STUDY

Postgraduate

MA Creative and Critical Writing

Side view of a typewriter
Institution code: S82
UCAS code: N/A
Start date: September 2024
Duration: One year full-time Two years part-time
Location: Ipswich
Typical Offer: Minimum second class honours degree in relevant, cognate discipline. Relevant work and life experience will be considered.
Institution code: S82
UCAS code: N/A
Start date: September 2024
Duration: One year full-time Two years part-time
Location: Ipswich
Typical Offer: Minimum second class honours degree in relevant, cognate discipline. Relevant work and life experience will be considered.

Overview

The MA in Creative and Critical Writing invites you to focus on your passion for creative writing whilst engaging with the most up-to-date debates in critical theory. On the course, you will develop skills as a creative writer, reader and researcher, broadening your knowledge of the production and reception of literature under the supervision of award-winning authors and lecturers. You will experience an integrated approach to creative writing and contemporary developments in critical and cultural theories while exploring a range of established and evolving literary genres, such as historical fiction, memoir, and children’s literature. 

Studying the MA in Creative and Critical Writing is an inclusive, student-centred experience. Our taught modules connect with and reflect on each other, fostering intellectual curiosity and inviting you to enhance your creative and critical writing skills, both separately and as a blended form. In seminars and intensive writing workshops, you will develop your ideas, voice, listening skills, writing techniques and craft, honing practice through sharing and critiquing work in progress. You will be introduced to the industry through guest lectures and workshops delivered by publishers, editors, and literary agents. You will also learn how to nourish your ideas in the production of a substantial body of professional-standard work and publications such as our MA course anthology, available to buy in all national bookstores. 

The MA in Creative and Critical Writing reflects the research interests and expertise of staff teaching English within the School of Social Sciences and Humanities. Building on the success of our undergraduate programme ranked 1st in the UK for Student Satisfaction in the Complete University Guide 2021, the course brings together the study of English literature, critical theory, and creative writing in a holistic and engaging postgraduate curriculum. Teaching is underpinned by our shared ethos that all writing is critically reflective and creative, opening up new possibilities for creative fusion, innovative fiction, and original insights in academic writing.

The University of Suffolk is world-class and committed to our region. We are proudly modern and innovative and we believe in transformative education. We are on the rise with a focus on student satisfaction, graduate prospects, spending on academic services and student facilities.

8th

for Creative Writing

Guardian University Guide 2022

3rd

for Postgraduate Study

WhatUni Student Choice Awards 2023

2nd

in the East of England for Graduate Prospects

The Complete University Guide 2024

Course Modules

The course is delivered as a flexible programme, accommodating full-time (1 year) and part-time (2-3 years) study routes, as well as CPD opportunities. Full-time students complete the two mandatory modules (Creative and Critical Writing Workshops and Dissertation Project) alongside three optional modules. Part-time students typically complete Creative and Critical Writing Workshops in year one and the Dissertation Project in year two/three and can negotiate the completion of their optional modules. Children’s Literature, Historical Fiction, Adaptation, and Writers in Residence can also be completed as standalone CPD modules. 

Downloadable information regarding all University of Suffolk courses, including Key Facts, Course Aims, Course Structure and Assessment, is available in the Definitive Course Record.

A student sitting writing notes in a lecture

This module provides students with the main theoretical approaches and methodological frameworks that underpin the MA programme. In interactive seminars, students will be encouraged to reflect on the interconnected fields of creative writing and critical thinking and to develop their writing practice through the discussion of key concepts in critical theory. The module runs in semester 1 and semester 2 with alternating seminars in creative and critical writing respectively. The seminars in creative writing will be devoted to the study of specific fields and genres of contemporary writing, explicitly contextualising the themes and topics taught in the critical writing workshops.  

This module supports students in the preparation and submission of their Masters Project in Creative and Critical Writing. This assessment comprises of a 12,000-word writing project and a 3000-word reflective commentary. Students may use a multi-focussed approach to fiction/non-fiction or creative/critical writing. This might be either part of a longer project, such as a novel or screenplay, or a collection of shorter pieces, such as short stories or poems, critical essays, creative responses to critical thought or a combination of both. Students will develop rigorous editorial skills and work with established writers and supervisors to edit, draft and polish their work. 

Historical fiction is concerned with creative representations of the past, encompassing storytelling and history while engaging with questions of public and private memory, the role of the imagination, textual representations of experience, historiography and the nature of historical truth. In this module, students will consider ways of writing historical fiction, between what is known through experience, what can be known of the past, and what can be imaginatively created. Through close reading and discussion, the module aims to support students in their own historical fiction writing, providing individual consultation and expert guidance for creative projects. 

Children’s literature is a vibrant and rapidly growing field of academic study, bringing together scholarly perspectives from a diverse range of subjects and discipline backgrounds. On this module, students will be invited to explore a selection of children’s literature across the genre’s development, from the ‘golden age’ of nineteenth-century classics to contemporary examples from the twenty-first century. By focusing on the criticism and practice of writing prose for children in the areas of middle-grade (8-12 yrs) and young-adult fiction (12-18 yrs), students will expand their knowledge of current debates and have the opportunity to develop their own creative work in progress.  

Adaptations of literature have appeared on screens since the birth of cinema, but the practice has expanded considerably in twenty-first-century culture, with many adaptations also engaging with a variety of critical and theoretical perspectives to appropriate literary and non-literary source texts. This interdisciplinary module invites students to reflect on these critical and creative developments through a series of twenty-first-century case studies. As well as engaging with textual examples and scholarly approaches, students will have the opportunity to write their own critical and creative response to a selection of academic and literary source texts. 

Writing residences are increasingly becoming part of the writer’s professional working practice and occur in diverse settings including libraries, book festivals, county archives, schools, hospitals, prisons, and wildlife trusts. Residences offer exciting opportunities for writers to produce new work, respond creatively to and with communities, and build profile, audiences, and networks for further outreach work in the community. As a means to further knowledge and creative confidence in professional writing practice, this module aims to support students in the initiation and organisation of a writer residency of their own. 

Course Modules 2024

The course is delivered as a flexible programme, accommodating full-time (1 year) and part-time (2-3 years) study routes, as well as CPD opportunities. Full-time students complete the two mandatory modules (Creative and Critical Writing Workshops and Dissertation Project) alongside three optional modules. Part-time students typically complete Creative and Critical Writing Workshops in year one and the Dissertation Project in year two/three and can negotiate the completion of their optional modules. Children’s Literature, Historical Fiction, Adaptation, and Writers in Residence can also be completed as standalone CPD modules. 

Downloadable information regarding all University of Suffolk courses, including Key Facts, Course Aims, Course Structure and Assessment, is available in the Definitive Course Record.

A student sitting writing notes in a lecture

This module provides students with the main theoretical approaches and methodological frameworks that underpin the MA programme. In interactive seminars, students will be encouraged to reflect on the interconnected fields of creative writing and critical thinking and to develop their writing practice through the discussion of key concepts in critical theory. The module runs in semester 1 and semester 2 with alternating seminars in creative and critical writing respectively. The seminars in creative writing will be devoted to the study of specific fields and genres of contemporary writing, explicitly contextualising the themes and topics taught in the critical writing workshops.  

This module supports students in the preparation and submission of their Masters Project in Creative and Critical Writing. This assessment comprises of a 12,000-word writing project and a 3000-word reflective commentary. Students may use a multi-focussed approach to fiction/non-fiction or creative/critical writing. This might be either part of a longer project, such as a novel or screenplay, or a collection of shorter pieces, such as short stories or poems, critical essays, creative responses to critical thought or a combination of both. Students will develop rigorous editorial skills and work with established writers and supervisors to edit, draft and polish their work. 

Historical fiction is concerned with creative representations of the past, encompassing storytelling and history while engaging with questions of public and private memory, the role of the imagination, textual representations of experience, historiography and the nature of historical truth. In this module, students will consider ways of writing historical fiction, between what is known through experience, what can be known of the past, and what can be imaginatively created. Through close reading and discussion, the module aims to support students in their own historical fiction writing, providing individual consultation and expert guidance for creative projects. 

Children’s literature is a vibrant and rapidly growing field of academic study, bringing together scholarly perspectives from a diverse range of subjects and discipline backgrounds. On this module, students will be invited to explore a selection of children’s literature across the genre’s development, from the ‘golden age’ of nineteenth-century classics to contemporary examples from the twenty-first century. By focusing on the criticism and practice of writing prose for children in the areas of middle-grade (8-12 yrs) and young-adult fiction (12-18 yrs), students will expand their knowledge of current debates and have the opportunity to develop their own creative work in progress.  

Adaptations of literature have appeared on screens since the birth of cinema, but the practice has expanded considerably in twenty-first-century culture, with many adaptations also engaging with a variety of critical and theoretical perspectives to appropriate literary and non-literary source texts. This interdisciplinary module invites students to reflect on these critical and creative developments through a series of twenty-first-century case studies. As well as engaging with textual examples and scholarly approaches, students will have the opportunity to write their own critical and creative response to a selection of academic and literary source texts. 

Writing residences are increasingly becoming part of the writer’s professional working practice and occur in diverse settings including libraries, book festivals, county archives, schools, hospitals, prisons, and wildlife trusts. Residences offer exciting opportunities for writers to produce new work, respond creatively to and with communities, and build profile, audiences, and networks for further outreach work in the community. As a means to further knowledge and creative confidence in professional writing practice, this module aims to support students in the initiation and organisation of a writer residency of their own. 

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WHY SUFFOLK

2nd in the UK for Career Prospects

WUSCA 2024

3rd in the UK for spend on academic services

Complete University Guide 2025

4th in the UK for Teaching Satisfaction

Guardian University Guide 2024
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Inside the Waterfront Building
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The Waterfront Building on Ipswich Marina
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The Library
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SU Social Space

Entry Requirements

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Career Opportunities

The MA in Creative and Critical Writing is designed to support you in a number of professional contexts such as teaching, publishing, editing, and professional writing, as well as enhancing life skills and providing access to doctoral-level study. The course addresses the needs of regional professionals in the creative industries, seeking the next generation of writers in Suffolk, and responds to an increasingly complex job market which prioritises creative approaches. 

The English team has established partnerships with a number of festivals and organisations including The Hold and Suffolk Archives, Christchurch Mansion, New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich Institute, Suffolk Book League, INK Festival, Primadonna Festival, High Tide Theatre, and our local National Trust sites. The Hold, based on our campus, enables students to access Suffolk’s nationally and internationally significant archives and collaborate on exciting initiatives such as the British Library’s travelling exhibition, ‘Marvellous and Mischievous: Literature’s Young Rebels’. Our partnerships aim to be mutually beneficial, always ensuring a greater quality of experience for our students while supporting local organisations and giving back to the community. 

Your Course Team

Dr Lindsey Scott

Lindsey is Course Leader for MA Creative and Critical Writing and award-winning lecturer specialising in children’s literature and adaptation.

Lindsey Scott profile photo on yellow background

Dr Darragh Martin

Darragh is Course Leader, BA (Hons) English and writes novels, plays, and stories for children.

Darragh Martin staff profile photo

Dr Andrea Smith

Andrea is Lecturer in English and Creative Writing. Her career prior to joining the University included working for two Suffolk newspapers and the BBC.

Andrea Smith staff profile photo

Dr Amanda Hodgkinson

Amanda is an award-winning internationally published novelist, journalist and writer.

Amanda Hodgkinson staff profile photo

Katie Ward

Katie teaches on the BA (Hons) English course, and the MA Creative and Critical Writing course, at University of Suffolk.

Katie Ward staff profile photo

Fees and Funding

UK Full-time Tuition Fee

£9,090

per year
UK Part-time Tuition Fee

£1,010*

per 20 credit module
International Full-time Tuition Fee

£14,625

per year

*Please contact the Student Centre for further details

Further Information

Postgraduate Loans are available for this course, we also offer University of Suffolk Alumni a 25% reduction on fees, find out more below.

Postgraduate Funding Alumni Loyalty Scheme International Students

How to apply

Applying for a postgraduate programme is simple, you can apply using the link below. You can also find out more about what to include on your application and how to contact us for support during the process on the Postgraduate Study link.

Apply Now Postgraduate Study
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Ellen Freeman, MA Creative and Critical Writing

"The application process was straightforward and the staff were welcoming and so encouraging throughout. With their support, I have gained confidence and motivation."

read more
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Our BA (Hons) English course provides a foundation in literature, creative writing, and linguistics, working with professional published authors, active researchers, and HEA-accredited lecturers.

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