Main Campus Traditional Program

Consists of workshops in chosen genres, culminating in a final project (the master’s thesis or manuscript) that showcases the writer’s cultivated talents, in the form of a poetry collection, novel, memoir, screenplay, or full-length play. The M.F.A. requires students to major in one genre but encourages them to explore the other genres as well, allowing for creative movement within disciplines. Structure and focus in screenwriting and playwriting can also be applied to fiction and nonfiction, and lyricism and metaphor in poetry can also enhance description and dialogue in the other genres, for example. Students can also engage in course work in varied areas of directing and acting, in film history and literature, in literary criticism and translation, with supplemental courses selected from departments such as Comparative Literature and Foreign Languages, English, Hispanic Studies, and Media and 213 / Programs and Courses awarded for only one of CWPA 214 or TFDP 114. Barr

CWPA 227 Theories of the Modern Theatre (4) Seminar, 4 hours. Prerequisite(s): graduate standing or consent of instructor. Examines the major theories underlying twentieth-century theatre practice. Emphasizes the wide range of styles in modern theatre, including realism, symbolism, expressionism, surrealism, ab- surdism, Epic Theatre, and Theatre of Cruelty.

CWPA 230 Creative Nonfiction (4) Workshop, 3 hours; extra writing and reading, 3 hours. Prerequisite(s): graduate standing or consent of instructor; consent of program chair is required for students with credit for CWLR 211N, CWLR 212N, CWLR 221N, or CWLR 222N. A formal study of contemporary creative nonfiction. Emphasizes style, structure, and form. Focuses on the production of original work. Course is repeatable to a maximum of 20 units.

CWPA 231 Directing for Writers (4) Seminar, 3 hours; extra reading, 1 hour; outside research, 1 hour; written work, 1 hour. Prerequisite(s): graduate standing or consent of instructor. An examination of the theory and practice of directing for the stage. Enables writers to better understand how to produce their own work and to interact more effectively with directors.

CWPA 246 Special Topics in Fiction (4) Seminar, 3 hours; extra reading, 3 hours; term paper, 1 hour. Prerequisite(s): graduate standing. Explores various movements and themes in literature. Course is repeat- able as content changes to a maximum of 8 units.

CWPA 250 Theory for Writers (4) Workshop, 3 hours; outside research, 3 hours. Prerequisite(s): graduate standing or consent of instructor. A survey of literary theory designed especially for creative writers. Focuses on aspects of various theories that might be useful for creative work. Involves a close reading of theoretical texts with a strong emphasis on issues of form.

CWPA 251 Hollywood and the Novel: The Transforma- tion of Fiction into Film (4) Lecture, 2 hours; screening, 1 hour; extra reading, 2 hours; outside research, 2 hours; written work, 1 hour. Prerequisite(s): graduate standing. Explores the transformation of novels into screenplays and films. Examines four novels and their corresponding screenplays and films. Focuses on differences in style, content, and format. Course is re- peatable as content changes to a maximum of 8 units.

CWPA 252 (E-Z) Theory and Craft of Writing (4) Semi- nar, 3 hours; outside research, 2 hours; extra reading, 1-2 hours. Prerequisite(s): graduate standing; consent of program chair is required for students with credit for a segment of CWLR 201 (E-Z) or a segment of CWLR 202 (E-Z). Analyzes writing techniques, structures, and approaches to the craft in traditional, contem- porary, and avant-garde literary works. E. Fiction; F. Poetry; G. Nonfiction; I. Playwriting; J. Screenwriting; K. First Person. Each segment is repeatable to a maximum of 8 units.

CWPA 253 Stories as Collections (4) Seminar, 3 hours; extra reading, 3 hours. Prerequisite(s): graduate standing in Creative Writing and Writing for the Performing Arts. An analysis of the order, shape, and structure of story collections to aid in an appreciation of characters, conflicts, and themes. Course is repeat- able as content changes to a maximum of 8 units.

CWPA 255 The Graphic Novel (4) Seminar, 2 hours; studio, 2 hours; extra reading, 1.5 hours; outside research, 1.5 hours. Prerequisite(s): graduate standing. An in-depth consideration of the historical development and craft of graphic novels. Examines the intellectual, literary, and artistic evolution of this narrative form.

CWPA 256 Contemporary Literature of the Middle East (4) Seminar, 3 hours; extra reading, 3 hours; term paper, 1 hour. Prerequisite(s): graduate standing. An overview of contemporary literature from the Middle Course Requirements

• 1. Six low residency genre workshop courses.

• 2. Six low residency literature, poetry, and film

seminars.

• 3. Six low residency cross genre workshops.

• 4. Thesis or manuscript. In the areas of

playwriting and screenwriting, the final written project is a full-length play of two or three acts (90–120 pages) or screenplay or teleplay (approximately 120 pages). In the areas of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction, the final written project is a poetry collection (approximately 60 pages), novel, short story collection, essay collection, memoir or full- length nonfiction work (between 100-200 pages). Each student is paired with three faculty members who serve as the thesis advisor(s).

• 5. One unit Professional Fundamentals Course.

Normative Time to Degree 7 quarters