3 pts

Fiction lecture writ6510r001 3 pts, nonfiction lecture writ6520r001 3 pts.

NONFICTION LECTURE

POETRY LECTURE WRIT6530R001 3 pts

POETRY LECTURE

MASTER CLASS WRIT6610Q001 2 pts

Master class writ6610q002 2 pts, master class writ6610q003 2 pts, master class writ6610q004 2 pts, master class writ6610q005 2 pts, master class writ6610q006 2 pts, master class writ6610q007 2 pts, master class writ6610q008 2 pts, master class writ6610q009 2 pts, master class writ6610q010 2 pts, master class writ6610q011 2 pts, master class writ6610q012 2 pts, master class writ6610q013 2 pts, master class writ6610q014 2 pts, master class writ6611r001 1 pts, nonfiction thesis workshop writ8200r001 9 pts, nonfiction thesis workshop writ8200r002 9 pts, nonfiction thesis workshop writ8200r003 9 pts, nonfiction thesis workshop writ8200r004 9 pts, nonfiction thesis workshop writ8200r005 9 pts, research arts writing writ9000qra1 0 pts.

Research Arts for MFA Writing Program - Students Must Have Completed 60 Points to Register

WRIT RESEARCH ARTS INTERNSHIP WRIT9800RRI1 6 pts

Interenship for MFA Writing Research Arts Students

The University of Texas at Austin

Creative Writing

The Department of English offers creative writing instruction in multiple formats and offers several degrees and qualifications.

Undergraduate

At the undergraduate level, students who are enrolled in a B.A. program at UT Austin can pursue the Creative Writing Certificate .

For graduate students, there are two degree options in creative writing:

  • the New Writers Project MFA in Fiction and Poetry , and
  • the Michener Center MFA in Writing .

We invite you to visit the center's pages for information on their programs.

  • Graduate School
  • Prospective Students
  • Graduate Degree Programs

Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writingm, Distance Education (MFA)

Go to programs search

Creative Writers are at the heart of our cultural industries. Poets, novelists, screenwriters, playwrights, graphic novelists, magazine writers: they entertain, inform and inspire. For more than 15 years, UBC's Creative Writing program has been educating writers through distance education in a program which complements our long-standing on-campus MFA program.

A studio program with the writing workshop at its heart, the distance MFA focuses on the work created by students as the primary text. Through intensive peer critique and craft discussion, faculty and students work together with the same goal: literary excellence.

The MFA granted to distance students is the same degree as granted to on-campus students, and the same criteria of excellence in multiple genres of study apply.

For specific program requirements, please refer to the departmental program website

What makes the program unique?

UBC's Optional-Residency (Distance) MFA was the first distance education MFA program in Canada and remains the only full MFA which can be taken completely online. It is designed to be uniquely flexible, allowing students across Canada and around the world to study writing at the graduate level while still living in their local communities and fulfilling career and family obligations.

The program is unique globally for its multi-genre approach to writing instruction: students are required to work in multiple genres during the course of the degree. As a fine arts program rather than an English program, students focus on the practice of writing rather than the study of literature. Students may work on a part-time basis, taking up to five years to complete the degree.

My time in the Creative writing grad program at UBC has given me the discipline and focus I need to complete long-form writing pieces and larger poetry projects.

columbia university creative writing

Kwaku Darko-Mensah Jnr.

Quick Facts

Program enquiries, admission information & requirements, program instructions.

The optional residency MFA (distance) program only has a July intake.

1) Check Eligibility

Minimum academic requirements.

The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies establishes the minimum admission requirements common to all applicants, usually a minimum overall average in the B+ range (76% at UBC). The graduate program that you are applying to may have additional requirements. Please review the specific requirements for applicants with credentials from institutions in:

  • Canada or the United States
  • International countries other than the United States

Each program may set higher academic minimum requirements. Please review the program website carefully to understand the program requirements. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission as it is a competitive process.

English Language Test

Applicants from a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. Tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of your application.

Minimum requirements for the two most common English language proficiency tests to apply to this program are listed below:

TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language - internet-based

Overall score requirement : 90

IELTS: International English Language Testing System

Overall score requirement : 6.5

Other Test Scores

Some programs require additional test scores such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Test (GMAT). The requirements for this program are:

The GRE is not required.

2) Meet Deadlines

3) prepare application, transcripts.

All applicants have to submit transcripts from all past post-secondary study. Document submission requirements depend on whether your institution of study is within Canada or outside of Canada.

Letters of Reference

A minimum of three references are required for application to graduate programs at UBC. References should be requested from individuals who are prepared to provide a report on your academic ability and qualifications.

Statement of Interest

Many programs require a statement of interest , sometimes called a "statement of intent", "description of research interests" or something similar.

  • Supervision

Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.

Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writingm, Distance Education (MFA)

Citizenship verification.

Permanent Residents of Canada must provide a clear photocopy of both sides of the Permanent Resident card.

4) Apply Online

All applicants must complete an online application form and pay the application fee to be considered for admission to UBC.

Tuition & Financial Support

FeesCanadian Citizen / Permanent Resident / Refugee / DiplomatInternational
$114.00$168.25
Tuition *
Tuition per credit$679.79$1,322.47
Other Fees and Costs
Student FeesVary

Financial Support

Applicants to UBC have access to a variety of funding options, including merit-based (i.e. based on your academic performance) and need-based (i.e. based on your financial situation) opportunities.

Scholarships & awards (merit-based funding)

All applicants are encouraged to review the awards listing to identify potential opportunities to fund their graduate education. The database lists merit-based scholarships and awards and allows for filtering by various criteria, such as domestic vs. international or degree level.

Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA)

Many professors are able to provide Research Assistantships (GRA) from their research grants to support full-time graduate students studying under their supervision. The duties constitute part of the student's graduate degree requirements. A Graduate Research Assistantship is considered a form of fellowship for a period of graduate study and is therefore not covered by a collective agreement. Stipends vary widely, and are dependent on the field of study and the type of research grant from which the assistantship is being funded.

Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA)

Graduate programs may have Teaching Assistantships available for registered full-time graduate students. Full teaching assistantships involve 12 hours work per week in preparation, lecturing, or laboratory instruction although many graduate programs offer partial TA appointments at less than 12 hours per week. Teaching assistantship rates are set by collective bargaining between the University and the Teaching Assistants' Union .

Graduate Academic Assistantships (GAA)

Academic Assistantships are employment opportunities to perform work that is relevant to the university or to an individual faculty member, but not to support the student’s graduate research and thesis. Wages are considered regular earnings and when paid monthly, include vacation pay.

Financial aid (need-based funding)

Canadian and US applicants may qualify for governmental loans to finance their studies. Please review eligibility and types of loans .

All students may be able to access private sector or bank loans.

Foreign government scholarships

Many foreign governments provide support to their citizens in pursuing education abroad. International applicants should check the various governmental resources in their home country, such as the Department of Education, for available scholarships.

Working while studying

The possibility to pursue work to supplement income may depend on the demands the program has on students. It should be carefully weighed if work leads to prolonged program durations or whether work placements can be meaningfully embedded into a program.

International students enrolled as full-time students with a valid study permit can work on campus for unlimited hours and work off-campus for no more than 20 hours a week.

A good starting point to explore student jobs is the UBC Work Learn program or a Co-Op placement .

Tax credits and RRSP withdrawals

Students with taxable income in Canada may be able to claim federal or provincial tax credits.

Canadian residents with RRSP accounts may be able to use the Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP) which allows students to withdraw amounts from their registered retirement savings plan (RRSPs) to finance full-time training or education for themselves or their partner.

Please review Filing taxes in Canada on the student services website for more information.

Cost Estimator

Applicants have access to the cost estimator to develop a financial plan that takes into account various income sources and expenses.

Career Options

Graduates of the MFA program have found success in varied fields related to writing and communication. The MFA qualifies graduates for teaching at the university level and many graduates have gone on to teach at colleges and universities in Canada, the United States and overseas as well as holding writing residencies. Many publish books and win literary awards. Others go on to work in publishing, and graduates have become book and magazine editors.

Although the MFA is a terminal degree, some graduates go on to further study in PhD programs in the US, UK and Australia.

The Optional-Residency MFA is particularly well suited to teachers: our teacher-students have been able to gain an advanced degree while continuing their careers.

  • Research Supervisors

This list shows faculty members with full supervisory privileges who are affiliated with this program. It is not a comprehensive list of all potential supervisors as faculty from other programs or faculty members without full supervisory privileges can request approvals to supervise graduate students in this program.

  • Belcourt, Billy-Ray (Fiction; Nonfiction; Poetry)
  • French, Whitney (memory, loss, technology, and nature)
  • Hopkinson, Nalo (Creative writing, n.e.c.; Humanities and the arts; Creative Writing: Speculative Ficton, Fantasy, Science Fiction, especially Other Voices)
  • Irani, Anosh
  • Koncan, Frances
  • Leavitt, Sarah (Autobiographical comics; Formal experimentation in comics; Comics pedagogy)
  • Lee, Nancy (Fiction; Creative Writing)
  • Lyon, Annabel (Novels, stories and news)
  • Maillard, Keith (Fiction, poetry)
  • Marzano-Lesnevich, Alex (Nonfiction)
  • McGowan, Sharon (Planning of film productions from concept to completion)
  • Medved, Maureen (Fiction, writing for screen)
  • Nicholson, Cecily (Languages and literature; Poetry)
  • Ohlin, Alix (Fiction; Screenwriting; Environmental writing)
  • Pohl-Weary, Emily (Fiction; Writing for Youth)
  • Svendsen, Linda (Script development; Novels, stories and news; Writing for Television; Fiction)
  • Taylor, Timothy (fiction and nonfiction)
  • Vigna, John (Novels, stories and news; Fiction, Literary Non-Fiction, Creative Writing)

Related Programs

Same specialization.

  • Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing (MFA)

Same Academic Unit

  • Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and Theatre (MFA)
  • Master of Fine Arts in Film Production and Creative Writing (MFA)

At the UBC Okanagan Campus

  • Master of Fine Arts (MFA)

Further Information

Specialization.

Creative Writing combines the best of traditional workshop and leading-edge pedagogy. Literary cross-training offers opportunities in a broad range of genres including fiction, poetry, screenplay, podcasting, video game writing and graphic novel.

UBC Calendar

Program website, faculty overview, academic unit, program identifier, classification, social media channels, supervisor search.

Departments/Programs may update graduate degree program details through the Faculty & Staff portal. To update contact details for application inquiries, please use this form .

columbia university creative writing

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Admission Steps

English and literary arts - creative writing - phd, admission requirements.

Terms and Deadlines

Degree and GPA Requirements

Additional Standards for Non-Native English Speakers

Additional standards for international applicants.

For the 2025-2026 academic year

See 2024-2025 requirements instead

Fall 2025 quarter (beginning in September)

Final submission deadline: December 16, 2024

Final submission deadline: Applicants cannot submit applications after the final submission deadline.

Degrees and GPA Requirements

Bachelors degree: All graduate applicants must hold an earned baccalaureate from a regionally accredited college or university or the recognized equivalent from an international institution.

Masters degree: This program requires a masters degree as well as the baccalaureate.

University GPA requirement: The minimum grade point average for admission consideration for graduate study at the University of Denver must meet one of the following criteria:

A cumulative 2.5 on a 4.0 scale for the baccalaureate degree.

A cumulative 2.5 on a 4.0 scale for the last 60 semester credits or 90 quarter credits (approximately two years of work) for the baccalaureate degree.

An earned master’s degree or higher from a regionally accredited institution or the recognized equivalent from an international institution supersedes the minimum GPA requirement for the baccalaureate.

A cumulative GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale for all graduate coursework completed for applicants who have not earned a master’s degree or higher.

Official scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), International English Language Testing System (IELTS), C1 Advanced or Duolingo English Test are required of all graduate applicants, regardless of citizenship status, whose native language is not English or who have been educated in countries where English is not the native language. Your TOEFL/IELTS/C1 Advanced/Duolingo English Test scores are valid for two years from the test date.

The minimum TOEFL/IELTS/C1 Advanced/Duolingo English Test score requirements for this degree program are:

Minimum TOEFL Score (Internet-based test): 80

Minimum IELTS Score: 6.5

Minimum C1 Advanced Score: 176

Minimum Duolingo English Test Score: 115

Additional Information:

Read the English Language Proficiency policy for more details.

Read the Required Tests for GTA Eligibility policy for more details.

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Creative Writing

Undergraduate Creative Writing Program Office: 609 Kent; 212-854-3774 http://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate

Director of Undergraduate Studies: Prof. Anelise Chen, Fiction, Nonfiction, 609 Kent; 212-854-3774; [email protected]

Undergraduate Executive Committee:

The Creative Writing Program in The School of the Arts combines intensive writing workshops with seminars that study literature from a writer's perspective. Students develop and hone their literary technique in workshops. The seminars (which explore literary technique and history) broaden their sense of possibility by exposing them to various ways that language has been used to make art. Related courses are drawn from departments such as English, comparative literature and society, philosophy, history, and anthropology, among others.

Students consult with faculty advisers to determine the related courses that best inform their creative work. For details on the major, see the Creative Writing website: http://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate .

Margo L. Jefferson

Phillip Lopate

  • Benjamin Marcus
  • Alan Ziegler

Associate Professors

  • Susan Bernofsky
  • Timothy Donnelly
  • Rivka Galchen
  • Heidi Julavits
  • Dorothea Lasky
  • Victor LaValle
  • Sam Lipsyte
  • Deborah Paredez
  • Wendy Walters

Assistant Professors

  • Anelise Chen

Adjunct Professors

  • Hannah L Assadi
  • Eliza B Callahan
  • Bonnie Chau
  • Meehan J Crist
  • Matty Davis
  • Alex Dimitrov
  • Joseph Fasano
  • Omer M Friedlander
  • Emily R Gutierrez
  • Alexis J Hutchinson
  • Katrine Øgaard Jensen
  • Emily Christine C Johnson
  • Chloe Jones
  • Quincy S Jones
  • Sophie Kemp
  • Holly Melgard
  • Marie Myung-Ok Lee
  • Vanessa Martir
  • Kyle McCarthy
  • Patricia Marx
  • Molly L McGhee
  • Mallika Rao
  • Rebecca J Schiff
  • Mina Seckin
  • Joel Sedaño Jr
  • Luciana Siracusano
  • Wally Suphap
  • Adam Z Wilson
  • James C Yeh
  • Samantha Zighelboim

Lecturer in the Discipline of Writing

  • Peter M Rafel
  • Ronald L Robertson Jr

Major in Creative Writing

The major in creative writing requires a minimum of 36 points: five workshops, four seminars, and three related courses.

Workshop Curriculum (15 points)

Students in the workshops produce original works of fiction, poetry, or nonfiction, and submit them to their classmates and instructor for a close critical analysis. Workshop critiques (which include detailed written reports and thorough line-edits) assess the mechanics and merits of the writing pieces. Individual instructor conferences distill the critiques into a direct plan of action to improve the work. Student writers develop by practicing the craft under the diligent critical attention of their peers and instructor, which guides them toward new levels of creative endeavor.

Creative writing majors select 15 points within the division in the following courses. One workshop must be in a genre other than the primary focus. For instance, a fiction writer might take four fiction workshops and one poetry workshop.

Course List
Code Title Points
Beginning Workshop
Designed for students who have little or no previous experience writing literary texts in a particular genre.
BEGINNING FICTION WORKSHOP
BEGINNING NONFICTION WORKSHOP
BEGINNING POETRY WORKSHOP
Intermediate Workshop
Permission required. Admission by writing sample. Enrollment limited to 15. Course may be repeated in fulfillment of the major.
INTERMEDIATE FICTION WORKSHOP
INTERMEDIATE NONFICTION WRKSHP
INTERMEDIATE POETRY WORKSHOP
Advanced Workshop
Permission required. Admission by writing sample. Enrollment limited to 15. Course may be repeated in fulfillment of the major.
ADVANCED FICTION WORKSHOP
ADVANCED NONFICTION WORKSHOP
ADVANCED POETRY WORKSHOP
Senior Creative Writing Workshop
Seniors who are creative writing majors are given priority. Enrollment limited to 12, by instructor's permission. The senior workshop offers students the opportunity to work exclusively with classmates who are at the same high level of accomplishment in the major. This course is only offered by graduate faculty professors.
SENIOR FICTION WORKSHOP,Senior Fiction Workshop
SENIOR NONFICTION WORKSHOP
SENIOR POETRY WORKSHOP

Seminar Curriculum (12 points)

The creative writing seminars form the intellectual ballast of our program.  Our seminars offer a close examination of literary techniques such as plot, point of view, tone, and voice.  They seek to inform and inspire students by exposing them to a wide variety of approaches in their chosen genre.  Our curriculum, via these seminars, actively responds not only to historical literary concerns, but to contemporary ones as well.  Extensive readings are required, along with short critical papers and/or creative exercises.  By closely analyzing diverse works of literature and participating in roundtable discussions, writers build the resources necessary to produce their own accomplished creative work. 

Creative writing majors select 12 points within the division. Any 4 seminars will fulfill the requirement, no matter the student's chosen genre concentration.  Below is a sampling of our seminars.  The list of seminars currently being offered can be found in the "Courses" section. 

Course List
Code Title Points
These seminars offer close examination of literary techniques such as plot, point of view, tone, suspense, and narrative voice. Extensive readings are required, along with creative exercises.
FICTION
HOW TO BUILD A PERSON
Fiction Seminar: The Here & Now
FIRST NOVELS: HOW THEY WORK
THE CRAFT OF WRITING DIALOGUE
NONFICTION
Nonfiction Seminar: The Literary Reporter
ART WRITING FOR WRITERS
TRUTH & FACTS
SCIENCE AND SENSIBILITY
POETRY
TRADITIONS IN POETRY
Poetry Seminar: The Crisis of the I
Poetry Seminar: 21st Century American Poetry and Its Concerns
WITNESS,RECORD,DOCUMENT
CROSS GENRE
Cross Genre Seminar: Imagining Berlin
Cross Genre Seminar: Diva Voice, Diva Style, Diva Lyrics
WALKING
Cross-Genre Seminar: Process Writing & Writing Process

Related Courses (9 points)

Drawn from various departments, these courses provide concentrated intellectual and creative stimulation, as well as exposure to ideas that enrich students' artistic instincts. Courses may be different for each student writer. Students should consult with faculty advisers to determine the related courses that best inform their creative work.

Fiction Workshops

WRIT UN1100 BEGINNING FICTION WORKSHOP. 3.00 points .

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. The beginning workshop in fiction is designed for students with little or no experience writing literary texts in fiction. Students are introduced to a range of technical and imaginative concerns through exercises and discussions, and they eventually produce their own writing for the critical analysis of the class. The focus of the course is on the rudiments of voice, character, setting, point of view, plot, and lyrical use of language. Students will begin to develop the critical skills that will allow them to read like writers and understand, on a technical level, how accomplished creative writing is produced. Outside readings of a wide range of fiction supplement and inform the exercises and longer written projects

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 1100 001/15112 Th 6:10pm - 8:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Ronald Robertson 3.00 17/15
WRIT 1100 002/15113 M 10:10am - 12:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Emily Christine Johnson 3.00 14/15
WRIT 1100 003/15163 T 6:10pm - 8:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Emily Gutierrez 3.00 13/15
WRIT 1100 004/15164 M 2:10pm - 4:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Alexis Hutchinson 3.00 13/15
WRIT 1100 005/15165 Th 10:10am - 12:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Luciana Siracusano 3.00 14/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 1100 001/18712 M 2:10pm - 4:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Celine Ipek 3.00 4/15
WRIT 1100 002/18713 W 4:10pm - 6:00pm
212a Lewisohn Hall
Caroline Johnson 3.00 10/15
WRIT 1100 003/18714 W 2:10pm - 4:00pm
106b Lewisohn Hall
Mattie Govan 3.00 6/15
WRIT 1100 004/18715 Th 4:10pm - 6:00pm
114 Knox Hall
Gabrielle McAree 3.00 0/15
WRIT 1100 005/18716 T 6:10pm - 8:00pm
212a Lewisohn Hall
Ellen Garard 3.00 8/15

WRIT UN2100 INTERMEDIATE FICTION WORKSHOP. 3.00 points .

Intermediate workshops are for students with some experience with creative writing, and whose prior work merits admission to the class (as judged by the professor). Intermediate workshops present a higher creative standard than beginning workshops, and increased expectations to produce finished work. By the end of the semester, each student will have produced at least seventy pages of original fiction. Students are additionally expected to write extensive critiques of the work of their peers. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate for information about registration procedures

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2100 001/15117 Th 2:10pm - 4:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Joss Lake 3.00 11/15
WRIT 2100 002/15118 Th 4:10pm - 6:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Omer Friedlander 3.00 9/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2100 001/13546 Th 2:10pm - 4:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Heidi Julavits 3.00 0/15
WRIT 2100 002/13547 T 2:10pm - 4:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Sophie Kemp 3.00 0/15

WRIT UN3100 ADVANCED FICTION WORKSHOP. 3.00 points .

Prerequisites: The department's permission required through writing sample. Please go to 609 Kent for submission schedule and registration guidelines or see http://www.arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate. Building on the work of the Intermediate Workshop, Advanced Workshops are reserved for the most accomplished creative writing students. A significant body of writing must be produced and revised. Particular attention will be paid to the components of fiction: voice, perspective, characterization, and form. Students will be expected to finish several short stories, executing a total artistic vision on a piece of writing. The critical focus of the class will include an examination of endings and formal wholeness, sustaining narrative arcs, compelling a reader's interest for the duration of the text, and generating a sense of urgency and drama in the work. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate for information about registration procedures

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3100 001/15126 Th 4:10pm - 6:00pm
507 Philosophy Hall
Rebecca Schiff 3.00 13/15
WRIT 3100 002/15127 M 10:10am - 12:00pm
507 Philosophy Hall
Marie Lee 3.00 15/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3100 001/13550 Th 12:10pm - 2:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Hannah Assadi 3.00 0/15
WRIT 3100 002/13551 W 10:10am - 12:00pm
317 Hamilton Hall
Victor Lavalle 3.00 0/15

WRIT UN3101 SENIOR FICTION WORKSHOP,Senior Fiction Workshop. 4.00,4 points .

Prerequisites: The department's permission required through writing sample. Please go to 609 Kent for submission schedule and registration guidelines or see http://www.arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate. Prerequisites: The department's permission required through writing sample. Please go to 609 Kent for submission schedule and registration guidelines or see http://www.arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate. Seniors who are majors in creative writing are given priority for this course. Enrollment is limited, and is by permission of the professor. The senior workshop offers students the opportunity to work exclusively with classmates who are at the same high level of accomplishment in the major. Students in the senior workshops will produce and revise a new and substantial body of work. In-class critiques and conferences with the professor will be tailored to needs of each student.,

Seniors who are majors in creative writing are given priority for this course.  Enrollment is limited, and is by permission of the professor.  The senior workshop offers students the opportunity to work exclusively with classmates who are at the same high level of accomplishment in the major.  Students in the senior workshops will produce and revise a new and substantial body of work.  In-class critiques and conferences with the professor will be tailored to needs of each student.

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3101 001/15128 W 2:10pm - 4:00pm
Sat Alfred Lerner Hall
Samuel Lipsyte 4 13/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3101 001/13552 T 10:10am - 12:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Rivka Galchen 4 0/12

Fiction Seminars

WRIT UN2110 APPROACHES TO THE SHORT STORY. 3.00 points .

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. The modern short story has gone through many transformations, and the innovations of its practitioners have often pointed the way for prose fiction as a whole. The short story has been seized upon and refreshed by diverse cultures and aesthetic affiliations, so that perhaps the only stable definition of the form remains the famous one advanced by Poe, one of its early masters, as a work of fiction that can be read in one sitting. Still, common elements of the form have emerged over the last century and this course will study them, including Point of View, Plot, Character, Setting and Theme. John Hawkes once famously called these last four elements the "enemies of the novel," and many short story writers have seen them as hindrances as well. Hawkes later recanted, though some writers would still agree with his earlier assessment, and this course will examine the successful strategies of great writers across the spectrum of short story practice, from traditional approaches to more radical solutions, keeping in mind how one period's revolution -Hemingway, for example - becomes a later era's mainstream or "commonsense" storytelling mode. By reading the work of major writers from a writer's perspective, we will examine the myriad techniques employed for what is finally a common goal: to make readers feel. Short writing exercises will help us explore the exhilarating subtleties of these elements and how the effects created by their manipulation or even outright absence power our most compelling fictions

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2110 001/15119 Th 12:10pm - 2:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Ronald Robertson 3.00 16/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2110 001/18724 Th 10:10am - 12:00pm
Room TBA
Celine Ipek 3.00 8/15

WRIT UN3128 How to Write Funny. 3.00 points .

"Tragedy is when I cut my finger. Comedy is when you fall into an open sewer and die." --Mel Brooks "Comedy has to be based on truth. You take the truth and you put a little curlicue at the End." --Sid Caesar "Analyzing humor is like dissecting a frog. Few people are interested and the frog dies of it." --E.B. White "What is comedy? Comedy is the art of making people laugh without making them puke." --Steve Martin "Patty Marx is the best teacher at Columbia University." --Patty Marx One of the above quotations is false. Find out which one in this humor-writing workshop, where you will read, listen to, and watch comedic samples from well-known and lesser-known humorists. How could you not have fun in a class where we watch and critique the sketches of Monty Python, Nichols and May, Mr. Show, Mitchell & Webb, Key and Peele, French and Saunders, Derrick Comedy, Beyond the Fringe, Dave Chappelle, Bob and Ray, Mel Brooks, Amy Schumer, and SNL, to name just a few? The crux of our time, though, will be devoted to writing. Students will be expected to complete weekly writing assignments; additionally, there will be in-class assignments geared to strategies for crafting surprise (the kind that results in a laugh as opposed to, say, a heart attack or divorce). Toward this end, we will study the use of irony, irreverence, hyperbole, misdirection, subtext, wordplay, formulas such as the rule of three and paraprosdokians (look it up), and repetition, and repetition

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3128 001/15131 T 2:10pm - 4:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Patricia Marx 3.00 14/15

WRIT UN3125 APOCALYPSES NOW. 3.00 points .

From ancient myths of the world’s destruction to cinematic works that envision a post-apocalyptic reality, zealots of all kinds have sought an understanding of “the end of the world as we know it.”  But while apocalyptic predictions have, so far, failed to deliver a real glimpse of that end, in fiction they abound.  In this course, we will explore the narrative mechanisms by which post-apocalyptic works create projections of our own world that are believably imperiled, realistically degraded, and designed to move us to feel differently and act differently within the world we inhabit.  We will consider ways in which which authors craft immersive storylines that maintain a vital allegorical relationship to the problems of the present, and discuss recent trends in contemporary post-apocalyptic fiction.  How has the genre responded to our changing conception of peril?  Is literary apocalyptic fiction effective as a vehicle for persuasion and for showing threats in a new light?  Ultimately, we will inquire into the possibility of thinking beyond our present moment and, by doing so, altering our fate.

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3125 001/13553 W 4:10pm - 6:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Molly McGhee 3.00 15/15

WRIT W3830 Fiction Seminar: Voices & Visions of Childhood. 3 points .

This course focuses on literature written for adults, NOT children's books or young-adult literature.

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required.

Flannery O'Connor famously said, "Anybody who has survived his childhood has enough information about life to last him the rest of his days."  A child's or youth's journey-- whether through ordinary, universal rites of passage, or through extraordinary adventure or trauma-- compels an adult reader (and writer) to (re)inhabit the world as both naif and nature's savant.  Through the knowing/unknowing eye of the child or adolescent, the writer can explore adult topics prismatically and poignantly -- "from the bottom up" -- via humor, terror, innocence, wonder, or all of the above.    In this course, we will read both long and short form examples of childhood and youth stories, examining in particular the relationships between narrator and character, character and world (setting), character and language and narrator and reader (i.e. "reliability" of narrator).  Students will write two papers.  Short scene-based writing assignments will challenge student writers to both mine their own memories for material and imagine voices/experiences far from their own.

WRIT UN3121 HOW TO BUILD A PERSON. 3.00 points .

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Departmental approval NOT required. Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Departmental approval NOT required. Character is something that good fiction supposedly cannot do without. But what is a character, and what constitutes a supposedly good or believable one? Should characters be like people we know, and if so, how exactly do we create written versions of people? This class will examine characters in all sorts of writing, historical and contemporary, with an eye toward understanding just how characters are created in fiction, and how they come to seem real to us. Well read stories and novels; we may also look at essays and biographical writing to analyze where the traces of personhood reside. Well also explore the way in which these same techniques of writing allow us to personify entities that lack traditional personhood, such as animals, computers, and other nonhuman characters. Does personhood precede narrative, or is it something we bestow on others by allowing them to tell their story or by telling a story of our own creation on their behalf? Weekly critical and creative exercises will intersect with and expand on the readings and discussions

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3121 001/13554 W 2:10pm - 4:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Mina Seckin 3.00 15/15

WRIT UN3132 THE ECSTASY OF INFLUENCE. 3.00 points .

What does it mean to be original? How do we differentiate plagiarism from pastiche, appropriation from homage? And how do we build on pre-existing traditions while simultaneously creating work that reflects our own unique experiences of the world? In a 2007 essay for Harper’s magazine, Jonathan Lethem countered critic Harold Bloom’s theory of “the anxiety of influence” by proposing, instead, an “ecstasy of influence”; Lethem suggested that writers embrace rather than reject the unavoidable imprints of their literary forbearers. Beginning with Lethem’s essay—which, itself, is composed entirely of borrowed (or “sampled”) text—this class will consider the nature of literary influence, and its role in the development of voice. Each week, students will read from pairings of older stories and novel excerpts with contemporary work that falls within the same artistic lineage. In doing so, we’ll track the movement of stylistic, structural, and thematic approaches to fiction across time, and think about the different ways that stories and novels can converse with one another. We will also consider the influence of other artistic mediums—music, visual art, film and television—on various texts. Students will then write their own original short pieces modeled after the readings. Just as musicians cover songs, we will “cover” texts, adding our own interpretive imprints

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3132 001/13555 T 12:10pm - 2:00pm
104 Knox Hall
Adam Wilson 3.00 15/15

Nonfiction Workshops

WRIT UN1200 BEGINNING NONFICTION WORKSHOP. 3.00 points .

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. The beginning workshop in nonfiction is designed for students with little or no experience in writing literary nonfiction. Students are introduced to a range of technical and imaginative concerns through exercises and discussions, and they eventually submit their own writing for the critical analysis of the class. Outside readings supplement and inform the exercises and longer written projects

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 1200 001/15114 T 4:10pm - 6:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Peter Raffel 3.00 13/15
WRIT 1200 002/15115 M 2:10pm - 4:00pm
212a Lewisohn Hall
Wally Suphap 3.00 14/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 1200 001/18717 Th 12:10pm - 2:00pm
963 Ext Schermerhorn Hall
Adelia Khan 3.00 8/15
WRIT 1200 002/18718 Th 6:10pm - 8:00pm
423 Kent Hall
Diana Heald 3.00 6/15
WRIT 1200 003/18719 W 6:10pm - 8:00pm
423 Kent Hall
Emma DeCamp 3.00 4/15

WRIT UN2200 INTERMEDIATE NONFICTION WRKSHP. 3.00 points .

The intermediate workshop in nonfiction is designed for students with some experience in writing literary nonfiction. Intermediate workshops present a higher creative standard than beginning workshops and an expectation that students will produce finished work. Outside readings supplement and inform the exercises and longer written projects. By the end of the semester, students will have produced thirty to forty pages of original work in at least two traditions of literary nonfiction. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate for information about registration procedures

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2200 001/15120 T 12:10pm - 2:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Zohra Saed 3.00 12/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2200 001/13548 M 2:10pm - 4:00pm
608 Lewisohn Hall
Lars Horn 3.00 0/15

WRIT UN3200 ADVANCED NONFICTION WORKSHOP. 3.00 points .

Advanced Nonfiction Workshop is for students with significant narrative and/or critical experience. Students will produce original literary nonfiction for the workshop. This workshop is reserved for accomplished nonfiction writers and maintains the highest level of creative and critical expectations. Among the many forms that creative nonfiction might assume, students may work in the following nonfiction genres: memoir, personal essay, journalism, travel writing, science writing, and/or others. In addition, students may be asked to consider the following: ethical considerations in nonfiction writing, social and cultural awareness, narrative structure, detail and description, point of view, voice, and editing and revision among other aspects of praxis. A portfolio of nonficiton will be written and revised with the critical input of the instructor and the workshop. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate for information about registration procedures

WRIT UN3201 SENIOR NONFICTION WORKSHOP. 4.00 points .

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3201 001/15129 M 12:10pm - 2:00pm
301m Fayerweather
Lars Horn 4.00 12/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3201 001/13556 M 12:10pm - 2:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Vanessa Martir 4.00 0/15

Nonfiction Seminars

WRIT UN2211 TRADITIONS IN NONFICTION. 3.00 points .

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. The seminar provides exposure to the varieties of nonfiction with readings in its principal genres: reportage, criticism and commentary, biography and history, and memoir and the personal essay. A highly plastic medium, nonfiction allows authors to portray real events and experiences through narrative, analysis, polemic or any combination thereof. Free to invent everything but the facts, great practitioners of nonfiction are faithful to reality while writing with a voice and a vision distinctively their own. To show how nonfiction is conceived and constructed, class discussions will emphasize the relationship of content to form and style, techniques for creating plot and character under the factual constraints imposed by nonfiction, the defining characteristics of each authors voice, the authors subjectivity and presence, the role of imagination and emotion, the uses of humor, and the importance of speculation and attitude. Written assignments will be opportunities to experiment in several nonfiction genres and styles

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2211 001/15121 W 6:10pm - 8:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Peter Raffel 3.00 15/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2211 001/18723 M 4:10pm - 6:00pm
608 Lewisohn Hall
Adelia Khan 3.00 5/15

WRIT UN3214 HYBRID NONFICTION FORMS. 3.00 points .

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. Creative nonfiction is a frustratingly vague term. How do we give it real literary meaning; examine its compositional aims and techniques, its achievements and especially its aspirations? This course will focus on works that we might call visionary - works that combine art forms, genres and styles in striking ways. Works in which image and text combine to create a third interactive language for the reader. Works still termed fiction history or journalism that join fact and fiction to interrogate their uses and implications. Certain memoirs that are deliberately anti-autobiographical, turning from personal narrative to the sounds, sight, impressions and ideas of the writers milieu. Certain essays that join personal reflection to arts and cultural criticism, drawing on research and imagination, the vernacular and the formal, even prose and poetry. The assemblage or collage that, created from notebook entries, lists, quotations, footnotes and indexes achieves its coherence through fragments and associations, found and original texts

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3214 001/13557 T 12:10pm - 2:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Margo Jefferson 3.00 15/15

WRIT UN3215 ART WRITING FOR WRITERS. 3.00 points .

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. In this course, we will look at some of the most dynamic examples of "visual writing." To begin, we will look at writers writing about art, from the Romantic period through the present. The modes of this art writing we will consider include: the practice of ekphrasis (poems which address or derive their inspiration from a work of art); writers such as Ralph Ellison, Amiri Baraka, John Ashbery, and Eileen Myles, who for periods of their lives worked as art critics; writers such as Etel Adnan and Alexander Kulge, who have produced literature and works of art in equal measure; as well as numerous collaborations between writers and visual artists. We will also look at artists who have written essays and poetry throughout their careers, like artists Robert Smithson, Glenn Ligon, David Wojnarowicz, Moyra Davey, Paul Chan, and Hannah Black, as well as professional critics whose work has been elevated to the status of literature, such as Hilton Als, Janet Malcolm, and Susan Sontag. Lastly, we will consider what it means to write through a “milieu” of sonic and visual artists, such as those associated with Dada, the Harlem Renaissance, the New York School, and Moscow Conceptualism. Throughout the course, students will also be prompted to write with and about current art exhibitions and events throughout the city. They will produce original works in various of the modes described above and complete a final writing project that incorporates what they have learned

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3215 001/13558 W 12:10pm - 2:00pm
317 Hamilton Hall
Eliza Callahan 3.00 15/15

WRIT UN3217 SCIENCE AND SENSIBILITY. 3.00 points .

Writing about the natural world is one of the world's oldest literary traditions and the site of some of today's most daring literary experiments.  Known loosely as "science writing" this tradition can be traced through texts in myriad and overlapping genres, including poetry, explorer's notebooks, essays, memoirs, art books, and science journalism.  Taken together, these divers texts reveal a rich literary tradition in which the writer's sensibility and worldview are paramount to an investigation of the known and unknown.  In this course, we will consider a wide range of texts in order to map this tradition.  We will question what it means to use science as metaphor, explore how to write about science with rigor and commitment to scientific truth, and interrogate the fiction of objectivity. 

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3217 001/13559  
Meehan Crist 3.00 7/15

WRIT UN3224 Writing the Sixties. 3.00 points .

In this seminar, we will target nonfiction from the 1960s—the decade that saw an avalanche of new forms, new awareness, new freedoms, and new conflicts, as well as the beginnings of social movements and cultural preoccupations that continue to frame our lives, as writers and as citizens, in the 21st century: civil rights, feminism, environmentalism, LGBTQ rights, pop culture, and the rise of mass media. We will look back more than a half century to examine the development of modern criticism, memoir, reporting, and profile-writing, and the ways they entwine. Along the way, we will ask questions about these classic nonfiction forms: How do reporters, essayists, and critics make sense of the new? How do they create work as rich as the best novels and short stories? Can criticism rise to the level of art? What roles do voice, point-of-view, character, dialogue, and plot—the traditional elements of fiction—play? As we go, we will witness the unfolding of arguably the most transitional decade in American history—with such events as the Kennedy assassination, the Watts Riots, the Human Be In, and the Vietnam War, along with the rise of Pop art, rock ‘n’ roll, and a new era of moviemaking—as it was documented in real time by writers at The New Yorker, New Journalists at Esquire, and critics at Partisan Review and Harper’s, among other publications. Some writers we will consider: James Baldwin, Joan Didion, Susan Sontag, Rachel Carson, Dwight Macdonald, Gay Talese, Tom Wolfe, Truman Capote, Pauline Kael, Nik Cohn, Joseph Mitchell, Lillian Ross, Gore Vidal, Norman Mailer, Thomas Pynchon, John Updike, Michael Herr, Martha Gellhorn, John McPhee, and Betty Friedan. We will be joined by guest speakers

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3224 001/18550 M 6:10pm - 8:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Mark Rozzo 3.00 14/15

WRIT UN3225 LIFE STORIES. 3.00 points .

In this seminar, we will target nonfiction that tells stories about lives: profiles, memoirs, and biographies. We will examine how the practice of this kind of nonfiction, and ideas about it, have evolved over the past 150 years. Along the way, we will ask questions about these nonfiction forms: How do reporters, memoirists, biographers, and critics make sense of their subjects? How do they create work as rich as the best novels and short stories? Can criticism explicate the inner life of a human subject? What roles do voice, point-of-view, character, dialogue, and plot—the traditional elements of fiction—play? Along the way, we’ll engage in issues of identity and race, memory and self, real persons and invented characters and we’ll get glimpses of such key publications as The Atlantic Monthly, The New Yorker, Esquire, Harper’s, and The New York Review of Books. Some writers we will consider: Frederick Douglass, Louisa May Alcott, Walt Whitman, Henry Adams, Joseph Mitchell, Lillian Ross, James Agee, John Hersey, Edmund Wilson, Gore Vidal, Gay Talese, James Baldwin, Vladimir Nabokov, Janet Malcolm, Robert Caro, Joyce Carol Oates, Toni Morrison, Joan Didion, and Henry Louis Gates Jr. The course regularly welcomes guest speakers

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3225 001/13560 M 6:10pm - 8:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Mark Rozzo 3.00 15/15

WRIT UN3226 NONFICTION-ISH. 3.00 points .

This cross-genre craft seminar aims to uncover daring and unusual approaches to literature informed by nonfiction (and nonfiction-adjacent) practices. In this course we will closely read and analyze a diverse set of works, including Svetlana Alexievich’s oral history of women and war, Lydia Davis’s “found” microfictions, Theresa Hak Cha’s genre-exploding “auto-enthnography,” Alejandro Zambra’s unabashedly literary narratives, Sigrid Nunez’s memoir “of” Susan Sontag, Emmanuel Carrére’s “nonfiction novel,” John Keene’s bold counternarratives, W. G. Sebald’s saturnine essay-portraits, Saidiya Hartman’s melding of history and literary imagination, Annie Ernaux’s collective autobiography, Sheila Heti’s alphabetized diary, Ben Mauk’s oral history about Xinjiang detention camps, and Edward St. Aubyn’s autobiographical novel about the British aristocracy and childhood trauma, among other texts. We will also examine Sharon Mashihi’s one-woman autofiction podcasts about Iranian Jewish American family. What we learn in this course we will apply to our own work, which will consist of two creative writing responses and a creative final project. Students will also learn to keep a daily writing journal

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3226 001/15130 Th 2:10pm - 4:00pm
Sat Alfred Lerner Hall
James Yeh 3.00 19/20

Poetry Workshops

WRIT UN1300 BEGINNING POETRY WORKSHOP. 3.00 points .

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. The beginning poetry workshop is designed for students who have a serious interest in poetry writing but who lack a significant background in the rudiments of the craft and/or have had little or no previous poetry workshop experience. Students will be assigned weekly writing exercises emphasizing such aspects of verse composition as the poetic line, the image, rhyme and other sound devices, verse forms, repetition, tone, irony, and others. Students will also read an extensive variety of exemplary work in verse, submit brief critical analyses of poems, and critique each others original work

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 1300 001/15116 M 4:10pm - 6:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Latif Ba 3.00 15/15
WRIT 1300 002/15167 T 6:10pm - 8:00pm
308a Lewisohn Hall
Joel Sedano 3.00 13/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 1300 001/18720 Th 10:10am - 12:00pm
Room TBA
Jane Crager 3.00 3/15
WRIT 1300 002/18721 M 4:10pm - 6:00pm
606 Lewisohn Hall
Sophia Mautz 3.00 15/15

WRIT UN2300 INTERMEDIATE POETRY WORKSHOP. 3.00 points .

Intermediate poetry workshops are for students with some prior instruction in the rudiments of poetry writing and prior poetry workshop experience. Intermediate poetry workshops pose greater challenges to students and maintain higher critical standards than beginning workshops. Students will be instructed in more complex aspects of the craft, including the poetic persona, the prose poem, the collage, open-field composition, and others. They will also be assigned more challenging verse forms such as the villanelle and also non-European verse forms such as the pantoum. They will read extensively, submit brief critical analyses, and put their instruction into regular practice by composing original work that will be critiqued by their peers. By the end of the semester each student will have assembled a substantial portfolio of finished work. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate for information about registration procedures

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2300 001/15122 M 4:10pm - 6:00pm
602 Lewisohn Hall
Alexander Dimitrov 3.00 15/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2300 001/13549 M 10:10am - 12:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Alexander Dimitrov 3.00 0/15

WRIT UN3300 ADVANCED POETRY WORKSHOP. 3.00 points .

This poetry workshop is reserved for accomplished poetry writers and maintains the highest level of creative and critical expectations. Students will be encouraged to develop their strengths and to cultivate a distinctive poetic vision and voice but must also demonstrate a willingness to broaden their range and experiment with new forms and notions of the poem. A portfolio of poetry will be written and revised with the critical input of the instructor and the workshop. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate for information about registration procedures

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3300 001/13561 W 12:10pm - 2:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Emily Luan 3.00 0/15

WRIT UN3301 SENIOR POETRY WORKSHOP. 4.00 points .

Prerequisites: The department's permission required through writing sample. Please go to 609 Kent for submission schedule and registration guidelines or see http://www.arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate. Seniors who are majors in creative writing are given priority for this course. Enrollment is limited, and is by permission of the professor. The senior workshop offers students the opportunity to work exclusively with classmates who are at the same high level of accomplishment in the major. Students in the senior workshops will produce and revise a new and substantial body of work. In-class critiques and conferences with the professor will be tailored to needs of each student. Please visit https://arts.columbia.edu/writing/undergraduate for information about registration procedures

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3301 001/15132 Th 12:10pm - 2:00pm
212a Lewisohn Hall
Emily Luan 4.00 11/15

Poetry Seminars

WRIT UN2311 TRADITIONS IN POETRY. 3.00 points .

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. “For those, in dark, who find their own way by the light of others’ eyes.” —Lucie Brock-Broido The avenues of poetic tradition open to today’s poets are more numerous, more invigorating, and perhaps even more baffling than ever before. The routes we chose for our writing lead to destinations of our own making, and we take them at our own risk—necessarily so, as the pursuit of poetry asks each of us to light a pilgrim’s candle and follow it into the moors and lowlands, through wastes and prairies, crossing waters as we go. Go after the marshlights, the will-o-wisps who call to you in a voice you’ve longed for your whole life. These routes have been forged by those who came before you, but for that reason, none of them can hope to keep you on it entirely. You must take your steps away, brick by brick, heading confidently into the hinterland of your own distinct achievement. For the purpose of this class, we will walk these roads together, examining the works of classic and contemporary exemplars of the craft. By companioning poets from a large spread of time, we will be able to more diversely immerse ourselves in what a poetic “tradition” truly means. We will read works by Edmund Spencer, Dante, and Goethe, the Romantics—especially Keats—Dickinson, who is mother to us all, Modernists, and the great sweep of contemporary poetry that is too vast to individuate. While it is the imperative of this class to equip you with the knowledge necessary to advance in the field of poetry, this task shall be done in a Columbian manner. Consider this class an initiation, of sorts, into the vocabulary which distinguishes the writers who work under our flag, each of us bound by this language that must be passed on, and therefore changed, to you who inherit it. As I have learned the words, I have changed them, and I give them now to you so that you may pave your own way into your own ways, inspired with the first breath that brought you here, which may excite and—hopefully—frighten you. You must be troubled. This is essential

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2311 001/15123 T 4:10pm - 6:00pm
327 Uris Hall
Latif Ba 3.00 17/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 2311 001/18725 Th 2:10pm - 4:00pm
414 Pupin Laboratories
Jane Crager 3.00 1/15

WRIT UN3319 POETICS OF PLACE:AMERICAN LANDSCAPES, VO. 3.00 points .

When the American Poet Larry Levis left his home in California’s San Joaquin Valley, “all [he] needed to do,” he wrote, “was to describe [home] exactly as it had been. That [he] could not do, for that [is] impossible. And that is where poetry might begin. This course will consider how place shapes a poet’s self and work. Together we will consider a diverse range of poets and the places they write out of and into: from Philip Levines Detroit to Whitmans Manhattan, from Robert Lowells New England to James Wrights Ohio, from the Kentucky of Joe Bolton and Crystal Wilkinson to the California of Robin Blaser and Allen Ginsberg, from the Ozarks of Frank Stanford to the New Jersey of Amiri Baraka, from the Pacific Northwest of Robinson Jeffers to the Alaska of Mary Tallmountain. We will consider the debate between T. S. Eliot and William Carlos Williams about global versus local approaches to the poem, and together we will ask complex questions: Why is it, for example, that Jack Gilbert finds his Pittsburgh when he leaves it, while Gerald Stern finds his Pittsburgh when he keeps it close? Does something sing because you leave it or because you hold it close? Do you come to a place to find where you belong in it? Do you leave a place to find where it belongs in you? As Carolyn Kizer writes in Running Away from Home, Its never over, old church of our claustrophobia! And of course home can give us the first freedom of wanting to leave, the first prison and freedom of want. In our reflections on each “place,” we will reflect on its varied histories, its native peoples, and its inheritance of violent conquest. Our syllabus will consist, in addition to poems, of manifestos and prose writings about place, from Richard Hugos Triggering Town to Sandra Beasleys Prioritizing Place. You will be encouraged to think about everything from dialect to economics, from collectivism to individualism in poems that root themselves in particular places, and you will be encouraged to consider how those poems “transcend” their origins. You will write response papers, analytical papers, and creative pieces, and you will complete a final project that reflects on your own relationship to place

WRIT UN3322 WASTE. 3.00 points .

What if we think of writing as waste management? “To find a form that accommodates the mess, that is the task of the artist now,” said Samuel Beckett then, famously, but: What does this mean? In this course, we will explore the many ways in which artists and writers have tried to answer this question, not only with waste as a figure for thought but as the concrete and recalcitrant reality of our being. Students will be asked to keep a notebook, with the instruction to keep everything that is for them a signature of thought. In this way, a pinecone or a piece of garbage is as much “writing” as anything else. Together, we will create an archive for the semester, of everything that is produced and/or consumed under this aegis of making. This class is designed to pose questions about form and the activity of writing and, in turn, the modes and methods of production not only as writers, but as persons. In addition to our weekly readings, we will be taking field trips throughout the city, convening with Freegan.info for a trash tour and meeting with the artist in residence at the Department of Sanitation, as well as hosting visitors for additional conversations over Zoom

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3322 001/18542 Th 10:10am - 12:00pm
212a Lewisohn Hall
Lynn Xu 3.00 16/15

WRIT UN3324 SENSORY POETICS. 3.00 points .

“A writer should have the precision of a poet and the imagination of a scientist” —Vladimir Nabokov “Every word was once an animal.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson How do writers use words to bring whole worlds to life in the senses? Sensory Poetics is a semester-long exploration of how this formal question has propelled the last 150 years of formally innovative poetry, manifestos and essays on craft. Here, we will read by critically and creatively responding to these texts with a single goal in mind: Borrow their methods to compose a dossier of writing that brings just one thing to life in the senses—any one thing—of your individual choosing. To that end, the semester is divided into 3 Labs that each isolate a different register of sensemaking: Sound, Image, and Line. For example, in the Sound Lab unit, you’ll respond to poems and essays by acoustic-centered poets like John Cage, Kamau Brathwaite and Gertrude Stein, transcribing the sound of your one thing, and writing a metered sonnet based on models from different periods and artistic contexts. To capture the look and logic of your one thing, further in you’ll read Surrealists like Aimé and Suzanne Césaire (for Image Lab), Kathy Acker’s cut-ups, and the psychedelic prose poems of Georges Perec and Yoko Ono (for Line Lab). Throughout, we’ll also read Raymond Queneau’s Exercises in Style, a book that is similarly a dossier of one thing written a hundred different ways. Class time focuses on close-reading and analyzing poems together. At the end of each of the three Labs, you’ll submit a portfolio which showcases and reflects on your favorite creative/critical writing generated during the unit. So, no matter how boring or inflexible your one thing may appear to you at any point, your only limits beyond this constraint—make a dossier on one thing—will merely be the finite plasticity of your own imagination, which luckily, readings in this course are curated to expand. This is a place to encounter, practice and experiment with new and exciting forms that broaden your repertoire for articulating your obsessions in ways that bring them to life in the ears, eyes and minds of your audience. Writers of all majors and levels welcome

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3324 001/18899 T 12:10pm - 2:00pm
411 Kent Hall
Holly Melgard 3.00 14/15

WRIT UN3365 21STC AM POETRY & ITS CONCERNS. 3.00 points .

The lyric has often been conceived of as timeless in its content and inwardly-directed in its mode of address, yet so many poems with lasting claim on our attention point unmistakably outward, addressing the particulars of their times. This course will examine the ways in which an array of 21st poets have embraced, indicted, and anatomized their cultural and historical contexts, diagnosing society’s ailments, indulging in its obsessions, and sharing its concerns. Engaging with such topics as race, class, war, death, trauma, feminism, pop culture and sexuality, how do poets adapt poetic form to provide meaningful and relevant insights without losing them to beauty, ambiguity, and music? How is pop star Rihanna a vehicle for discussing feminism and isolation? What does it mean to write about Black masculinity after Ferguson? In a time when poetry’s cultural relevancy is continually debated in academia and in the media, how can today’s poets use their art to hold a mirror to modern living? This class will explore how writers address present-day topics in light of their own subjectivity, how their works reflect larger cultural trends and currents, and how critics as well as poets themselves have reflected on poetry’s, and the poet’s, changing social role. In studying how these writers complicate traditional notions of what poetry should and shouldn’t do, both in terms of content and of form, students will investigate their own writing practices, fortify their poetic voices, and create new works that engage directly and confidently with the world in which they are written

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3365 001/15125 M 6:10pm - 8:00pm
401 Hamilton Hall
Quincy Jones 3.00 18/20

WRIT UN3321 Ecopoetics. 3.00 points .

“There are things / We live among ‘and to see them / Is to know ourselves.’” George Oppen, “Of Being Numerous” In this class we will read poetry like writers that inhabit an imperiled planet, understanding our poems as being in direct conversation both with the environment as well as writers past and present with similar concerns and techniques. Given the imminent ecological crises we are facing, the poems we read will center themes of place, ecology, interspecies dependence, the role of humans in the destruction of the planet, and the “necropastoral” (to borrow a term from Joyelle McSweeney), among others. We will read works by poets and writers such as (but not limited to) John Ashbery, Harryette Mullen, Asiya Wadud, Wendy Xu, Ross Gay, Simone Kearney, Kim Hyesoon, Marcella Durand, Arthur Rimbaud, Geoffrey G. O’Brien, Muriel Rukeyser, George Oppen, Terrance Hayes, Juliana Spahr, and W.S. Merwin—reading several full collections as well as individual poems and essays by scholars in the field. Through close readings, in-class exercises, discussions, and creative/critical writings, we will invest in and investigate facets of the dynamic lyric that is aware of its environs (sound, image, line), while also exploring traditional poetic forms like the Haibun, ode, prose poem, and elegy. Additionally, we will seek inspiration in outside mediums such as film, visual art, and music, as well as, of course, the natural world. As a class, we will explore the highly individual nature of writing processes and talk about building writing practices that are generative as well as sustainable

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3321 001/13562 M 12:10pm - 2:00pm
317 Hamilton Hall
Samantha Zighelboim 3.00 15/15

Cross Genre Seminars

WRIT UN3010 SHORT PROSE FORMS. 3.00 points .

Note: This seminar has a workshop component.

Prerequisites: No Prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. Prerequisites: No Prerequisites. Department approval NOT required. Flash fiction, micro-naratives and the short-short have become exciting areas of exploration for contemporary writers. This course will examine how these literary fragments have captured the imagination of writers internationally and at home. The larger question the class seeks to answer, both on a collective and individual level, is: How can we craft a working definition of those elements endemic to short prose as a genre? Does the form exceed classification? What aspects of both crafts -- prose and poetry -- does this genre inhabit, expand upon, reinvent, reject, subvert? Short Prose Forms incorporates aspects of both literary seminar and the creative workshop. Class-time will be devoted alternatingly to examinations of published pieces and modified discussions of student work. Our reading chart the course from the genres emergence, examining the prose poem in 19th-century France through the works of Mallarme, Baudelaire, Max Jacob and Rimbaud. Well examine aspects of poetry -- the attention to the lyrical, the use of compression, musicality, sonic resonances and wit -- and attempt to understand how these writers took, as Russell Edson describes, experience [and] made it into an artifact with the logic of a dream. The class will conclude with a portfolio at the end of the term, in which students will submit a compendium of final drafts of three of four short prose pieces, samples of several exercises, selescted responses to readings, and a short personal manifesto on the short prose form

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3010 001/15124 W 4:10pm - 6:00pm
317 Hamilton Hall
Alan Ziegler 3.00 12/20

WRIT UN3011 TRANSLATION SEMINAR. 3.00 points .

Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Students do not need to demonstrate bilingual ability to take this course. Department approval NOT needed. Corequisites: This course is open to undergraduate & graduate students. Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Students do not need to demonstrate bilingual ability to take this course. Department approval NOT needed. Corequisites: This course is open to undergraduate & graduate students. This course will explore broad-ranging questions pertaining to the historical, cultural, and political significance of translation while analyzing the various challenges confronted by the arts foremost practitioners. We will read and discuss texts by writers and theorists such as Benjamin, Derrida, Borges, Steiner, Dryden, Nabokov, Schleiermacher, Goethe, Spivak, Jakobson, and Venuti. As readers and practitioners of translation, we will train our ears to detect the visibility of invisibility of the translators craft; through short writing experiments, we will discover how to identify and capture the nuances that traverse literary styles, historical periods and cultures. The course will culminate in a final project that may either be a critical analysis or an original translation accompanied by a translators note of introduction

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3011 001/15125 W 2:10pm - 4:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Bonnie Chau 3.00 10/15
Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3011 001/18722 T 4:10pm - 6:00pm
608 Lewisohn Hall
Bonnie Chau 3.00 2/15

WRIT UN3018 Inhabiting Form: Writing the Body. 3.00 points .

The body is our most immediate encounter with the world, the vessel through which we experience our entire lives: pleasure, pain, beauty, horror, limitation, freedom, fragility and empowerment. In this course, we will pursue critical and creative inquiries into invocations and manifestations of the body in multiple genres of literature and in several capacities. We will look at how writers make space for—or take up space with—bodies in their work. The etymology of the word “text” is from the Latin textus, meaning “tissue.” Along these lines, we will consider the text itself as a body. Discussions around body politics, race, gender, ability, illness, death, metamorphosis, monstrosity and pleasure will be parallel to the consideration of how a text might function itself as a body in space and time. We will consider such questions as: What is the connective tissue of a story or a poem? What is the nervous system of a lyric essay? How is formal constraint similar to societal ideals about beauty and acceptability of certain bodies? How do words and language function at the cellular level to build the body of a text? How can we make room to honor, in our writing, bodies that have otherwise been marginalized? We will also consider non-human bodies (animals & organisms) and embodiments of the supernatural (ghosts, gods & specters) in our inquiries. Students will process and explore these ideas in both creative and analytical writings throughout the semester, deepening their understanding of embodiment both on and off the page

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3018 001/15456 M 12:10pm - 2:00pm
511 Kent Hall
Samantha Zighelboim 3.00 14/15

WRIT UN3031 INTRO TO AUDIO STORYTELLING. 3.00 points .

It’s one thing to tell a story with the pen. It’s another to transfix your audience with your voice. In this class, we will explore principles of audio narrative. Oral storytellers arguably understand suspense, humor and showmanship in ways only a live performer can. Even if you are a diehard writer of visually-consumed text, you may find, once the class is over, that you have learned techniques that can translate across borders: your written work may benefit. Alternatively, you may discover that audio is the medium for you. We will consider sound from the ground up – from folkloric oral traditions, to raw, naturally captured sound stories, to seemingly straightforward radio news segments, to highly polished narrative podcasts. While this class involves a fair amount of reading, much of what we will be studying and discussing is audio material. Some is as lo-fi as can be, and some is operatic in scope, benefitting from large production budgets and teams of artists. At the same time that we study these works, each student will also complete small audio production exercises of their own; as a final project, students will be expected to produce a trailer, or “sizzle” for a hypothetical multi-episode show. This class is meant for beginners to the audio tradition. There are some tech requirements: a recording device (most phones will suffice), workable set of headphones, and computer. You’ll also need to download the free audio editing software Audacity

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3031 001/15460 W 12:10pm - 2:00pm
311 Fayerweather
Mallika Rao 3.00 15/20

WRIT UN3036 THE AESTHETIC EXPERIENCE. 3.00 points .

What is an aesthetic experience and what does it tell us about art or about ourselves? An aesthetic experience might be best initially defined as a subjective and often profound encounter with an object, artwork, or phenomenon that elicits a heightened sense of beauty, appreciation, or emotional response. It involves a deep engagement with the sensory, emotional, and intellectual aspects of the object of appreciation. Aesthetic experiences typically involve a sense of pleasure, contemplation, or emotional resonance, and they often transcend practical or utilitarian considerations. These experiences can encompass a wide range of phenomena, literature, natural landscapes, and even everyday objects when perceived with a heightened sense of awareness and appreciation. Aesthetic experiences are highly personal and can vary from person to person based on individual preferences, cultural backgrounds, and emotional responses. For me, an aesthetic experience is both mysterious and confounding—I’m impacted physically as much as it might mentally or emotionally. In the throes of an aesthetic experience, I might feel the small hairs on my arms or on the back of my neck stand up. I might feel nearly ill from a racing heart or my stomach turning. I might feel energized by new thoughts prompted by the experience or feel my heart swell in appreciation and awe. I might also feel a deep sense of recognition—one that connects me to the art object and its maker in a way that transcends time and place. But why do I feel this? Where does this feeling come from? What is really happening?? In this class, we’ll study this question on two levels: 1. A ‘theoretical’ level. Theorists, critics, and philosophers have long tried to understand what it means to have an aesthetic experience. Plato likened this experience to madness, Kant to the sublime; Tolstoy argued the aesthetic experience was a form of communication only accessible through engagement in art. Historians place aesthetic experience within the context of time and culture. We’ll study and discuss theories that have tried to define this mysterious phenomenon. 2. A ‘practical’ level. We’ll also read the work of writers who have puzzled through this question of the aesthetic experience by writing about their connection to a work or body of work by another artist. Often this involves a search to understand the self via the work of another artist. Books: Required books available at Book Culture on 112th Street and Broadway or in course reserves at Butler Library. Several readings will be available for free via our courseworks page. They are indicated on the syllabus as (CW)

Course Number Section/Call Number Times/Location Instructor Points Enrollment
WRIT 3036 001/18897 W 10:10am - 12:00pm
Mpr River Side Church
Chloe Jones 3.00 13/15

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Oryol Oblast, Russia

The capital city of Orlovskaya oblast: Orel .

Oryol Oblast - Overview

Oryol Oblast is a federal subject of Russia located in the south-west of the European part of the country, part of the Central Federal District. Oryol is the capital city of the region.

The population of Oryol Oblast is about 714,100 (2022), the area - 24,652 sq. km.

Orlovskaya oblast flag

Orlovskaya oblast coat of arms.

Orlovskaya oblast coat of arms

Orlovskaya oblast map, Russia

History of oryol oblast.

The territory of today’s Oryol Oblast was settled in the late Paleolithic. In the chronicles of the 12th century, the towns of Mtsensk, Novosil, Kromy were mentioned. At that time, the area was part of the Chernigov principality.

About 400 years later, the town-fortresses of Bolkhov, Oryol, Livny were founded. In the 16th-17th centuries, this region was the borderland of the Russian state. It was a place where more than once battles against the nomads took place, dramatic events of the Time of Troubles occurred here too.

As the threat from the nomads reduced, agricultural colonization of the area began. Oryol became a large grain-producing town. Standing on the Oka River, it became a large bread market, which provided Moscow with crops and flour.

Oryol Governorate was established by the decree of Catherine II in 1778. It included a considerable part of the present Bryansk and Lipetsk regions.

From the second half of the 19th century, railways and highways connected Oryol with Moscow and Ukraine, Baltic and Volga regions. The city became a large transport hub. Before 1917, Oryol had a cadet school, theological seminary, several gymnasiums (P.A.Stolypin, Prime Minister of the Russian Empire in 1906-1911, graduated from one of them).

In autumn 1919, bloody battles between the White Army and the Red Army took place near Oryol and Kromy. Oryol Oblast was formed on September 27, 1937. In 1944, Bryansk Oblast was separated from Oryol Oblast. In 1954, nine eastern districts were separated from Oryol Oblast with the formation of Lipetsk Oblast.

This region became a place of severe battles during the Second World War - the front line passed through the region over 20 months. When Oryol was liberated, the first fireworks during the war was fired in Moscow on August 5, 1943.

Classical Russian landscapes in Oryol Oblast

Oryol Oblast nature

Oryol Oblast nature

Author: Valentin Zhukov

Oryol Oblast scenery

Oryol Oblast scenery

Author: Morozov Evgeniy

On the shore of a small lake in Orel Oblast

On the shore of a small lake in Orel Oblast

Author: Oleg Krivolapov

Oryol Oblast - Features

Oryol Oblast is located in the forest-steppe zone. The length of the territory from north to south is over 150 km, from west to east - more than 200 km. The climate is temperate continental. The average temperature in January is minus 6.7 degrees Celsius, in July - plus 20.5 degrees Celsius. The largest cities are Oryol (298,200), Livny (46,800) and Mtsensk (35,500).

The Oka River, one of the largest rivers in Europe, originates in the south of the region. There are deposits of iron ore, lignite, phosphate, limestone, clay, sand, peat, chalk. Uranium ore deposits are found in the south-east.

The local economy has a strong industrial and agricultural character. The main industries are machine-building, food and production of construction materials. Agriculture is concentrated on raising dairy and meat cattle, pigs, poultry and horses.

The main highways passing through the territory of the Oryol region: M2 “Crimea”, R119 Oryol - Tambov, R120 Oryol - Vitebsk, R92 Oryol - Kaluga. The main railway is Moscow - Kharkov - Simferopol line. Public transport in Oryol is presented by trams, trolleybuses and buses.

The wonderful nature of central Russia, rich cultural traditions were the foundation on which a number of famous Russian gifted persons were nurtured. The Oryol region was the birthplace of I.S.Turgenev, N.S.Leskov, L.N.Andreyev, A.N.Apukhtin, A.A.Fet, philosophers S.N.Bulgakov, M.M.Bakhtin, historian T.N.Granovsky. The lives of F.I.Tyutchev, I.A.Bunin, M.M.Prishvin are connected with this region.

Attractions of Oryol Oblast

Oryol Oblast is compact and very convenient to travel by car. The distance from Oryol to Moscow is about 360 km. Several old Russian towns are located on the territory of the region: Mtsensk (1146), Novosil (1155), Livny (1177 and 1586), Bolkhov (1196).

The State Memorial and Natural Reserve Museum of Ivan Turgenev “Spasskoye-Lutovinovo” - a complex of manor buildings with a magnificent park, located 60 kilometers from Oryol and 12 km from Mtsensk. This is the most popular attraction of the Oryol region.

The National Park “Oryol Polesie” - recreational areas located on the territory of Hotynetsky and Znamensky districts, a place with unique nature, rich historical and cultural heritage. This is the largest woodland in the Oryol region (33,000 hectares).

Bolkhov is considered the most beautiful town in the region. In this small town with a population of about 11,000 people, there are 12 churches and one monastery. Bolkhov stands on hills on the high bank of the Nugr River. From almost anywhere you can enjoy wonderful views of the town and surrounding area.

Holidays and festivals in Oryol Oblast

  • Last Saturday of May - Fet’s poetry festival held annually in the village of Kleymonovo;
  • June - “Troitsky roundelays in Oryol Polesie” - an international folklore festival in the village of Zhudryo, the festival of chamber and solo performances “LUDI” and Turgenev holiday in Oryol;
  • August 5 - the City Day of Oryol;
  • The first weekend of September - Oryol regional festival of author’s song held annually in the national park “Oryol Polesie”.

Orlovskaya oblast of Russia photos

Winter in the Oryol region

Winter in the Oryol region

Author: Pyotr Kianchenko

Paved road in Oryol Oblast

Paved road in Oryol Oblast

Author: Alexander Korolyov

Hilly landscape in Oryol Oblast

Hilly landscape in Oryol Oblast

Author: Shutov V.

Pictures of Oryol Oblast

Monument to the soldiers, who fell for the liberation of Krasnozorensky district of Oryol Oblast

Monument to the soldiers, who fell for the liberation of Krasnozorensky district of Oryol Oblast

Chapel in Oryol Oblast

Chapel in Oryol Oblast

Author: Makeyev Vyacheslav

Abandoned church in the Oryol region

Abandoned church in the Oryol region

Author: D.Atamanov

Churches in the Oryol region

Restoration of the church in Oryol Oblast

Restoration of the church in Oryol Oblast

Author: Denis Ivantsov

Cemetery church in Oryol Oblast

Cemetery church in Oryol Oblast

Author: Toichkin Dmitriy

Restoration of the church in the Orel region

Restoration of the church in the Orel region

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  2. Creative Writing < Columbia College

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  16. Livny

    Description. Also known as. English. Livny. town and administrative center of Livensky District of Oryol Oblast in central Russia.

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    Prerequisite: Intermediate Workshop. Permission required. Admission by writing sample. Enrollment limited to 15 students. This course can be repeated in fulfillment of the major. Building on the work of the Intermediate Workshop, Advanced workshops are reserved for the most gifted creative writing students. A significant body of writing must be ...

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  21. Oryol Oblast, Russia guide

    Oryol Oblast is located in the forest-steppe zone. The length of the territory from north to south is over 150 km, from west to east - more than 200 km. The climate is temperate continental. The average temperature in January is minus 6.7 degrees Celsius, in July - plus 20.5 degrees Celsius. The largest cities are Oryol (298,200), Livny (46,800 ...

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  23. Livensky District

    Livensky District ( Russian: Ли́венский райо́н) is an administrative [1] and municipal [4] district ( raion ), one of the twenty-four in Oryol Oblast, Russia. It is located in the southwest of the oblast. The area of the district is 1,806.3 square kilometers (697.4 sq mi). [2] Its administrative center is the town of Livny ...

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