Creative Writing and English Literature

Creative writing and English literature is a pairing that captures the full arc of how literature works, from its creation to its critical reception, and studying both simultaneously means you are never far from the question of what good writing actually does and how it achieves its effects. Creative writing develops your ability to produce original work in fiction, poetry, drama and other forms, guided by workshop feedback and the development of your own voice. English literature trains you to read carefully, think critically and argue persuasively about how texts work, what they mean and what they reveal about the periods and cultures in which they were produced.

The University of East Anglia has one of the most distinguished creative writing programmes in the world, with a track record of producing published novelists, poets and playwrights that is unmatched in British higher education. This three-year full-time programme draws fully on that tradition, combining rigorous creative writing workshops with a serious literary education. The typical entry tariff is around 152 UCAS points.

You will read widely across the literary tradition, from early modern drama and poetry through nineteenth-century fiction to contemporary world literature, developing your ability to engage with texts from multiple critical and theoretical perspectives. The creative writing component places you in workshop settings where you produce original work in at least one literary form and receive detailed peer and tutor feedback aimed at developing your craft. UEA's emphasis on integrating the two modes of engagement, as practitioner and as critic, is one of the defining characteristics of its approach.

Graduates of creative writing and English literature programmes work across the full range of creative and cultural industries. Many publish their own fiction, poetry or non-fiction, often after developing manuscripts begun during their studies. Others work in literary agencies, publishing houses, arts organisations, journalism, broadcasting, scriptwriting, copywriting, education and arts administration.

The analytical and communication skills developed through close literary study make graduates attractive to a wide range of employers beyond the creative industries. Postgraduate study in creative writing, publishing, English literature, journalism or education is a well-supported option.