Creating Writing, MFA
Program Director: Elizabeth Knapp, Ph.D.; knapp@hood.edu; 301-696-3725
The Low-Residency Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing is a two-year, 48-credit program in Fiction or Poetry that involves three on-campus summer residencies and four remote mentorship semesters. Central to the philosophy of the low-residency model is the idea of balance—between writing and the demands of everyday life, between periods of solitude and social interaction—as well as the presence of a diverse and cohesive literary community. By the end of the program, students will have produced a book-length manuscript of fiction or poetry and will be beginning to submit and publish their work for publication.
ADMISSION REQUIRMENTS
To apply to the Low-Residency MFA in Creative Writing program, please submit the following to the Graduate School:
- A completed application.
- Official copies of all college transcripts.
- A 1,000-word essay in response to a book of fiction or poetry published within the last 10 years. The book you choose to write on must correspond to the genre for which you are applying (e.g., poetry applicants should write an essay in response to a poetry collection).
- A 500-word personal statement on what you hope to achieve from the program; your reading life and which authors have been especially important or influential to you as a writer; and your current writing projects.
- A creative writing sample in the genre for which you are applying. Fiction should be no more than 25 double-spaced pages of one or several stories, a portion of a novel, or a combination. If submitting a novel excerpt, please attach a brief plot synopsis. Poetry should be no more than 10 single-spaced pages, with no more than one poem per page.
Application Due Date:
Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until enrollment limits in each genre are reached. New cohorts will begin each June.
PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS
- Participation in three 10-day summer residencies, the second of which may be an optional three-week residency through the Prague Summer Program for Writers (18 credit hours)
- Completion of four mentorship semesters (16 credit hours)
- Completion of a course in literary publishing (2 credit hours)
- Completion of a substantive research paper of at least 25 pages written during the third mentorship semester (4 credit hours)
- Completion and presentation of a book-length creative thesis of professional quality (4 credit hours)
- Development and presentation of a one-hour craft lecture (4 credit hours)
- Evidence of broad reading in literature and contemporary letters, as demonstrated by a bibliography of at least 50 entries
The Residency Experience
The cornerstone of the Low-Residency MFA in Creative Writing is the intensive residency experience. For 10 days in June, students in the program will attend residencies on the Hood College campus, during which they participate in rigorous writing workshops and attend lectures, panels, and readings by permanent and guest faculty and graduating students. Residencies are designed to immerse students in activities and subjects central to the writing life and to foster a sense of community and fellowship with other writers; therefore, students are strongly encouraged to stay on campus in one of our newly renovated dorms for the duration of each residency.
At the core of the residency is the writing workshop, in which developing writers share their work for critique and provide commentary on the work of other members. Led by an accomplished writer in each genre, workshops meet daily in the mornings, and students are guaranteed an expert and detailed review of their work.
In the afternoons, faculty and graduating students present lectures and panels on a range of topics within literary history, theory, and practice, while evenings are devoted to literary readings. At the end of the residency period, students return to their individual writing lives reenergized and recommitted to the practice of writing. They then commence a period of concentrated reading and writing in the semester between residencies under the close guidance of a faculty mentor.
For the second residency, students have the option of attending the Prague Summer Program for Writers, the nation’s oldest study-abroad program for creative writers in the English language. Fees for the two-week program are equal to those for a 10-day on-campus residency. Students are responsible for their own airfare and meals, but breakfast is provided with program housing. Two fully funded teaching assistantships are available for each residency, one in fiction and one in poetry. Assistantships are competitive.
The Mentorship Semester
Along with the residency experience, literary mentorship is a hallmark of the Low-Residency MFA in Creative Writing. The mentorship semester is designed to help students develop close working relationships with experienced teachers and published authors who can direct them in all matters of literary craft, criticism, and publishing. As immersive experiences, the mentorship semesters also provide students with a solid foundation in literary history, theory, and practice, and students are expected to read broadly and deeply both within their genre and across genres.
Under the guidance of a faculty mentor, students produce original creative work while developing their own course of study in literary history, theory, and practice. At the beginning of each semester, students confer with their faculty mentor to create a reading list, along with a submission schedule for critical essays and original work. Throughout the semester, students submit to their faculty mentor packets of original fiction or poetry and critical essays. The faculty mentor then provides extensive feedback, including suggestions for revision and further reading. Participation in the residencies is required for enrollment in the mentorship semesters.
Program Requirements
Course Sequence
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Semester
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Courses
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First
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CW 500A: First Residency; CW 501F or CW 501P: Mentorship Semester I
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Second
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CW 502F or CW 502P: Mentorship Semester II; CW 505: Literary Publishing
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Third
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CW 500B: Second Residency (optional residency in Prague); CW 503F or 503P: Mentorship Semester III; CW 506: Research Project
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Fourth
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CW 504F or 504P: Mentorship Semester IV; CW 507: Creative Writing Thesis
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Final Residency
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CW 500C: Third Residency; CW 507: Oral Presentation
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Required Courses (48 Credits)
| CW 500A | Creative Writing First Residency | 6.0 |
| CW 500B | Creative Writing Second Residency | 6.0 |
| CW 500C | Creative Writing Third Residency | 6.0 |
| CW 501F | Mentorship Semester I Fiction | 4.0 |
| | or | |
| CW 501P | Mentorship Semester I Poetry | 4.0 |
| | | |
| CW 502F | Mentorship Semester II Fiction | 4.0 |
| | or | |
| CW 502P | Mentorship Semester II Poetry | 4.0 |
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| CW 503F | Mentorship Semester III Fiction | 4.0 |
| | or | |
| CW 503P | Mentorship Semester III Poetry | 4.0 |
| | | |
| CW 504F | Mentorship Semeter IV Fiction | 4.0 |
| | or | |
| CW 504P | Mentorship Semester IV Poetry | 4.0 |
| CW 505 | Literary Publishing | 2.0 |
| CW 506 | Research Project | 4.0 |
| CW 507 | Creative Writing Thesis | 4.0 |
| CW 508 | Oral Presentation | 4.0 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 64.0 |