Department of English, College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Graduate Faculty
Anderson, Katherine , PhD, British literature, empire/postcolonial studies, gender and sexuality studies, critical terrorism studies. Araki-Kawaguchi, Kiik , MFA, long form fiction, speculative fiction. Bridges, D’Angelo , PhD, rhetoric and composition, critical theory, African American and diaspora studies. Brown, Nicole , PhD, rhetoric and composition, technical writing, visual rhetoric, service learning and cybercultural studies. Cushman, Jeremy , PhD, rhetoric and composition, workplace writing, public rhetorics, digital humanities and postmodern research methodologies. Dietrich, Dawn , PhD, cinema studies, literature and technology, cyberculture, critical theory. Dorr, Noam , PhD, creative writing (hybrid genres), visual and performance art, global literature, and translation. Forsythe, Jenny , PhD, Latin American literature and culture, literary history and translation studies. Geisler, Marc , PhD, Renaissance literature and culture, literary theory, politics and literature. Giffen, Allison , PhD, American literature, women’s literature. Guess, Carol , MFA, creative writing (creative nonfiction, fiction, poetry), gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender literature and theory. Heim, Stefania , PhD, contemporary poetry and poetics, American literature, experimental writing and translation studies. Laffrado, Laura , PhD, American literature, gender studies. Lee, Jean , PhD, Caribbean literature, Asian American literature, diasporic literature, critical theory, women, gender, and sexuality studies. Loar, Christopher , PhD, British literature, early American literature, eighteenth-century culture, critical theory, literature and science. Lucchesi, Andrew , PhD, rhetoric and composition, professional and technical writing, disability studies. Lyne, William , PhD, American literature, African-American literature, cultural studies. Magee, Kelly , MFA, creative writing (fiction, nonfiction, multi-genre). Odabasi, Eren , PhD, film studies, global cinema, screen industries, auteur theory. Rivera, Lysa , PhD, American literatures and culture, Chicana/o and African-American literature, cultural studies, critical theory. Roach Orduña, José , MFA, creative writing (nonfiction), visual autobiography, and essay film. Shipley, Ely , PhD, creative writing (multi-genre, poetry). Trueblood, Kathryn , MFA, creative writing (fiction), publishing and editing. VanderStaay, Steven , PhD, English education, creative writing (nonfiction), and linguistics. Vulić, Kathryn , PhD, medieval British and Continental literatures and culture, manuscript studies. Warburton, Theresa , PhD, feminist theory, women’s literature, Native literature, transnational and multiethnic literature, and memoir. Wise, Christopher , PhD, comparative literature and critical theory. Wong, Jane , PhD, creative writing (poetry). Youmans, Greg , PhD, film and media studies, LGBTQ history and historiography, queer and feminist theory.
Introduction
Western Washington University’s English Department offers a 2-year MFA program in Creative Writing within a community that values creative development and intellectual versatility. We encourage a focus on multigenre or cross-genre writing, based on our view that creative writing graduates need to be versatile in their comprehension of genre conventions and conversant in the way diverse genres inform one another. A variety of courses we offer stress either a multigenre focus or encourage experimental works that blur genre boundaries.
Creative writing practice and literary study are synergistic in our program. Students take seminars in creative writing and literature, as well as courses in rhetorical thinking and composition, digital and technical writing, film studies, and linguistics. We offer Graduate Assistantships that provide quality teacher training, as well as opportunities to gain editorial experience with the award-winning journal Bellingham Review .
The MFA program in English is designed for those who desire to prepare for:
- Life as a serious author, with an understanding of the literary marketplace and publication
- PhD programs, as well as other advanced degrees in fields such as law or teaching
- Teaching at both two- and four-year colleges and universities
- Public or private teaching (elementary, middle, secondary)
- Careers in technical writing and communication
- Careers in editing and publishing
- Careers in nonprofit and other business organizations
Students will attain the following skills:
- Fluency in multigenre or cross-genre writing and comprehension of genre conventions, as well as the way diverse genres can inform one another
- Professionalism in creative writing, along with in-depth literary study in areas that might include national and global literatures and cultures, critical and cultural theory, film and media, pedagogy, composition and rhetoric, technical writing, professional writing, editing and publishing, and linguistics
- Teaching experience (if awarded a teaching assistantship or internship)
- Professional editing with scholarly and creative writing journals, such as the Bellingham Review
- Professional communication, oral and written
- Competency in the use of classroom and communications technologies
- Awareness of diversity, educational equity, and social justice issues
- Awareness of ethical and reflective pedagogical practices
Prerequisites
Undergraduate major in English or Creative Writing, or departmental permission. Candidates with an insufficient background in English are normally requested to acquire 30 upper-division credits in creative writing, literature, and/or criticism with a grade of B or better in each course. The department reserves the right to approve a course of study.
Application Information
Deadlines : Applications for the following academic year must be complete — all materials on file — by January 15 for priority consideration. Applications completed after that date may be considered on a space-available basis. Applications completed after June 1 will be considered for the following year. Admission into the program is for fall quarter. Teaching Assistantship Deadlines : Same as above.
The materials submitted for admission must include:
- A statement of purpose: this statement should explain intellectual and/or creative interests, and professional goals. If you are interested in being considered for a funded Teaching Assistantship, please include relevant experience and information that will aid the department in making funding decisions.
- Two writing samples. Creative Writing: 10 to 15 pages of prose (fiction or creative nonfiction); or 10 to 15 pages of poetry; or a combination of genres, 15 pages total; AND a Critical writing sample: 7 to 12 pages of analytical work in literary study.
- Appropriate admissions forms.
Program Requirements
❑ 25 credits in creative writing courses, to be taken in at least two different genres from the following:
- ENG 502 - Seminar in the Writing of Fiction Credits: 5
- ENG 504 - Seminar in the Writing of Poetry Credits: 5
- ENG 505 - Seminar in the Writing of Nonfiction Credits: 5
- ENG 506 - Seminar in Creative Writing: Multigenre Credits: 5
- ENG 520 - Studies in Poetry Credits: 5 *
- ENG 525 - Studies in Fiction Credits: 5 *
- ENG 535 - Studies in Nonfiction Credits: 5 *
*These courses may be taken as either creative writing or literature credits, depending on the nature of the final project. To use them as part of the creative writing core requirement, students must take them as creative writing courses.
❑ 20 credits in literature, composition/rhetoric, pedagogy, or critical theory, to be taken from the following:
- ENG 500 - Directed Independent Study Credits: 1-5
- ENG 501 - Literary Theories and Practices Credits: 5
- ENG 509 - Internship in Writing, Editing and Production Credits: 1-5
- ENG 510 - Seminar: Topics in Rhetoric Credits: 5
- ENG 513 - Seminar in Teaching College Composition Credits: 5 (for Teaching Assistants)
- ENG 515 - Studies in Literary and Critical Theory Credits: 5
- ENG 540 - Studies in Global Literatures Credits: 5
- ENG 550 - Studies in American Literatures Credits: 5
- ENG 560 - Studies in British Literature Credits: 5
- ENG 570 - Topics in Literary and Cultural Criticism Credits: 5
- ENG 575 - Studies in Women’s Literature Credits: 5
- ENG 580 - Studies in Film Credits: 5
- ENG 594 - Practicum in Teaching Credits: 2-5
- ENG 598 - Seminar in the Teaching of English Credits: 5
ENG 520, 525, and 535 (see creative writing courses) may also be used for literature credit, depending on the nature of the final project. The same course may not be used for both literature and creative writing credit.
- ❑ ENG 690 - Thesis Writing Credits: 2-10 (10 credits)
NOTE: With the permission of the graduate advisor, a student may take up to 10 credits of some combination of approved 400-level courses, ENG 500, ENG 509, and ENG 594. No more than 5 credits of ENG 500 may be applied toward the degree.
Students are encouraged to fill out their two years of study with electives that stress creative writing, pedagogy, editing/publishing, literature, or rhetoric, as dictated by the student’s interests and career goals.
Other Requirements
A written exam in the student’s concentration.
A successful creative thesis, with a critical preface, approved by the student’s Creative Writing Thesis Committee and the Graduate School.
English Department
Creative Writing Minor
Creative writing (25 credits), introduction/what is the study of creative writing.
The Creative Writing minor focuses on writing courses: creative writing in fiction, drama, poetry, or nonfiction prose.
Why Consider a Creative Writing Minor?
Creative writing minors develop skills in creative thought and expression through study and practice of the craft of fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, and/or drama. Students participate in both the critical analysis and creative practice of writing, gaining widely-applicable experience in self-expression, artistic technique, and modes of communication.
Sample Careers
Freelance writer | Web content writer | Editor/Publisher | Writing Teacher | Video game writer/designer | Ghostwriter
Requirements
- ENG 351 Introduction to Fiction Writing (5) ( prereq : ENG 101)
- ENG 451 Creative Writing Seminar: Fiction (5) ( prereq : ENG 351)
- ENG 456 Special Topics in Fiction Writing (5) ( prereq : ENG 351)
- ENG 354 Introduction to Nonfiction Writing (5) ( prereq : ENG 101)
- ENG 454 CW Seminar: Creative Nonfiction (5) ( prereq : ENG 354)
- ENG 458 Special Topics in Creative Nonfiction Writing (5) ( prereq : ENG 354)
- ENG 353 Introduction to Poetry Writing (5) ( prereq : ENG 101)
- ENG 453 Creative Writing Seminar: Poetry (5) ( prereq : ENG 353)
- ENG 457 Special Topics in Poetry Writing (5) ( prereq : ENG 353)
- ENG 466 Screenwriting (5) ( prereq : 1 from ENG 364, 350, 351, 353, or 354).
- ENG 455 Living Writers (5) ( prereq : ENG 351, 353, or 354)
- ENG 460 Multigenre (5) ( prereq : ENG 351, 353, or 354)
- ENG 459 Editing and Publishing (5) ( prereq : ENG 351, 353, or 354
Interested in declaring an English major or minor?
Please see the Remote Advising section's page for more information.
Declaring this minor will not give you access to major-restricted classes. Major restrictions are usually lifted on the 6th day of registration each quarter. Courses taken for credit in minor programs may not be counted toward English majors.
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