creative writing
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The Magic Building Where English Majors Work
A professor of undergraduate and graduate creative writing for twenty years, Cathy Day gives some practical advice for students at The Millions, admitting while English majors don’t work in a “magic building,” the degree does have some often overlooked benefits.
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Inside a Writer’s Head
New research reveals how a creative writer’s brain functions while writing. As it turns out, it might not be so different from a basketball player’s brain. The New York Times has the whole story.
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When The Writing Gets Tough
Over at Electric Literature, Joseph Rositano contemplates the relationship between writing and mental health. Though he admits that creative writing has been associated with “mental abnormality” for centuries (the number of writers who committed suicide isn’t small), it’s still difficult to explain…
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Irresistible Narrators and Riveting Scenes with Steve Almond
Rumpus columnist and friend Steve Almond is teaching two classes at the Grotto in San Francisco on July 19th! How to Write Riveting Scenes will investigate what it takes to keep readers on the edge of their seats, while How to…
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All Roads Lead to Writing
Over at The Millions, Rumpus contributor Nick Ripatrazone looks at the many and varied paths that bring writers to the profession and considers the benefits of time spent studying subjects other than creative writing: Although I have drifted toward the science…
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Creative Writing, Creative Careers
The two central myths are one, that literary citizenship is all about self-promotion, and two, that it’s connected deeply to the “marketplace.” In an interview for Ploughshares, Tasha Golden talks to “writing geek” Stephanie Vanderslice about teaching the business side of…
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Obsession and Humor in Writing
In early December, Rumpus columnist Steve Almond will teach writing classes at the SF Grotto. His December 7th class will focus on the idea of embracing one’s obsessions to jump-start good writing, avoiding the pitfalls of sentiment and self-absorption. On…
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Master of Feeling Ambivalent
There are a lot of people who have very strong feelings about MFA programs, but Blake Butler’s Vice piece “What I Remember from Getting an MFA in Creative Writing,” just sort of lays out the details and holds back on the…
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To Teach Or Not to Teach?
The ever-contentious subject of teaching creative writing is up for discussion. You can teach the elements, but there are always the “intangibles that cannot be taught.” Roxane Gay is inciting a discussion on HTMLGiant, laying some foundation for all of…