top of page

The St. Arden School of Writing & Literature

  • 2 days ago
  • 4 min read

Bachelor of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and Literary Studies


Duration: 4 Years (8 Semesters)Workload: 15–18 hours/week of study + 5–10 hours/week writing practiceGoal: Train students not only to write books, but to think, observe, revise, and work like professional authors.


Philosophy


Writing isn't taught by inspiration alone. Great authors study:


  • Language

  • Literature

  • Psychology

  • Storytelling

  • Human behavior

  • History

  • Editing

  • Publishing

  • Business

  • Observation


This curriculum combines all of them.


YEAR 1 – FOUNDATIONS OF LANGUAGE AND STORY


"Learn to write before learning to publish."


Semester 1


ENGL 101 – English Grammar and Mechanics

Topics


  • Parts of speech

  • Sentence construction

  • Punctuation

  • Rhythm

  • Common grammar mistakes


Textbooks


  • The Elements of Style – Strunk & White

  • Dreyer's English – Benjamin Dreyer


Assignment


Rewrite poorly written paragraphs into polished prose.


CWRT 101 – Introduction to Creative Writing

Topics:


  • Showing vs telling

  • Scenes vs summaries

  • Conflict

  • POV basics


Read


  • Steering the Craft – Ursula Le Guin


Assignment


Write:

  • A 1000-word scene

  • Same scene from another POV


LITR 101 – Great Works of Literature I

Read:


  • Pride and Prejudice

  • To Kill a Mockingbird

  • The Great Gatsby

  • Jane Eyre


Focus:


  • Character

  • Theme

  • Voice


Assignment


Literary analysis essays.


OBSV 101 – Observation and Description

Topics:


  • Sensory writing

  • Body language

  • Voice

  • Environment


Exercise


Sit in a café and record:

  • 20 visual details

  • 10 sounds

  • 5 smells

  • People's movements


Semester 2


CWRT 102 – Character Creation

Topics


  • Character arcs

  • Internal conflict

  • Wants vs needs

  • Relationships


Required Books


  • Creating Character Arcs – K.M. Weiland

  • The Emotional Craft of Fiction – Donald Maass


Assignment


Create:


  • Protagonist dossier

  • Antagonist dossier

  • Relationship map


PSYC 101 – Psychology for Writers

Topics


  • Personality types

  • Trauma

  • Grief

  • Motivation


Read:


  • Man's Search for Meaning – Viktor Frankl


DIAL 101 – Dialogue and Voice

Read:


  • Dialogue – Robert McKee


Assignment:

Write a 3000-word chapter using dialogue without tags.


YEAR 2 – STORYTELLING AND NOVEL CONSTRUCTION


"Learn why stories work."


Semester 3


PLOT 201 – Plot Structure

Study


  • Three Act Structure

  • Hero's Journey

  • Save The Cat

  • Seven Point Structure


Books


  • Save The Cat Writes A Novel

  • Story – Robert McKee


Assignment


Outline a novel.


CHAR 201 – Advanced Character Development

Books


  • Story Genius – Lisa Cron


Topics


  • Core wounds

  • Misbeliefs

  • Internal arcs


Assignment

50-page character bible.


DESC 201 – Descriptive Writing

Study


  • Metaphor

  • Symbolism

  • Subtext

  • Sensory layering


Read


  • Ray Bradbury stories

  • Hemingway stories


Assignment


Describe:


  • A hospital room

  • A first kiss

  • A thunderstorm


without clichés.


Semester 4


POV 202 – Narrative Voice

Study


  • First person

  • Third person

  • Omniscient

  • Unreliable narrators


Books


  • Steering the Craft


ROMN 202 – Writing Relationships

Study


  • Romantic chemistry

  • Friendship

  • Family dynamics

Books

  • Romancing the Beat


EDIT 202 – Self Editing

Books

  • Self-Editing for Fiction Writers


Assignment

Edit a classmate's chapter.


YEAR 3 – MASTERING THE CRAFT


"Write like a professional."


Semester 5


PROS 301 – Style and Prose

Study:


  • Rhythm

  • Flow

  • Sentence variety

  • Voice


Read:


  • On Writing – Stephen King


Exercise


Copy a page from:


  • Jane Austen

  • Cormac McCarthy

  • Fredrik Backman


Analyze why they work.


EMOT 301 – Emotional Writing

Books


  • The Emotional Craft of Fiction


Topics


  • Vulnerability

  • Emotional beats

  • Tension


WORL 301 – Worldbuilding

Books


  • Wonderbook – Jeff VanderMeer


Assignment


Create:


  • Cities

  • Culture

  • Holidays

  • History


Semester 6


SCEN 302 – Scene Construction

Study

Scene structure:

Goal → Conflict → Disaster


Books


  • Techniques of the Selling Writer


Assignment

50 scenes.


DIAL 302 – Advanced Dialogue

Topics


  • Subtext

  • Humor

  • Voice


Exercise

Write arguments and confessions.


HIST 302 – History for Writers

Study:


  • Medieval

  • Victorian

  • Contemporary culture


Purpose

Avoid shallow settings.


YEAR 4 – AUTHORSHIP AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT


"Become an author, not merely a writer."


Semester 7


NOVL 401 – Writing a Full Novel

Goal

Produce:

80,000–100,000 words.

Weekly workshop.


EDIT 401 – Revision and Development

Learn:


  • Developmental editing

  • Line editing

  • Copy editing


Book


  • Revision and Self Editing


PUBL 401 – Publishing Industry

Topics


Traditional publishing

Self publishing

Marketing

Agents

Copyright

Amazon algorithms

Metadata


Semester 8


THES 402 – Senior Thesis Novel

Complete : A fully edited novel.


Portfolio includes:

  • Synopsis

  • Query letter

  • Blurb

  • Marketing plan


Mandatory Reading List


Craft Books


★★★★★  Must Read


  1. On Writing – Stephen King

  2. Story Genius – Lisa Cron

  3. Save The Cat Writes A Novel – Jessica Brody

  4. Self Editing for Fiction Writers

  5. The Emotional Craft of Fiction

  6. Creating Character Arcs

  7. Steering the Craft

  8. Story – Robert McKee

  9. Wonderbook

  10. Bird by Bird – Anne Lamott


Literature Reading List


Classics


  • Pride and Prejudice

  • Jane Eyre

  • Rebecca

  • Wuthering Heights

  • To Kill a Mockingbird

  • Great Expectations


Contemporary


  • A Man Called Ove

  • The Night Circus

  • Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

  • The Book Thief

  • Anxious People


Romance


  • Beach Read

  • Book Lovers

  • Love and Other Words


Weekly Schedule


Monday


Grammar and literature


Tuesday


Craft lessons


Wednesday


Reading


Thursday


Writing exercises


Friday


Workshop and critique


Saturday


Observation exercises


Sunday


Free writing and revision


Required Daily Habits

Read 30–50 pages

Write 500–1000 words

Keep an observation journal

Study people

Watch films analytically


Film Studies


Required viewing:


  • Dead Poets Society

  • Good Will Hunting

  • About Time

  • Little Women

  • Marriage Story

  • Before Sunrise

  • Interstellar


Study:


  • Dialogue

  • Character arcs

  • Subtext


YouTube Channels


Brandon Sanderson

(Entire BYU lectures)


Hello Future Me

Excellent for: Character arcs, Worldbuilding and Themes


Jed Herne

Great for novel structure.


Ellen Brock

Professional editor.


Abbie Emmons

Character and plot.


Film Courage

Interviews with professional writers.


Graduation Requirements


By graduation, students must have:

✓ Read 150+ books

✓ Written 1,000,000 words

✓ Completed 200 short exercises

✓ Written 3 novellas

✓ Written 1 full-length novel

✓ Participated in peer workshops

✓ Learned editing and publishing

✓ Built an author platform

✓ Studied literature, psychology and storytelling


Postgraduate Program (Master of Storytelling)


Specializations:


  • Romance

  • Fantasy

  • Literary Fiction

  • Screenwriting

  • Young Adult

  • Mystery and Thriller


Capstone:


Write and publish a market-ready novel.


 
 
 

Comments

bottom of page