Creative Writing (ENCW)
The Creative Writing Program offers students the opportunity to focus their study on the creation of literary texts through workshops in poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction. Immersed in the study of the literary tradition, students will practice craft and technique, develop voice and style and gain exposure to a wide and diverse set of voices in contemporary literature as inspiration for their own work. The program partners with the Stadler Center for Poetry & Literary Arts to provide a diverse reading series and a vibrant slate of writers in residence, as well as internships on campus, thereby enhancing connections with living writers and enabling students to apply their skills beyond the classroom.
In creative writing courses, students synthesize conceptual, formal, aesthetic and technical elements resulting in the creation of works of art. Creative writing courses also involve the study of literary writing with a strong emphasis on contemporary texts and diverse voices. Group workshops and individual conferences support the writing process, and at the same time teach techniques of writing in prose and in poetry. Workshops give students frequent practice in articulating their critical ideas in relation to the work of their peers. The additional literary studies and film courses required for the major broaden students’ understanding of the literary tradition and storytelling models. Seminar courses build oral communication skills through discussion leadership and/or formal presentation to the class, while many creative writing courses require performances in the form of students reading from their own work. Students gain information literacy in creative writing courses through writerly research on a wide variety of subjects, through required attendance at readings, and through virtual discussions and online discussion blogs. They navigate the landscape of the current literary world in the library and online as a way of gathering information on published writers, and to eventually submit their own work for publication. Creative writing majors learn to engage as ethical literary citizens through courses that build awareness of themselves as active, thoughtful participants in the literary community.
Students electing the creative writing major will take a minimum of nine courses as follows:
| One 100-level or 200-level Creative Writing course | 1 | |
| Three 200-level Creative Writing courses (at least one in poetry and one in prose) | 3 | |
| Two 300-level Creative Writing courses 1 | 2 | |
| One Literary Ethics & Citizenship ENCW course 2 | 1 | |
| Two English department electives at the 200 level or above (one of which must be ENFS or ENLS) | 2 | |
| An approved Culminating Experience 3 | ||
| One of the nine courses in the major must be a course designated as satisfying a Racial & Ethnic Diversity requirement. 4 | ||
- 1
ENCW 302, ENCW 303 and ENCW 304 are repeatable if taken with different instructors. Therefore, a student may take the same 300-level seminar twice (with different instructors) as a way of fulfilling the 300-level creative writing requirements for the major.
- 2
For a current list of Literary Ethics & Citizenship ENCW courses, please see the English department website.
- 3
To complete the Creative Writing Culminating Experience, students must satisfy either of the following two requirements:
1. Write a senior thesis or honors thesis (a process which must have begun in your junior year per the Program Guidelines for thesis work).2. Submit a creative writing portfolio per these guidelines:
Submit a portfolio of (a) 25-30 pages of your best work in prose (fiction and/or nonfiction); (b) 10-15 pages of poetry or (c) 20-30 pages of poetry and prose. Write an opening statement (two pages, single-spaced) about where you drew inspiration; what writers influenced you and how they influenced you; what craft elements you most improved upon during the course of your studies here; and how you see your work growing in the future. The work in the portfolio should not be new work, rather, a combination of work already produced over the course of your years at Bucknell and already read by the creative writing faculty. The portfolio should be submitted to your adviser for review. Your adviser will share the portfolio with the entire program faculty.
- 4
For a current list of Racial & Ethnic Diversity courses, please see the English department website.
The Creative Writing Minor will consist of five courses distributed as follows:
Creative Writing Minor
| One 100-level or 200-level Creative Writing Course | 1 | |
| One (additional) 200-level Creative Writing course | 1 | |
| One 300-level Creative Writing seminar | 1 | |
| One Literary Ethics & Citizenship ENCW course | 1 | |
| One English Department elective (must be ENFS or ENLS) | 1 | |
Majors in Creative Writing will be able to:
1. Read a variety of texts from diverse literary traditions and respond to their aesthetic, social and/or cultural implications; (1, 3, 4, 6)
2. Write in multiple literary genres, developing craft and technique, voice, style and a creative identity while deepening a sense of subject matter. (1, 2, 3, 7)
3. Articulate effectively, in written and oral critiques, insights about peer work in progress. (1, 6, 7, 9)
4. Engage with the literary community beyond the classroom. (1, 2, 5, 9)
Numbers in parentheses reflect related Educational Goals of Bucknell University.
Courses
ENCW 101. Creative Writing. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3
Introduction to creative writing through the reading and writing of poetry and prose (fiction or creative nonfiction). Prerequisite: seniors by permission of the instructor.
ENCW 102. Writing Fiction. 1 Credit.
Offered Occasionally; Lecture hours:3
In this introduction to writing fiction workshop, students will read and discuss contemporary and classic texts with a writer’s eye. Completing fiction exercises and revisions as well as responding to one another’s work, they will use the techniques and habits of successful writers to enhance their own writing and creativity.
ENCW 103. Writing Nonfiction. 1 Credit.
Offered Occasionally; Lecture hours:3
In this introduction to creative nonfiction, students will read and discuss nonfiction essays in a variety of subgenres—memoir, art and culture, nature, science, travel, personal reflection, opinion. The course pursues the goals of enhanced creativity while learning the adaptable resources of the creative nonfiction essay. Seniors by permission of instructor.
ENCW 104. Writing Poetry. 1 Credit.
Offered Occasionally; Lecture hours:3
In this introductory course in writing poetry, students will read and discuss poems with a writer’s eye. Completing poetry exercises and revisions as well as responding to one another’s work, they will build their own skills and expand their ideas of what poems can do. Seniors by permission of instructor.
ENCW 112. Writing Fiction: Black Writers. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3
In this introductory creative writing course, students will read and discuss short fiction by Black women writers. They will be exposed to a range of genres and learn to read like writers. They will also complete fiction exercises and respond to one another’s work.
ENCW 1NT. Creative Writing Non-traditional Study. .5-1 Credits.
Offered Fall, Spring, Summer; Lecture hours:Varies,Other:Varies
Non-traditional study in English. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.
ENCW 202. Fiction Workshop. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3
Principles of writing fiction, with constant practice. Designed for students planning to concentrate or minor in creative writing. Preference given to juniors, sophomores, and first-year students. Prerequisite: seniors by permission of the instructor.
ENCW 203. Creative Nonfiction Workshop. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3
Theory and practice of creative nonfiction, including travel writing, memoir, and other forms. Designed for students planning to concentrate or minor in creative writing. Preference given to juniors, sophomores, and first-year students. Prerequisite: seniors by permission of the instructor.
ENCW 204. Poetry Workshop. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3; Repeatable
Principles of writing poetry, with constant practice. Designed for students planning to concentrate or minor in creative writing. Preference given to juniors, sophomores, and first-year students. Prerequisite: seniors by permission of the instructor.
ENCW 205. Screenwriting Workshop. 1 Credit.
Offered Occasionally; Lecture hours:3
Principles of screenwriting with constant practice. Designed for students interested in creative writing or Film/Media Studies.
ENCW 210. Special Topic in Creative Writing. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3; Repeatable
Studies in such topics as prosody, stylistics, characterization, or narrative theory. Course emphasizes formal or structural elements within particular genres and an appreciation of craft from a writer's perspective. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.
ENCW 211. Topics: Writing Foreign Places. 1 Credit.
Offered Occasionally; Lecture hours:3
This course in the reading and writing of personal narrative and lyric essays about foreign places is designed for students interested in writing out of experiences of travel and/or other kinds of cultural displacement. Each student will define "foreign" in relation to him or herself.
ENCW 212. Literary Arts Administration and Editing. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3
Focused on literary arts administration and editing, this course is particularly useful for students interested in careers in the world of arts administration and/or publishing. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.
ENCW 220. Comedy and Satire Workshop. 1 Credit.
Offered Occasionally; Lecture hours:3
Students will explore satire and humor in fiction through the work of comic writers, including Kurt Vonnegut, George Saunders, and Donald Barthelme. The focus will be on analyzing craft (i.e. hyperbole, understatement, the surreal) and on employing these elements in exercises, stories, and class workshops.
ENCW 221. Topics: Short Short Fiction. 1 Credit.
Offered Occasionally; Lecture hours:3
Developing a sense of the foundational elements of short form fiction through reading and discussion of a variety of American and international writers, students will challenge conventions as they draft their own short form fiction and respond to one another’s work.
ENCW 222. Topics: Writing Culture in Fiction. 1 Credit.
Offered Occasionally; Lecture hours:3
Students will be able to produce fictional work dealing with various aspects of their own culture, and with various aspects of cultures outside of their own, both with an eye to social consequence. Questions that will be considered: What constitutes a culture? What are its different manifestations in life?.
ENCW 230. Topics: Writing Nature. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3
This nonfiction course explores writing about nature in a wide cultural and historical range of traditions with special attention to the ways in which human ideas about nature are inscribed in language and literary forms. Students will produce a portfolio of their own nature writing.
ENCW 231. Environmental Writing. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3
This is a course in creative nonfiction focused on writing about the environment. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.
ENCW 232. Topics: Literary Journalism. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3
Literary journalists engage the world via fact-based methods including interview, research, and first-hand observation. Using unique personal perspectives, they write in-depth, non-fiction stories employing both narrative and essayistic techniques. Students should aim to write with immediacy via vivid storytelling, while also placing events and experiences within broader cultural contexts.
ENCW 233. Writing the Anthropocene. 1 Credit.
Offered Occasionally; Lecture hours:3
This is a course in creative nonfiction writing devoted to the cultural and environmental significance of the Anthropocene and the contemporary response to sustainability issues raised by human impacts on the global environment.
ENCW 237. Internship. 1 Credit.
Offered Both Fall and Spring; Lecture hours:Varies,Other:4; Repeatable
Two competitive internships are offered: Stadler Center Internship provides practical experience in and insight into arts management; West Branch Internship provides practical experience in and insight into literary publishing. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.
ENCW 240. Ecopoetics. 1 Credit.
Offered Spring Semester Only; Lecture hours:3
An exploration of poetry as site-specific ecological practice. Intended for students interested in both Creative Writing and Environmental Studies. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor. Crosslisted as ENST 227.
ENCW 241. Topics: Poetry, Mind, Nature. 1 Credit.
Offered Occasionally; Lecture hours:3
In the reading and writing of poetry that observes the natural world explores the relationship between such poetry and the human imagination. The course involves workshops as well as fieldwork, which provides material for poems and increases students' ability to identify local flora and fauna. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.
ENCW 242. Long Poems & Sequences Workshop. 1 Credit.
Offered Occasionally; Lecture hours:3
Students will read and discuss a variety of long poems and poetic sequences as a way of exploring various structures and subjects for the two long poems or sequences they will write and workshop over the course of the semester. Some degree of comfort with poetic process is expected.
ENCW 250. The Writing World. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3; Repeatable
Students will discover and engage with the Creative Writing community at Bucknell (as well as with the greater writing community) through a community- and career-focused sequence of practical assignments, culminating in a group project in which students will identify a local need and design an event to address it.
ENCW 2NT. Creative Writing Non-traditional Study. 1 Credit.
Offered Fall, Spring, Summer; Lecture hours:Varies,Other:3; Repeatable
Non-traditional study in Creative Writing. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.
ENCW 302. Advanced Fiction Workshop. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3; Repeatable
Advanced workshop in the writing of fiction. Prerequisites: Any 200-level Creative Writing (ENCW) course in creative nonfiction or fiction and permission of the instructor.
ENCW 303. Advanced Creative Nonfiction Workshop. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3; Repeatable
Advanced workshop in the writing of creative nonfiction. Prerequisites: Any 200-level Creative Writing (ENCW) course in creative nonfiction or fiction and permission of the instructor.
ENCW 304. Advanced Poetry Workshop. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3; Repeatable
Advanced workshop in the writing of poetry. Prerequisites: Any 200-level Creative Writing (ENCW) course in poetry and permission of the instructor.
ENCW 312. Black Sci-Fi Workshop. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3
In this advanced workshop, students will read and discuss speculative short stories, novellas, and novels by Black writers. They will practice reading like writers and respond critically to their peers’ work. Students will produce and revise one full-length story, or the first chapter of a novel/novella.
ENCW 319. Individual Projects in Creative Writing. .5-1 Credits.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:Varies,Other:Varies; Repeatable
Individual special projects supervised by instructor. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.
ENCW 323. Writing the Novel. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:3; Repeatable
Students will produce the first draft of a novel or section thereof. The first half of the semester will emphasize composition; the second, revision. Students will read a variety of novels and speak with authors. Prerequisite: any 200-level ENCW course in creative nonfiction or fiction and permission of the instructor.
ENCW 379. Senior Thesis. 1 Credit.
Offered Spring Semester Only; Lecture hours:Varies,Other:3; Repeatable
The writing of a scholarly or creative departmental senior thesis. Students must confer with and submit a proposal to an adviser prior to registering for the thesis. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.
ENCW 380. Honors Thesis. 1 Credit.
Offered Either Fall or Spring; Lecture hours:Varies,Other:3; Repeatable
The writing of a scholarly or creative honors thesis. Students must confer with and submit a proposal to a departmental adviser and to the University Honors Council for approval. Prerequisites: senior status and permission of the instructor.
ENCW 3NT. Creative Writing Non-traditional Study. 1-1.5 Credits.
Offered Fall, Spring, Summer; Lecture hours:Varies,Other:Varies
Non-traditional study in Creative Writing. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.
Faculty
Professors: Robert A. Rosenberg, G.C. Waldrep III (Creative Writing Director)
Associate Professors: Christopher Camuto, Brian Hauser, K. A. Hays, Joseph Scapellato
Assistant Professors: Elinam Agbo, Bix Gabriel
Visiting Assistant Professor: James Buck