Certificate Program in Creative Writing
Writing is generally a solitary activity. Allow the Certificate Program in Creative Writing to provide you with a network of new and experienced writers and skilled, supportive writing instructors. Learn about the creative writing craft as you draft and present for workshop critiques. While writing and revising several pieces you will have the opportunity to develop a habit of regularly reading published and unpublished work as you focus on your writing. Gain exposure to and practice in additional genres and forms as you develop your personal writing style and increase your knowledge about marketing finished work.
Learn from the best
The instructors of this program are all practicing writers and bring a wide variety of experiences to their teaching. Among them are published authors, award winners, members of professional and creative writing programs, conference participants and workshop presenters. Most importantly, they all bring a deep and motivating passion about words and their endless possibilities.
Who benefits
New and experienced writers will benefit from this program. You will improve your critical vocabulary and writing craftsmanship through technically-focused workshops. You will critically read the work of other writers—published and unpublished—and respond with thoughtful feedback. You will have opportunities to work closely with instructors and fellow students, developing valuable creative and professional communities for the future, while challenging and nurturing your own personal voices and projects in new and engaging ways.
| UNITS | F | W | SP | SU | ||
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| REQUIRED COURSES | Tools of the Writer's Craft | 2.5 | 
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| Advanced Fiction: Writer's Craft Workshop | 2.5 |
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| Reading Contemporary Fiction as a Writer | 2.5 |
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| Literary Non-Fiction | 1 |
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| Poetry Workshop | 1 |
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| Screenwriting | 2.5 |
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| ELECTIVE COURSES | Dialogue | 1 | ||||
| Elements of Scene | 1 | |||||
| Metaphor and Detail: Showing and Telling | 1 |
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| Point of View | 1 |
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| Structure: Beginnings and Endings | 1 |
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| Write in Style | 1.5 | |||||
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Classroom format |
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Required Courses
Tools of the Writer's Craft
2.5 quarter units academic credit, X410.7. .
When writers move past the initial inspiration the act and the art of writing gives them, they often find themselves developing an interest in craft, and craft is the emphasis of this workshop. How do we develop character and reveal plot without resorting to dull exposition? Render autobiographical incidents into useful fictional material? Reveal character motivation while maintaining plot momentum? Subtly but effectively sound thematic concerns? With the help of published examples and a discussion of how these writers are effective, weekly assignments give you opportunities to put theory into practice. These assignments are discussed in a workshop forum, which further enhances your ability to discern what goes into a piece of effective writing.
Sections of this course open for enrollment:
- Tools of the Writer's Craft starts September 25
Advanced Fiction: Writer's Craft Workshop
2.5 quarter units academic credit, X410.8. .
Elements of writing craft will be presented in a workshop format. Hone your writing skills through an exploration of point-of-view, sense of place, crafting a scene, techniques of dramatization and narration, character and dialogue. Discussions will include the subject of personal style and personal application of these techniques to your particular manuscripts. Writing exercises and published examples will supplement weekly writing assignments and workshop sessions. Learn to critically read the writing of others and how to respond with thoughtful feedback. Solutions and encouragement will be emphasized to help build confidence and expand writing skills.
Prerequisites:
Tools of the Writer's Craft, or equivalent. Basic writing skills, some writing experience and a good command of the English language.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Reading Contemporary Fiction as a Writer
2.5 quarter units academic credit, X410.5. .
One of the most important ways in which writers learn their craft is by studying the work of published writers. Pulitzer Prize winning novelist Richard Ford has said, "It's a short step from admiring to emulating; reading good writing can move us to try to duplicate it. And close study can help teach us how to duplicate it." Read and think clinically and critically as you analyze, dissect and deconstruct fiction produced by a variety of contemporary writers. You will discover how reading stimulates thought, generates ideas, invites discussion and facilitates your own writing.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Literary Non-Fiction
1 quarter units academic credit, X410.6. .
Literary non-fiction, also called creative non-fiction, is one of the most popular and marketable genres. This course explores what it is and how it differs from conventional journalism and from pure fiction. You will look at the work of Annie Dillard, John McPhee, Peter Matthiessen and others.
Learn the basic tools of this genre through in-class exercises, outside of class writing assignments and discussions on dialogue, setting, character and narrative thread. You will also learn tips for conducting interviews and gathering primary data, and gain insight into how to combine the journalist's eye for detail and need for accuracy with the novelist's sense of storytelling and love of language.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Poetry Workshop
1 quarter units academic credit, X410.15. .
Improve your ability to write poems that are both effective and compelling by examining the elements that distinguish poetry from prose. Workshop your poetry in each session and make revisions based on critiques. Lectures and discussions cover image, metaphor and symbolism, mechanics such as line breaks and pacing, rhythm, sound, making meaning and poetic forms. Explore these topics in published examples designed to propel the poet toward discovery, breakthrough and ultimately toward publication.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Screenwriting
2.5 quarter units academic credit, X410.16. .
Receive an introduction to the basics of narrative film and television film writing. Learn standard formatting, story structure and scene development. Study examples of various genres and perform guided exercises and assignments to develop familiarity with these forms including long and three-act. Read scenes from successful scripts, watch the filmed versions of these written scenes and engage in discussion about them. Workshop your original scenes, as well as learn to structure and outline longer form works. No previous screenwriting experience is required.
Sections of this course open for enrollment:
- Screenwriting starts September 22
Elective Courses
Dialogue
1 quarter units academic credit, X410.11. .
Learn how to make characters "talk" in your writing. This essential aspect of writer's craft -dialogue - is often where even the best writing falters. Discover how to avoid the pitfalls of overused adverbs; characters who speak in clichés, or who lack gesture, emotion or activity; and long paragraphs of dialogue-as-exposition. With the help of published examples, we'll discuss the forms effective dialogue can take. Put theory to practice with a number of short exercises, in-class and take-home. Find ways to improve characterization, focus your scenes, and in the process make the voices of your characters distinctive and true.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Elements of Scene
1 quarter units academic credit, X410.14. .
The building blocks of every story, whether it's one page long or four hundred, are scenes. With the help of published examples and writing assignments, discover what goes into creating an effective scene and how scenes add up to stories. Understand how scenes add up to chapters and longer story arcs. Explore character and character needs, sense of place and point of view and sharpen your dialogue skills. This workshop is particularly useful for writers who already have a sense of their characters and story, however it will also be helpful to those just beginning to put the elements of a story together.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Metaphor and Detail: Showing and Telling
1 quarter units academic credit, X410.13. .
Learn to enhance your writing with metaphor and the use of detail. Understand how imagery, word choices and the portrayal of detail can give your writing specificity and vigor. Learn to examine everyday objects and activities, and employ them as vehicles for larger themes and underlying meaning. Develop a deeper understanding of how to make your work resonate on both the practical level of your characters' lives and on the larger themes you are addressing. The use of active verbs, sensory perceptions, and other "showing" techniques will also be presented. A discussion of how a writer implies and a reader infers will reveal the importance and connection of scene, and how the choice of showing or telling will improve the sense of place, action, characterization.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Point of View
1 quarter units academic credit, X410.12. .
Explore point of view, an essential element of the fiction writer's craft. With the help of published examples and writing exercises, examine the idea of a narrator, the person(s) telling your story. Discuss the benefits and pitfalls of first person, third person and omniscient narrators, and explore methods that help create effective, believable voices for your point-of-view characters. Short assignments, discussed in a workshop forum, provide opportunities to put theory into practice, to understand what works (and what doesn't) in your own writing, and to learn from your fellow writers as they employ these tools.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Structure: Beginnings and Endings
1 quarter units academic credit, X410.9. .
What comes first - the structure or the story? Explore ways to help a story find its most effective structure, and investigate the way structure determines the story. Along the way you may discover a story you didn't know you had. You will consider where and how a particular story might begin and how it could end. Fiction is not necessarily linear; this course helps you evaluate traditional structure and determine when to move beyond it. You will learn about building tension, creating momentum, compelling the reader to continue and leaving the reader satisfied, but wanting more at the end.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Write in Style
1.5 quarter units academic credit, X410.10. .
Increase your enjoyment of the writing process by learning to improve the way you arrange words into sentences, paragraphs and scenes. Participate in discussions and exercises on English usage and style and examine published work. Learn what works and what doesn't in your own writing, and how to organize words to clearly express yourself and reveal your ideas and creative voice. Gain confidence in your ability to improve your writing and have a greater appreciation of the art of writing.
This course is not currently scheduled.
For More Information
Download a Creative Writing Certificate Program brochure for a list of current quarter courses and enrollment information. 
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