Download the Creative Writing Major Handout (PDF)
The study of creative writing develops insightful and imaginative thinkers who communicate complex ideas in new ways. By honing a diverse set of reading and writing skills, these majors and minors come to recognize the artistic achievements, insights, and possibilities inherent in literature and use this knowledge to inform their own creative work.
We emphasize a sense of community in the department and in the larger world by exploring diverse perspectives and ways of thinking, with the goal of instilling in creative writing students the power of literature and a drive to make a difference. Our emphasis on close, attentive reading and textual analysis, as well as on craft and technique, cultivates critical thinking, creative problem solving and communication skills, actively preparing students for success in their professional lives and beyond.
As lifelong learners, the creative writing and English faculty are active in their areas of interest, bringing those insights into the classroom and extended community. Our faculty members have published books, as well as fiction, poetry and creative nonfiction in a variety of national literary journals and anthologies, including Esquire, Best American Fantasy, Best New American Voices and others. Acclaimed both regionally and nationally, faculty member accolades include Creative Arts Renewal Fellowship Awards and Yaddo residencies. Faculty members regularly present on scholarly, creative, and pedagogical topics.
Why creative writing at Franklin?
Introductory courses provide students with an understanding of different creative genres, as well as the fundamentals of creative writing processes, literary citizenship and the contemporary literary landscape. Students learn to read like writers, engaging in literary analysis to appreciate the nuances of text construction. In later courses, students perform genre-specific studies, closely studying, deploying and sharpening particular writing techniques, and engaging in significant revision and experimentation as they hone their unique voices and join ongoing literary conversations.
As creative writers, we untangle texts and cultural contexts to discover new strategies for reading and writing, with students interrogating both the worlds of the texts they read and write, and their own world, understanding how texts communicate, shape and move all of us. Through guided practice, students gain confidence, empathy, and practical critical writing and thinking skills that allow them to make powerful contributions to the world.
Assistant Professor of English and Creative Writing
Phone: 317.738.8147
Email: kburpo@FranklinCollege.edu
Associate Professor of English; Chair of English Department
Phone: 317.738.8241
Visiting Assistant Professor of English and Creative Writing
Phone: 317.738.8222
Email: ebanks@FranklinCollege.edu