Creative Writing Degree

I agree that reading is key to good writing. I've no experience of an undergraduate Creative Writing Degree but perhaps an English Literature degree or similar may be helpful - although not essential - as it provides a solid reading foundation. Lots of factors feed good writers, including life experience, commitment and perseverance.

However an MA in Creative Writing can offer a would-be writer all sorts of opportunities. It's a chance to write & critique non-stop, workshop with peers and professionals, as well as seminars & tutorials with established writers. An MA cannot teach you how to write so much, more to develop a personal tool kit, including the skills/craft of rewriting and editing. It also provides a window on the market place - if not an entry for a lucky few. Saying that, it's a huge financial and time commitment and offers no guarantee of success. If you are considering a degree, a word of warning, courses vary significantly. Make double sure it's the course for you. I would suggest doing lots of research first.

My tutor said she'd had this conversation with some agents and that many can tell from the writing if someone has taken a degree or masters in creative writing. This suggested to me that although these writers had sought to create something amazing the very specific way they had avoided the standard pitfalls of novel writing made them almost formulaic. What a comforting thought!

If you ever stop learning to write, you probably aren't writing to the best of your ability and a degree in it only asserts that you have reached a particular standard. It's the writers who never stop reaching higher that are really worth reading and for that reason I consider a degree irrelevant to novel writing. However, those without a degree need to have studied their craft just as hard over just as many years.

I wonder what percentage of people with degrees in Creative writing, English literature, or the English Language have gone on to be successful authors.

I believe you can learn efficiently without attending university, or doing a creative writing course. It's much cheaper to read the creative writing books by publishers who were also best-selling authors, and tutors at universities.

It is better to learn from the best. All the best authors have read great traditional or award winning contemporary literature. But is better to read both, including as much as you can about the genre you are writing about.

I believe that those who are naturally creative and naturally poetic have the edge when it comes to writing novels. But that does not mean that someone who lacks creativity can’t out perform a creative genius who lacks dedication. No-one was born a journalist. Even journalists had to learn their craft.

Read, Read, Read.