Are creative writing degrees relevant in 2019’s publishing climate? The honest truth

The publishing world is moving faster than ever. Have creative writing courses kept pace? That’s the angle I’m considering this time in my series of interviews with creative writing professor Garry Craig Powell.

If you want a career in mainstream publishing, will a course equip you for that?

If you want a traditional deal, will a creative writing qualification make that more likely?

What about the indie world – does a creative writing degree confer any benefit, advantage or prestige?

If you decide to be master of your own work, will a degree help you do it more wisely and effectively?

Now that authors have to do so much platform-building for themselves – whether indie or traditional – have the academic departments kept up with these new demands?

As usual, Garry is patient and thoroughly candid and the discussion can be found at Late Last Night Books. It’s part of a longer conversation:

Part 1 Should you take a creative writing degree?

Part 2 How to choose a creative writing degree

Grab coffee and come over. As always, the comments system at Late Last Night Books is tricky to negotiate, but if you’d like to add to the discussion or ask a question, type it here!

How to choose a creative writing degree – the honest truth

We all find our own paths when learning to write. For some, a creative writing degree is the right one. Last year, when I fell into an email correspondence with creative writing professor Garry Craig Powell, I couldn’t resist asking some cheeky questions about his corner of the literary world – and he was game to answer them. I thought it was a conversation that would be useful to you guys… hence this series. We’re publishing it in parts at Late Last Night Books.

Last time, we discussed who might get real value from a creative writing degree (and, by extension, who wouldn’t).

This time, we weigh up how to choose a course. Including:

How to make meaningful comparisons between courses at different institutions.

Famous tutors – how much of their time will you get?

How much might the course cost you?

How are students selected – are you sure you’ll get in?

What are most students writing …

… and a few other things!

Grab a beverage and come on over.

And if you’ve taken a creative writing degree yourself – or considered it and decided not to – do share your experiences in the comments here. Also, post any questions you’d like us to tackle. If they’re not in one of the interviews, we can gather them into a special at the end. 

The writer’s persona in the narrative, MFA courses and Englishness – interview at Rain Taxi

How much should a writer’s personality show in a book? Some authors keep themselves out of the narrative voice, even in a personal book such as a memoir. Others colour every page with their sensibilities and personality, even if they’re writing fiction. This is just one of the questions I’m discussing today in the literary magazine Rain Taxi.

You might recognise my interviewer – Garry Craig Powell, who has been a guest on The Undercover Soundtrack (he put Phil Collins songs to unforgettable and cheeky use). Garry has also taught creative writing at university level, so that’s another discussion we have – are these courses useful, necessary, a hindrance, something else? What about journalism – when is that a good start for a fiction author?

And then there’s Englishness. What is that? Well, it could be a quality of restraint – when saying less means more. It might also be a sense of Elysian yearning for an emblematically romantic world, including the tradition of stories about remarkable houses. We’re trying to thrash it out. Do come over, and bring tea.