I want to apply to the Creative Writing concentration. How do I do that? Interested students are required to take one lower-division workshop at UCSC before applying to the creative writing concentration; however, students are strongly encouraged to complete two lower-division workshops (at least one at UCSC) before applying. Students normally apply to the Creative Writing concentration late in the sophomore year or during the junior year. The lower-division courses are Introduction to Creative Writing (LTCR 10), Intermediate Fiction (LTCR 52), and Intermediate Poetry (LTCR 53).

Applications are available at the Literature Department office or on-line. Return the completed application to the Literature Department by 3:00pm on the second Friday of any quarter. Applicants will be notified on the third Friday of the quarter by 6:00pm (via electronic mail) whether they were accepted into the concentration.

What are you looking for in the application? We want your best writing. By best, we mean work that best represents your writing strengths and interests. Excerpts of longer works are fine. Usually it’s better to hand in two different pieces of fiction or more than one poem, so we can get a sense of your range. If you do experimental work, it might be helpful to put the work in context in the prefatory note.

If you are doing genre work (mystery, romance, fantasy, etc.) we prefer it to be playing with the genre in some way—working against the standard form through language, character, or plot. We want people who like to read. Let us know what your favorite books are and why.

Because at UCSC creative writing is an academic concentration within a Literature department, we are looking for students who are excellent readers, editors, writers and seminar participants. Narrative evaluations and grades from your UCSC creative writing courses play a crucial role in your acceptance into the concentration. Nearly all students accepted into the concentration have received outstanding evaluations for their beginning and intermediate courses. If you think your grade and narrative evaluation don’t reflect your abilities, you may explain that in the accompanying note. Alternately, students may take another creative writing course in order to strengthen their work.

What if I don’t get in? We always tell students that getting rejected is an initiation into the writing life. Writers get rejected all the time. Nobody liked Moby Dick. Many writers did not study creative writing in college. If you want to apply again, take an intermediate or another introductory class. Read contemporary fiction or poetry that you admire.Meanwhile, begin working toward another concentration in the Literature major or another major, in case you don’t get into Creative Writing.

How do I get into Intermediate Fiction (LTCR 52) or Intermediate Poetry (LTCR 53)? Bring three to seven pages of fiction or three to five poems to the first class meeting. You can’t pre-register. The instructor will review the submissions and select 22 students; a list of students accepted into the course will be posted the next day.

PLEASE NOTE: We ask all students applying to Intermediate Fiction or Poetry who have taken an Introduction to Creative Writing class (LTCR 10) to bring a copy of their introduction grade and narrative evaluation to submit along with their writing sample. You may ask your LTCR 10 instructor for an unofficial evaluation if they have not yet submitted an official one.

How do instructors choose students for Intermediate Creative Writing Classes? Here's what instructors said:

1) I’m looking primarily for sophomores and juniors who have excellent evaluations from their intro teachers or junior transfers who have taken cw before, and for students who want to be in the cw concentration. Students who are already admitted to the concentration are not accepted to the intermediate class. The goal of this class is to learn the craft of writing fiction through reading, writing and workshopping. I expect students who are applying to Intermediate to be familiar with the basic terms of literary analysis and to be able to use them correctly; genre, theme, plot, dramatic arc, form, simile, metaphor, point of view, character, narration, style, voice, tone, mood, symbols, imagery etc. I look for students who like to read, write and constructively discuss the work of their peers. I also look for students who have something special in their submission, an intriguing idea, a voice, a sense of what well-crafted means in their own work. I look for strong characters, compelling dialogue and images that stay with me once I’ve put the story down. I don’t like poor punctuation, careless grammar, fantasy fight scenes that describe every swish of every sword or stream of consciousness that never develops. I am also not a fan of over-used cliches. I believe taste in writing is arbitrary, but good writing stands out. I look for students who can bring something original and creative to the group and students who are not afraid to take risks to develop their cw abilities.

2) As far as choosing students for Intermediate, I don't expect them to be accomplished poets, but I hope they have a few basics under their belt: I look for a sense of the line. It doesn't have to be a sophisticated sense, but the students should at least know that the line is a poetic unit that has to be addressed. I hope to see a sense of rhythm, and I would trust that the poets have a passing knowledge of meter, and have at least been introduced to iambs, trochees, dactyls, anapests, spondees, etc. I look for poems that don't abuse clichés. I hope to see something beyond mere self indulgence. I look for poetry that isn't simply gibberish. I look for epiphanies that seem genuine and unforced. I look for poetry that's serious and playful and aware of its own music. Obviously this is a bit subjective, but there isn't a check list. I always have my eye open for a spark; something that tells me that the student is ready to take his or her writing seriously.

3) Some evidence of thinking about the poem as a whole unit. This can take many forms, but particularly work that shows consciousness of different parts of the poem working together: sound, image, narrative (if applicable). - Some attention to language itself (again, sound, wordplay,rhythm) other than the use of language solely as a means to tell a story. - Attention to form and a variety of formal choices. I was drawn to work that did not only default to justified left or (a favorite) center page form. So for example, in addition to those choices, a student may include a prose poem, a traditional form, an invented constraint. - Attention to line breaks. - While the majority of work is about the self, I was drawn to submissions that included work that explored other topics as well. - When they turned in their submissions, I asked the students to state what they wanted out of the class. I had over 40 applications, so I chose people who wanted to be in the major and/or who said something about learning more about poetry and poetry writing. I didn't take students who wanted only to express themselves or some who wanted to write song lyrics. In a perfect world, I would take everyone but because the class is very focused on close-readings, critical reading and writing (I think of the workshop this way too) along with the poetry, I chose students with some indication of approaching poetry as a craft.

4) Language. An indication that the writer is paying attention to language, ideally the writer has given creative, passionate attention to words, grammar and sentences. If there are obvious clichés or typos on the first page, that’s not good. Energy. This can come from the subtext, the conflict or tension, the voice or the language. Narrative tension. A reason to turn the page.that could be humor, voice, language, story, but I’m not captivated by violence unless something else is clearly going on too. Voice is really important. I’m looking primarily for sophomore and juniors who have excellent evals from their intro teachers or junior transfers who have taken cw before, and for students who want to be in the cw concentration. For students who like to read.

What is Methods and Materials (LTCR 170)? Methods and Materials is a class that acts as a bridge between creative and critical work. You read published work on a certain topic or genre, and respond both creatively and critically. Topics may include storytelling, memoir, the serial poem, historical fiction, or film and poetry.

Why am I required to go to the Living Writers Reading Series if I am taking a creative writing course? The creative writing program at UCSC is small, and we want to expose you to a wide range of writers, to their different styles, preoccupations, writing processes, and to the ways they are writers in the world. (Is the writer a professor, a postal carrier or a journalist?) We also want to create a community of writers at UCSC, and connect that community to the larger writing world.

What do I do at a reading? Stay awake. Keep your senses open. Notice how the writers read their work, how they present themselves, what they emphasize. Take notes, write down phrases, questions, images, things you don’t like and things you do. Ask questions about the writing or the writing life during the question and answer session. If you start daydreaming, it’s okay, but come back to the present. Many people don’t care about poetry and fiction, but in that auditorium at that moment, you are surrounded by people who do. Don’t talk during the reading or leave in the middle. Those are real people speaking, and they are working hard at something they care about—show them respect.

Why do we have to read in a writing class? Reading is the best way to learn to write. Reading is a fairly magical process in which what you read goes into your head and influences the way you write. The more carefully you read, the more you learn about the ways language, form, rhythm, and voice work together to create a text.

I want to work on a literary magazine. How do I do that? Contact the creative writing intern for guidance in your search for work experience on a literary magazine or newspaper. Also, you can start a magazine if you'd like; the intern can help you and do publicity as well. Ultimately, if you are to be on the staff of a magazine, it is at the discretion of the magazine editors.