I sometimes hear people say that writing courses produce carbon-copy writers who know nothing about the publishing industry - writers whose work is bland, formulaic and self-absorbed.
Nonsense.
At least, in my experience.
I did an MA in Writing for Young People at Bath Spa Uni. All the tutors are publishing professionals and their aim is to help apprentice writers to become authors. And they’ve a pretty good strike rate too, with many writers going on to get agents, publish work or find jobs in the industry.
So what exactly does the course offer that you couldn’t get working alone? I’d say that the course structure is 50% about developing your craft and 50% about developing business sense.
Workshops and one-on-one meetings with a tutor are intended to help you turn an idea into a manuscript.
Guest lecturers and the publishing module give you advice on turning the manuscript into a published book.
My first novel, How Kirsty Jenkins Stole the Elephant, went through this process (kicking and screaming at some points, certainly). Seven other students and two tutors helped me beat it into shape. They looked at areas like story arc, word choice and my submission letter. We talked about its place in the market. A visiting speaker became my agent and sold it in the month before I graduated.
The course provided a hothouse atmosphere for learning. Perhaps I might have been published eventually without the knowledge I gained there, but it would have been a much rougher road.
I’m not saying the course was perfect – after the occasional lecture you came out wondering whether it was worth the tuition fees (a quick bit of maths would give you the rate per lecture which was pretty high!). There were also times when group critiques hurt more than the dentist’s chair.
But for the camaraderie, the inspiration and the pressure to get your behind in the chair and write, it was fantastic. I still meet with my tutor group, two years on. They beat my latest novel, How Ali Ferguson Saved Houdini, into shape.
Was I just lucky with my choice of course? I’d love to hear your point of view.
Elen Caldecott
About Elen: Elen Caldecott’s debut novel How Kirsty Jenkins Stole the Elephant was shortlsited for the Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize. Her second book How Ali Ferguson Saved Houdini was published by Bloomsbury in July. Elen lives in Bristol with her husband Simon.
Go to Elen Caldecott's own website »
Read more about Elen Caldecott at the Bloomsbury Publishing website »
Interesting.
I'll be off to uni in September to do a BA in Creative Writing, mainly because I wanted a degree in something I would really enjoy doing, but also so I could meet other writers and share the novel I'm working on to my tutors, who are all published authors. I can only hope my course is as effective and helpful as yours was.