Is a degree in Creative Writing worth it?
Blogs and extras are bonus content to supplement the work in our issues. Current Massey University student, Charli Chamberlin, shares her experience of studying Creative Writing.
Admittedly, it was Reddit that led me to undertake an undergraduate degree majoring in Creative Writing. It wasn’t my English teacher from school, or the twisted knee that ended my brief career in conservation, and it wasn’t the tutors from a writing diploma I did the year before. They were nonchalant on the subject. It was a handful of Reddit posts titled: is a degree in creative writing worth it?
But here’s the plot twist: most comments said it wasn’t; that there were plenty of great writers who don’t have one.
Scepticism led me to do my own research on the matter, which involved trolling for hours through National Geographic magazines and stalking the writers of the articles I liked on social media, googling their educational backgrounds. Authors of middle-grade novels, YA and Sunday Times bestsellers. Short story and new journalism writers whose work featured on digital platforms.
I want to be there. I really do, and I want to take the most efficient path possible. And you know what? I think Reddit missed something, because a good chunk of my internet investigation led me to conclude that most great writers have some form of education in storytelling, whether it be Creative Writing, Journalism, English, History, or postgraduate studies. You do not need an education to be a writer, but it is obvious that it will make you a better one. There was something there in those lectures, course material, readings and interactive forums, and I didn’t want to miss out on whatever it was.
I’m in my last semester now, and what I have gained from this degree has been invaluable, and I don’t mean the underlined writing tips that I have collected in my notebooks —you can find those on Pinterest easily enough. Rather it has been the mentorship and constructive critiques from tutors and peers that have strengthened my writing skills and helped me find my voice. The perseverance I have acquired from redrafting assessments countless times, and the stress that comes with Word documents disappearing before that 11:59pm deadline. Learning that being honest and personal in my writing will make it more compelling. Trusting my own instincts because I know the story I am telling better than anyone. Gaining understanding and compassion as a reader and being willing to listen, even if I might not agree with what is being said, because it is not my story to tell. Trusting the process of the words to fill the blank page, one letter at a time, and the importance of knowing the emotional centre of my story. I couldn’t have gained this knowledge from a book on writing—and I know this because I have read plenty of them (Stephen King’s On Writing, Annie Dillard’s The Writing Life, Butler's From Where You Dream), which are all excellent, but not nearly the same.
I learnt this by dedicating three years of my life to an art form. One that doesn’t guarantee a secure job prospect at the end. For many of my peers and me, it is a risk, a chance, a dream; just to sit down and have the time to develop the skills and cultivate the confidence to write a story that is worth the while to be listened to.
The undergraduate programme gave me the opportunity to find my niche by getting to experiment with different literary forms though the wide range of electives that Massey offers, such as Poetry, Fiction, Writing the Environment, Writing for Children, Creative Non-fiction, Script Writing, and Oceanic Literatures of Aotearoa—which was a particular favourite for me. I am not indigenous, and initially thought that I would feel uncomfortable writing about concepts and ideologies that were foreign to me., However, it provoked the convictions I held around literature, inherently challenging the abstract norms I had assigned to it and inspiring me to take chances and attempt some things differently in my own writing and thinking. I now understand that storytelling is a deeply human need; that people, land and story are inseparable, limitless in form (sorry AI, this is an inextricable trinity).
One thing I am above all grateful for is the curiosity instilled in me to pick up books from the library or store—in my case, Scorpio Books!—that I would probably not have before (because BookTok misses way too many gems). The Safekeep, All Her Lives, The Colony, Black Marks on the White Page, Poorhara, Endling, Audition, Wild Dark Shore, Fruit Fly. Turns out the world really does grows bigger when you read what you don’t know.
Massey’s undergraduate Creative Writing programme has transformed the world of literature I reside in, giving me a diverse toolkit from Massey’s best, and the confidence I need to write a good story.
