Creative Writing

Creative writing is the practice of making literature, engaging with the full range of literary forms: poetry, fiction, non-fiction, drama, and the many hybrid and experimental forms that sit between or across them. At university level, it combines the development of your own writing practice with the critical and literary knowledge to understand what you are doing and why, producing graduates who are both accomplished writers and thoughtful readers. The discipline takes craft seriously, recognising that while inspiration matters, the ability to revise, shape, and develop a piece of writing through multiple drafts is what separates professional writers from occasional ones.

At the University of Chichester, you will study creative writing over three years full-time, exploring the creative process from initial idea through to finished work. Workshops are central to the programme, giving you the experience of writing regularly, sharing work with peers, and receiving and giving feedback in a supportive and rigorous environment. You will also study the work of published writers across a range of forms and traditions, developing your critical awareness of how literature works and what makes particular choices effective.

The programme encourages you to find your own voice and to take creative risks in a context where experimentation is valued. The typical entry tariff is 120 UCAS points.

Creative writing graduates work as novelists, poets, short story writers, journalists, editors, copywriters, screenwriters, playwrights, and teachers. Many combine writing with other careers, particularly in education, publishing, journalism, or the arts, using the skills and discipline the degree develops in professional contexts that value clear, imaginative communication. Many also go on to postgraduate study in creative writing, often at programmes that provide further time and space to develop a specific project to publishable standard.