Did you go to school for writing/publishing?

Umber · May 8, 2015

I'm in my second year now at college, it took me a while to decide what to major in. Last year I declared as a communications major (im focusing on more of the media classes) and just this week I've finally declared creative writing as my minor! I like to think that on a practical level it will help with my comm degree, but personally I'm hoping it will improve my writing of course lol. I'm in one class this semester and have really loved it!

anyways I know many authors went to school for something other than writing, and you really don't need a MFA or anything to get published, but I was just wondering if any of you went to school with the intent of getting a degree that would help with writing?

Write_At_1st_Light · May 8, 2015

Nope!

I did take a creative writing course in college but my major was Theatre Arts (performance). Didn't graduate, because I immediately discovered that one didn't need a college degree to be an actor, at any level.

Writing is a need, to true writers. They cannot teach such a concept because it's something deep within - has to already exist by the time you reach college. Or, it can remain in hibernation through college, and then blossom some time after you've earned your degree.

Courses can help you discover or refine a writing technique, help you maybe find your writing voice. But most writers are driven by passion.

Brightdreamer · May 8, 2015

Dear gods, I hope that's not necessary - I can't even afford a course at a voc-tech diploma mill...

In other words, no, I haven't. But I've read many books on the process, and I read many posts at forums like this, Should the matter of publishing come up, I'm reasonably confident I can deal with it - or at least know where to come crawling for answers if I can't.

Caitlin Black · May 8, 2015

Yep, me.

I started writing in 2007. In late 2009 I heard about a creative writing course being taught for free, locally, that was associated with a university. So I signed up (in a class of about 7 people), because I wanted to become a better writer.

That course became 4 classes, done one per semester for 2 years, and at the end of it I had automatic entry into a Bachelor of Arts at the associated university (with 4 classes already to my name).

So in 2012 I started full-time at university, studying sociology, philosophy and creative writing. Eventually dropped the philosophy, and double-majored in the others. Finished that degree in November 2014, graduation day was in April 2015.

So yeah... I now have a BA with a double major in creative writing and sociology. It's a virtually useless degree (I've been applying for a bunch of jobs, and haven't really gotten anywhere yet in the past 6 months...

) except that my writing DID improve, a lot.

1st Light is probably right, though, that you can't teach someone to want to write - although you definitely can teach people to become better writers if they want to write in the first place.

And yeah... It won't help me get published or anything like that, I imagine, except as far as "I'm better at writing now" goes. But it *was* a lot of fun, for the most part.

(The $20k of debt I am now in is just the cherry on the "Can't find a job" cake, though...)

mrsmig · May 8, 2015

I have a journalism degree and took several creative writing courses along the way. Wish I'd had time for more.

Osulagh · May 8, 2015

I'm in my third year of college, the first two were for a General Associates, and I'm on my way for a bachelor's in English with emphasis in Creative Writing.

I find that you'll get more from the English classes than you do the Creative Writing classes. For my degree, I need to take Intro into Creative Writing and two Advance Creative writing courses and there's pretty much just workshop classes. Some reading, some writing, some critiquing. But with my English degree, I've been exposed to a ton of literature and other works that have helped balance my thoughts, I've taken a Theory and Criticism class which was very enlightening (pun intended), and I've got a set of classes lined up to help with grammar and other elements.

amergina · May 8, 2015

I did.

I fully intended to go into biology, probably into genetics or something like that and then in 11th grade, I discovered that I could spin a yarn that people liked and I LOVED that, so off I went to become an English major, fully aware that I also needed a back-up plan, 'cause the arts, they tend to pay crap for a good long time, maybe always.

(My mom is an artist with a BFA in Fine Art. Guess who I got that practical advice from?)

So I ended up with a BA in Creative Writing and a whole bunch of experience in managing and manning a computer lab at a school known for com sci. With that, I ended up finding a career in technical writing, but my creative writing kind of stalled out for several years.

For the hell of it, and to kickstart my writing again, I went and got an MFA in writing popular fiction, via a low res program.

I don't regret *any* of it. The MFA did wonders to my writing and in the end was the catalyst for finding an agent and getting published.

BUT!!!! There are plenty of other paths. NO, you don't need a writing degree. You can, in fact, get much of what I got from my MFA through other means.

(And my MFA is really not typical, since it does focus solely on commercial fiction, with a heavy emphasis on writing a salable novel. Also a lot more emphasis on the business end of things, including bringing in agents and editors as well as authors as guest lecturers.)

Brightdreamer · May 8, 2015

amergina said:
(And my MFA is really not typical, since it does focus solely on commercial fiction, with a heavy emphasis on writing a salable novel. Also a lot more emphasis on the business end of things, including bringing in agents and editors as well as authors as guest lecturers.)

Way back in high school, I remember a visiting artist saying that the best thing he ever did for his art career was get a business degree; art schools, he claimed, taught next to nothing about contracts and the business end of creativity, leaving most of their students to get screwed over in the workplace. Last I heard, it was still that way. Sounds like the same thing's true for most writing courses, then, that they neglect the business end of things - but, then, you don't tend to get the Writing Institute of FillInTheCity chains like you do for art, promising to make your passion into a career, so you most likely have the option of taking business classes in addition to writing.

I had a point in here, but I think I mislaid it...

Caitlin Black · May 8, 2015

amergina said:
BUT!!!! There are plenty of other paths. NO, you don't need a writing degree. You can, in fact, get much of what I got from my MFA through other means.

Yes, this.

I learned just as much from trawling through AW (mostly in the Novels forum, at first) for a few years as I did in my "official" studies. The two combined together, though, have rocketed my writing up into places I hadn't expected.

But yeah. AW is just as valuable as a college/university degree in creative writing, if you ask me. You just have to know where to look.

C.bronco · May 8, 2015

I have a degree in English Lit., and a minor in creative writing. I taught writing, standard, not creative, in community college. I have made my living as a guidance counselor, and send students off to college.

C.bronco · May 8, 2015

During my sophomore year, I struggled with trying to find a marketable major, but English and writing was all I really wanted to do. I called my Dad the night before I had to declare a major. He said, "Well, it is your nickel. You decide."I had to do what I was impelled to do.

Cathy C · May 8, 2015

Not me. I didn't go past high school of formal education, but that doesn't mean I stopped self-study. That's ongoing, at a college level.

C.bronco · May 8, 2015

My awesome brother didn't complete a bachelors, but he is the only person I ever met who read Paradise Lost for fun. Some continue to self-educate. I know I did after I graduated. It is more about the desire and compulsion than signing up for a class, which is a luxury I am extremely grateful to have enjoyed.

Pony. · May 8, 2015

C.bronco said:
My awesome brother didn't complete a bachelors, but he is the only person I ever met who read Paradise Lost for fun. Some continue to self-educate. I know I did after I graduated. It is more about the desire and compulsion than signing up for a class, which is a luxury I am extremely grateful to have enjoyed.

Nobody reads milton for fun.

http://video.search.yahoo.com/video...&sigb=13nrsbh25&sigt=10iaulv2o&sigi=11vrg5b42

CrastersBabies · May 8, 2015

I have a B.A. In creative writing and literature and an MFA.

It worked out well for me and I got a lot out of both degrees. I'm satisfied with the path I took and it helped me grow immensely as a writer.

But everyone has to figure out their own way to success.

I would steer clear from anyone saying,

"No, you never ever need a class. Ever."

And

"Yes, you absolutely need to take classes."

While these people might mean well, they don't know you as a writer and know the best way for you to learn all of this. Everyone has to find their own path.

Good luck! I hope you enjoy your class.

Umber · May 8, 2015

I loved reading all these answers! I definitely understand going the english lit/creative writing path. But I completely agree with the fact that we can learn so much just by reading novels and writing our own. Plus there are so many resources online, that a degree is truly not needed.

I never went into college with the intent to go into writing, as I just started taking it seriously about a year ago. But I definitely am trying to incorporate it somehow. So I like to think that communications and a creative writing minor could land me a job doing social media for a company or PR or something along those lines. (I've had people give me mixed reviews as to what to expect with a comm degree, but i enjoy it). But at the same time I'd like to think these classes will help me in my dreams of one day being published, just bc my classes do deal with media and our current culture and of course writing workshops. I also am in a humanities program which I think gives me a lot of information and makes me more "rounded."

One thing I do like about minoring in creative writing is that it forces me to write. When it comes to my personal projects that I work on, sometimes I am just not as motivated and I get lazy with school work and put it to the side. BUT with class, I know its going to be graded and critiqued so I get it done. Plus it also allows me to write out of my comfort zone and things I'd never do on my own which I think is important for growing as a writer. Oh and reading my peers work...its a reality check lol

Caitlin Black · May 8, 2015

Oh, yes, all those classes that prompted me to write a short story in a format or genre or perspective I wouldn't normally use - those were golden. Really drove home the fact that the "standard" novel is just the most popular form, but that it's *creative* writing, so you can get *really* creative with it, providing it reads well.

*thinks fondly of the story about the psychic who thought of herself in the third person and everyone else in the first person*

Jrubas · May 11, 2015

I didn't. While it can't really hurt, I firmly believe that formal schooling can only help with the mechanics of writing. To get GOOD...you have to work, bleed, and sweat. And you also have to have "it." Just a little touch will do. That's not a popular opinion, I know, but I believe that writers are inclined to write the way some people are inclined to be engineers.

KateSmash · May 11, 2015

Kind of, sort of.

The college I went to only offered creative writing as a minor, despite it being a pretty well known writing program. And it was so needlessly competitive right down to the class level. Since there were only so many spots available, the higher the course level, a few of the professors actually encouraged students to undermine each other's confidence. There's nothing quite like being cut down by a workshop full of people who need you to give up. Plus the whole submission to the next course being up to the professor's very subjective tastes ...

It did teach me to take critique and rejection with a sense of humor.

Myrealana · May 11, 2015

BS in Mathematics/Economics
MBA

I did take one creative writing class to satisfy an undergrad English requirement.

Writing was always something I did for fun. It wasn't until recently that I've started thinking of it as something to *do.*

Chase · May 11, 2015

I also like writing and worked at it in high school, so in addition to my army job, I was assigned to write about it--from unit-level instructions to articles. After ten years service, including writing/editing schools, I went to college on the GI-Bill and was advised to follow my aptitude placements to study English and the teaching of it. It got me a job I loved, teaching writing.

After six years, I went to grad school, which included a two-year project of creative writing, then taught English and writing in Montana state and reservation colleges for 13 more years. In the meantime came writing and editing jobs for fun and profit.

Yep, I went to school for writing, but as many in this thread have asserted, not all (or even half) of my education has been from formal classrooms. I read, read, read to learn, learn, learn on my own, and members here at AW make a terrific ongoing department of education :ty:

. Now retired, I have fun writing mystery novels and sci-fi/ghost shorts and operating a modest editing business.

namejohn · May 11, 2015

Have no creative writing education of any kind.
Took the needed english courses at a college however.
Writing was included.
This was to get the correct grammar, sentence structure and so on.

They were useless crap.

Just making up a story and writing it down is better.

Filigree · May 11, 2015

Hmm, while I agree that some creative writing class structures may not help, you still need to be able to bluff your way through writing readable prose. Reading a *lot* of different work can give you some of it by osmosis. Style guides like Chicago can help you avoid learning bad writing habits in the first place.

Fruitbat · May 11, 2015

You can learn to improve your writing in different ways, whether formally or informally.

If I was going to college with a clear goal of needing to make a living rather than having that handled and it just kinda being something to do, tbh I would start with this, and pick something that there's a demand for and that pays well. http://www.bls.gov/ooh/

The reason is, in my experience (bachelor's, master's and assorted certifications and jobs) the degree has little connection to getting to do something all day long that is meaningful or interesting. All that really happens is you don't get paid as much!

KTC · May 11, 2015

High school drop-out here. Don't tell anyone. I was too busy surviving to edumacate meself.

Did you go to school for writing/publishing?

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