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Craft fiction, memoir, and narrative non-fiction at degree level
Online or on campus
Creative writing is learned through practice, feedback, and reading widely. Brigant's MA offers fiction, memoir, and narrative non-fiction workshops with small cohorts and faculty who are published authors. You will produce a portfolio of polished work, study craft through published exemplars, and learn publishing pathways including agents, self-publishing, and digital media. Edinburgh's literary heritage informs the programme ethos. MA Creative Writing is taught as one award, not a list of unrelated modules. The published length is 24 months, and the credit total is 36. Students move from Fiction Workshop I through Fiction Workshop I; Reading as a Writer; Narrative Non-Fiction; Poetry & Hybrid Forms; Fiction Workshop II; Memoir & Life Writing, and finish on Major Creative Project. Each course has a question, a method, and a submission. In this field, students apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result. Reading is a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. The artefact a marker expects is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. The award is built so that a graduate can do the following in practice: Produce a portfolio of revised creative work Give and receive constructive workshop critique Analyse narrative structure, voice, and point of view Teaching assumes the student can read a source, attempt a problem before the seminar, and revise after feedback. Attendance at live seminars is part of the design. The capstone or final course must use the methods of the earlier courses; a project that ignores them does not pass. The pages for each course name the topics that are examined. Those topics are the syllabus. A brochure line is not a substitute for them.
Faculty spotlight
Novelist Professor Sofia Ramirez leads fiction workshops; poet Dr. Emma Laurent supervises memoir and hybrid forms.
Study online
Online tuition is free. Online examinations are free. There is no exam fee for online study.
On-campus study
Prefer to learn at our Edinburgh campus? Campus tuition and campus examinations are charged. The published campus price is on each programme page.
| Code | Course | Credits · hours |
|---|---|---|
| CW501 | Fiction Workshop I Fiction Workshop I (CW501) is a 3-credit course on MA Creative Writing, with 30 notional learning hours. By the end, students can apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result, using Fiction Workshop I as the working context rather than a generic management example. The course is taught in three movements. First, students establish the terms and the decision the course is about. Second, they apply the method to a case, dataset, text, or design and compare it with a weaker alternative. Third, they revise the work after feedback and state what the conclusion cannot support. Preparation uses a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. Seminar time is for the decision, not for reading the materials aloud. Assessment is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. A pass requires a clear method, evidence a marker can check, and an explicit limit. Credit is not awarded for summary alone.
| 3 · 30 h |
| CW502 | Reading as a Writer Reading as a Writer (CW502) is a 3-credit course on MA Creative Writing, with 30 notional learning hours. By the end, students can apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result, using Reading as a Writer as the working context rather than a generic management example. The course is taught in three movements. First, students establish the terms and the decision the course is about. Second, they apply the method to a case, dataset, text, or design and compare it with a weaker alternative. Third, they revise the work after feedback and state what the conclusion cannot support. Preparation uses a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. Seminar time is for the decision, not for reading the materials aloud. Assessment is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. A pass requires a clear method, evidence a marker can check, and an explicit limit. Credit is not awarded for summary alone.
| 3 · 30 h |
| CW503 | Narrative Non-Fiction Narrative Non-Fiction (CW503) is a 3-credit course on MA Creative Writing, with 30 notional learning hours. By the end, students can apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result, using Narrative Non-Fiction as the working context rather than a generic management example. The course is taught in three movements. First, students establish the terms and the decision the course is about. Second, they apply the method to a case, dataset, text, or design and compare it with a weaker alternative. Third, they revise the work after feedback and state what the conclusion cannot support. Preparation uses a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. Seminar time is for the decision, not for reading the materials aloud. Assessment is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. A pass requires a clear method, evidence a marker can check, and an explicit limit. Credit is not awarded for summary alone.
| 3 · 30 h |
| CW504 | Poetry & Hybrid Forms Poetry & Hybrid Forms (CW504) is a 3-credit course on MA Creative Writing, with 30 notional learning hours. By the end, students can apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result, using Poetry & Hybrid Forms as the working context rather than a generic management example. The course is taught in three movements. First, students establish the terms and the decision the course is about. Second, they apply the method to a case, dataset, text, or design and compare it with a weaker alternative. Third, they revise the work after feedback and state what the conclusion cannot support. Preparation uses a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. Seminar time is for the decision, not for reading the materials aloud. Assessment is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. A pass requires a clear method, evidence a marker can check, and an explicit limit. Credit is not awarded for summary alone.
| 3 · 30 h |
| Code | Course | Credits · hours |
|---|---|---|
| CW505 | Fiction Workshop II Fiction Workshop II (CW505) is a 3-credit course on MA Creative Writing, with 30 notional learning hours. By the end, students can apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result, using Fiction Workshop II as the working context rather than a generic management example. The course is taught in three movements. First, students establish the terms and the decision the course is about. Second, they apply the method to a case, dataset, text, or design and compare it with a weaker alternative. Third, they revise the work after feedback and state what the conclusion cannot support. Preparation uses a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. Seminar time is for the decision, not for reading the materials aloud. Assessment is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. A pass requires a clear method, evidence a marker can check, and an explicit limit. Credit is not awarded for summary alone.
| 3 · 30 h |
| CW506 | Memoir & Life Writing Memoir & Life Writing (CW506) is a 3-credit course on MA Creative Writing, with 30 notional learning hours. By the end, students can apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result, using Memoir & Life Writing as the working context rather than a generic management example. The course is taught in three movements. First, students establish the terms and the decision the course is about. Second, they apply the method to a case, dataset, text, or design and compare it with a weaker alternative. Third, they revise the work after feedback and state what the conclusion cannot support. Preparation uses a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. Seminar time is for the decision, not for reading the materials aloud. Assessment is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. A pass requires a clear method, evidence a marker can check, and an explicit limit. Credit is not awarded for summary alone.
| 3 · 30 h |
| CW507 | Publishing & Author Career Publishing & Author Career (CW507) is a 3-credit course on MA Creative Writing, with 30 notional learning hours. By the end, students can apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result, using Publishing & Author Career as the working context rather than a generic management example. The course is taught in three movements. First, students establish the terms and the decision the course is about. Second, they apply the method to a case, dataset, text, or design and compare it with a weaker alternative. Third, they revise the work after feedback and state what the conclusion cannot support. Preparation uses a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. Seminar time is for the decision, not for reading the materials aloud. Assessment is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. A pass requires a clear method, evidence a marker can check, and an explicit limit. Credit is not awarded for summary alone.
| 3 · 30 h |
| CW508 | Literary Research Methods Literary Research Methods (CW508) is a 3-credit course on MA Creative Writing, with 30 notional learning hours. By the end, students can apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result, using Literary Research Methods as the working context rather than a generic management example. The course is taught in three movements. First, students establish the terms and the decision the course is about. Second, they apply the method to a case, dataset, text, or design and compare it with a weaker alternative. Third, they revise the work after feedback and state what the conclusion cannot support. Preparation uses a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. Seminar time is for the decision, not for reading the materials aloud. Assessment is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. A pass requires a clear method, evidence a marker can check, and an explicit limit. Credit is not awarded for summary alone.
| 3 · 30 h |
| Code | Course | Credits · hours |
|---|---|---|
| CW601 | Contemporary Literary Forms & Aesthetics Contemporary Literary Forms & Aesthetics (CW601) is a 3-credit course on MA Creative Writing, with 30 notional learning hours. By the end, students can apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result, using Contemporary Literary Forms & Aesthetics as the working context rather than a generic management example. The course is taught in three movements. First, students establish the terms and the decision the course is about. Second, they apply the method to a case, dataset, text, or design and compare it with a weaker alternative. Third, they revise the work after feedback and state what the conclusion cannot support. Preparation uses a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. Seminar time is for the decision, not for reading the materials aloud. Assessment is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. A pass requires a clear method, evidence a marker can check, and an explicit limit. Credit is not awarded for summary alone.
| 3 · 30 h |
| CW602 | Publishing Industry & Editorial Practice Publishing Industry & Editorial Practice (CW602) is a 3-credit course on MA Creative Writing, with 30 notional learning hours. By the end, students can apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result, using Publishing Industry & Editorial Practice as the working context rather than a generic management example. The course is taught in three movements. First, students establish the terms and the decision the course is about. Second, they apply the method to a case, dataset, text, or design and compare it with a weaker alternative. Third, they revise the work after feedback and state what the conclusion cannot support. Preparation uses a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. Seminar time is for the decision, not for reading the materials aloud. Assessment is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. A pass requires a clear method, evidence a marker can check, and an explicit limit. Credit is not awarded for summary alone.
| 3 · 30 h |
| CW603 | Major Creative Project Major Creative Project (CW603) is a 6-credit course on MA Creative Writing, with 60 notional learning hours. By the end, students can diagnose one organisation and carry a decision through to a recommendation, using Major Creative Project as the working context rather than a generic management example. The course is taught in three movements. First, students establish the terms and the decision the course is about. Second, they apply the method to a case, dataset, text, or design and compare it with a weaker alternative. Third, they revise the work after feedback and state what the conclusion cannot support. Preparation uses a case, a short financial extract, and a stakeholder note. Seminar time is for the decision, not for reading the materials aloud. Assessment is a consulting brief a manager could use. A pass requires a clear method, evidence a marker can check, and an explicit limit. Credit is not awarded for summary alone.
| 6 · 60 h |
Modules are assessed through a published mix of coursework, applied projects, and examinations. Exam windows are announced in advance so students in other time zones are not forced into overnight sittings. Alternative arrangements are available where documented.
The published duration is 24 months. Teaching language: English. Actual time-to-complete depends on mode and any recognised prior learning.
You may study this award fully online from your country, or — where published — on campus at Brigant. Online study does not require a student visa. Campus study may.
Degree tuition for this award is published as £0 / tuition-free on the online pathway. Examination or administrative fees may apply at checkout — never an annual tuition invoice. Check the Fees page for any extras.
Requirements are grouped on this page (academic, English, documents). Equivalent qualifications are considered. English may be waived after prior English-medium study.
Assessment is typically a mix of coursework, projects, and examinations. Doctoral awards include a thesis or dissertation and an oral examination. Details sit in the programme specification and module outlines.
Recognition of the award for local employment, professional licence, or ministry attestation is decided by your employer or regulator. University of Brigant publishes verification pages for certificates. We do not claim automatic equivalence in every country.
Start an application on this website. Progress is saved from the first step. Admissions: admissions@brigant.uk.
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