Minor in Creative Writing

The Creative Writing minor is an opportunity for students to earn academic credit for producing imaginative works of Fiction (short stories, graphic fiction, and longer works); Creative Nonfiction (personal essay, profile writing, memoir writing, travel writing, etc.); Poetry (in freeverse, traditional form, and prose poems), and Screenwriting/Dramatic writing. Students in the minor will also develop critical-thinking and self-reflection skills that emphasize the value of innovation and collaboration. And that fosters the development of diverse voices within a creative writing community, each member committed to helping one another improve as writers, readers, and creative-thinkers. In composing original stories, scripts, and poems, students learn to apply literary techniques used by classical and contemporary authors. Students will also have the opportunity for hands-on publishing as they are able to work on (or to be published in) SJSU’s award-winning Reed magazine.

Below are the core requirements to achieve a minor in Creative Writing. To see descriptions of these courses, check the general course descriptions.

Check with the Creative Writing Major Advisor at least once each semester to track your progress.

To be awarded a minor, at least 12 units of coursework must be completely distinct and separate from the coursework in the major (University Policy S16-4).

Be sure to apply for the Creative Writing Awards and Scholarships available each Spring. Join the English Department Google group for announcements (email English Department for details).

Important Forms

Minor in Creative Writing

Note: Click on courses for pop-up descriptions.

Course Requirements: 18-19 Units

Lower Division: (3 Units)

ENGL 71 Creative Writing

Upper Division: (12 Units)

ENGL 130 Writing Fiction
ENGL 131 Writing Poetry
ENGL 133 Reed Magazine
ENGL 135 Writing Nonfiction

Literature Courses: (Complete one of the following courses, 3-4 Units)

ENGL 50 Beginnings to the "American" Experiment
ENGL 60 Literatures of the Atlantic World, 1680-1860
ENGL 70 Emerging Modernisms and Beyond
ENGL 149 The Romantic Period
ENGL 150 The Victorian Age
ENGL 151 20th and 21st Century Poetry
ENGL 162 American Literature Before 1865
ENGL 163 American Literature: 1865-1945
ENGL 165 Topics in Ethnic American Literature
ENGL 166 American Literature since 1945
ENGL 167 Steinbeck
ENGL 168 The American Novel
ENGL 169 Ethnicity in American Literature
ENGL 176 The Short Story
ENGL 177 Topics in Fiction Since 1900