Creative Writing
Through all the inevitable changes during the years since its emergence in 1964, our Creative Writing Program has deliberately remained small in order to provide an alternative to the larger MFA programs. Our students appreciate the intimacy of small classes and a picturesque campus.
The Creative Writing Program is an integral component of Ohio University's English Department, offering undergraduate and graduate classes. Both undergraduate and graduate students have the opportunity to concentrate on a genre—poetry, fiction, or nonfiction—and to work closely in small classes with a distinguished faculty.
As one of the first universities in the country to offer a Ph.D. in Creative Writing, Ohio University has a thriving, widely respected graduate program. M.A. candidates complete two years of study and write a thesis of creative work in their genre. M.A. students participate in seminars along with doctoral candidates, who must complete five years of study, comprehensive exams, a major critical essay, and a creative dissertation.
In May, the Creative Writing Program hosts the annual Spring Literary Festival, an exciting three days of lectures and readings when students have more opportunities to attend readings and meet with authors of national and international reputation.
Students further benefit from a lively visiting-writers series, which brings to campus accomplished writers for residencies and readings. Previous residents include
- Lee K. Abbott
- Francois Camoin
- Kiki Delancey
- Kathy Fagan
- Joanna Frueh
- Lucy Grealy
- Wayne Koestenbaum
- Nancy K. Miller
- Debra Monroe
- Tim Parrish
- Alan Shapiro
- Greg Williamson
There are generally three residencies a year and five readings. Students participate in workshops led by the visiting writers; they also meet with visiting writers in one-to-one consultations regarding students' work.
The English Department at Ohio University is also frequently staffed with one-year visiting writers. Past writers include William Black (fiction), Zakes Mda (fiction), and Mark Wunderlich (poetry).
For information on applying to the graduate program in creative writing, please see the admissions page of this site. Please note that the writing sample for creative writing applicants should be appropriate to genre: fiction (20-40 pages), nonfiction (20-40 pages), or poetry (10 poems). In addition, applicants for the Ph.D. program in creative writing should submit a critical paper from a previous literature class. Applicants for the M.A. program should send only their creative work.
Faculty in Creative Writing
- Michael David Brown, Assistant Professor: Fiction
- Joan Connor, Professor: Fiction
- Mark Halliday, Professor: Poetry
- Robert Kinsley, Instructor: Poetry
- Jack Matthews, Distinguished Professor: Fiction
- Zakes Mda, Professor: Fiction and African & World Literature
- Dinty W. Moore, Professor: Creative Nonfiction
- Jill Allyn Rosser, Assistant Professor: Poetry
- Darrell Spencer, Professor: Fiction
- Catherine Taylor, Assistant Professor: Nonfiction
- Sharmila Voorakkara, Assistant Professor: Poetry
Graduate Seminars
Creative Writing graduate seminars mix both studio and academic approaches while being selective regarding genre (poetry, fiction, and nonfiction). There are typically two poetry and fiction workshops offered per year, each of the four workshops taught by different instructors, and one creative nonfiction workshop. Form and theory courses in each genre are offered annually depending on student demand. The catalogue numbers for workshops are 690 (fall quarter), 691 (winter quarter), and 692 (spring quarter). Current and recent courses include
- 691: Creative Writing Seminar: Poetry, Mark Halliday
- 765: Theory of Literature: Poetry, Mark Halliday
- 691: Creative Writing Seminar: Fiction, Joan Connor
- 692: Creative Writing Seminar: Fiction, Darrell Spencer
- 765: Theory of Literature: Fiction, Darrell Spencer
Creative Writing Requirements
In addition the general PhD requirements, doctoral students in creative writing must take two doctoral seminars in their period of specialization and two doctoral seminars in periods other than their period of specialization. They also take two creative writing workshops a year for the first two years of doctoral study, including one in a genre which is not their primary one. They take a fifth workshop in their third year as part of their preparation for the creative writing dissertation.
In addition to the general MA requirements, masters students in creative writing must satisfy either the bibliography and methods requirement or the English language requirement, but they are not required to do both. They must take three creative writing seminars, ENG 765 Form and Theory, and complete a creative master's thesis.
Links to Further Information on Creative Writing
Our Alumni Books page contains a number of publications by graduates of the creative writing program.