Master of Fine Arts Mfa in Creative Writing Canada

Nigh Us

56 graduates and counting

"The MFA in Writing is dedicated to mentorship, student back up, and an inclusive community. Writing can be a solitary activeness. In the MFA at University of Saskatchewan, you lot belong to a program only more than that, to a welcoming community that values compassionate rigour, innovation, and diversity. Many of our graduates, while continuing to write and publish, piece of work in the cultural sector, as editors, and literary entrepreneurs."

---Dr. Jeanette Lynes, MFA in Writing Director

What's New?

Well-nigh the MFA in Writing

The goal of the Masters of Fine Arts (MFA) in Writing program is the training of a author in the professional person and creative aspects of the craft. The MFA in Writing at the University of Saskatchewan balances the intensive study and do of writing in several genres with an interdisciplinary flexibility. To the study of poetry, fiction and playwriting, the program adds a diverseness of not-fiction genres, allowing students to merge a broad diversity of intellectual interests with their writing ambitions.

Books by MFA in Writing Students

Our MFA in Writing students maintain a robust publishing plan, both during and later on their MFA studies. Their work appears regularly in literary magazines and journals. Listed below are some of their book publications:

Sarah Ens,The Earth is More often than not Sky (Turnstone Printing, Forthcoming)

Meaghan Hackinen,South Away: The Pacific Coast on Ii Wheels(NeWest Press, 2019)

dee Hobsbawn-Smith,Staff of life & Water(Forthcoming)

dee Hobsbawn-Smith,What Tin can't Be Undone: Stories (Thistledown Press, 2015)

dee Hobsbawn-Smith,Wildness Rushing In, (Hagios Press, 2014)

dee Hobsbawn-Smith,Foodshed: An Edible Alberta Alphabet (TouchWood, 2012)

Katherine Lawrence,Stay(Coteau Books, 2017)

Katherine Lawrence,Never Mind(Turnstone Books, 2016)

Katherine Lawrence,Lying to Our Mothers(Coteau Books, 2006)

Katherine Lawrence,Ring Finger, Left Hand(Coteau Books, 2001)

Shannon McConnell,The Burden of Gravity(Caitlin Press, Forthcoming)

Allison McFarland,Disappearing in Contrary(University of Calgary Press, Forthcoming)

Mika Lafond,nipê wânîn: my fashion back(Thistledown Press, 2017)

Taidgh Lynch,First Lift Here and Other Poems (JackPine Printing, 2019)

Patrick O'Reilly,A Collapsible Newfoundland (Frog Hollow Press, 2020)

Plan Information

The MFA in Writing is a ii-year programme. Students will normally convocate in the fall at the end of the 2 years. This means that the students will normally defend their theses at the stop of August and/or the beginning of September. In exceptional circumstances, a educatee may defend his or her thesis in June. This is a Full-Time program. Students should exist prepared to devote the bulk of their fourth dimension to information technology. The writing workshops are on-site only and do not have an on-line component. In both years students accept a diversity of courses; in the 2nd, students too complete a thesis. The thesis tin be a novel, a work of creative not-fiction, a play, a collection of poems or short stories.

The Showtime Year

In the commencement year, all students in this programme are to take ii 3cu Workshop courses (fiction and non-fiction), in which students are required to present piece of work in two genres.

• WRIT 800.3 - The Craft of Writing Fiction is to exist taken in fall term.
• WRIT 802.3 - Non-Fiction Workshop is to be taken in wintertime term.
• Constituent - Every bit well, each student will take their iii cu constituent equally an 800-level or approved undergraduate 300 or 400 level form in another bailiwick. The relevance of this grade to the student's writing must be demonstrated, and prerequisite requirements must be satisfied or waived.

Each student volition as well have part in the program's WRIT 990 colloquium (the Profession of Writing), and in GPS 960 (Introduction to Ethics and Integrity) and also in WRIT 994 (the thesis).

During the showtime yr, each student will be assigned an approved faculty supervisor. An established writer from the community with professional affiliate condition in the College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, will as well be assigned as your writing mentor starting April 1st of your outset year and ending September 30th of your 2nd twelvemonth.

The 2d Year

In the second year, upon successful completion of year ane'due south requirements, all students in the program will exist required to take two more Workshop courses.

• WRIT 801.3 -Poetry Workshop is to be taken in fall term.
• WRIT 803.3 -Capstone Workshop Extended Forms is to exist taken in winter term.

All students will continue to participate in WRIT 990 and WRIT 994. With regular supervision, including supervision throughout the summer, students volition propose and carry out the thesis. The 2d year will be completed with the submission and successful defence force of the thesis.

Mentorships

The six-calendar month mentorship is a central component of the MFA in Writing. Students must achieve a minimum mark of lxxx% to be eligible for a mentor. Information technology affords students the opportunity to work with published authors from the Saskatchewan writing customs. The mentorship begins in the spring later on the pupil'southward first year and continues until September of that yr. Mentors will respond to regular submissions of pupil piece of work via in-person meetings, Skype, email, regular post or some combination of the in a higher place. The Coordinator will assign each student a mentor based on a 'fit' between the mentor's piece of work and the student'south proposed writing project. The student is costless to suggest a mentor pending the Coordinator's approving. The assignment of mentors will depend, of grade, on the availability of the mentor. The creative project on which the mentor and pupil piece of work together volition essentially plant a portion of the educatee's MFA thesis.

Courses

WRIT 800.three - The Craft of Writing Fiction

This course focuses on how to write dynamic and engaging fiction. The course offers compositional strategies for writing short stories and novels. Writ 800.3 is an intensive workshop consisting of peer critiques, a arts and crafts seminar, and discussion of assigned readings. Students will meet weekly and volition be required, every week, to produce writing of their own and submit it for analysis by the rest of the class and the teacher.

WRIT 801.3 – Poetry Workshop

Students in this class volition meet weekly for a three-hour seminar, in which they will examine the key theories and problems in the writing of poesy. A professional author should take experience in more one genre: exploring the specific demands and opportunities of verse is fundamental to this program. The students will be required, every calendar week, to produce writing of their ain – commentary, and then poems – and submit it for give-and-take by the residuum of the class and the instructor.

WRIT 802.3 – Nonfiction Workshop

Students in this course will meet weekly for a three-hour seminar, in which they will examine some leading theories and methods in the making of nonfiction that could include biography, history, and investigative journalism. This course volition develop the student's proficiency in writing nonfiction for a general audition. The students volition be required, every week, to produce writing and submit it for discussion by the rest of the class and the instructor.

WRIT 803.3 – Extended Forms

This capstone workshop focuses on the conceptualizing and creation of a book-length manuscript of prose (fiction, creative non-fiction) or poetry. It is also meant to sharpen editing skills and the ability to construct a theoretical basis for a writing project likewise every bit situating that writing project within its broader literary context(south). The theory and aesthetic informing the writing projection will be articulated in an Creative person's Statement. Each pupil will also be required to present a graduating craft talk, based on their writing project and open to other MFA students in the program. The student presenting the craft talk will exist, in essence, teaching craft, using his or her own writing and reading equally a ground. Extended Forms is the final workshop in the MFA.

WRIT 990.0 – The Profession of Writing

Detailed, applied attending to the professional person aspects of authorship provides a crucial dimension to training to undertake a career in writing. With completion of this class, students will have a grasp of the business organisation of writing. Students in each year of the plan are required to attend the seminars comprising this course. These seminars have place approximately once a month; they provide opportunities for students to consider and talk over various public and practical aspects of their work. The seminars, whose topics may include Submitting Work for Publication, The Role of the Editor, Intellectual Property and Copyright and Writing on Contract, volition be led by experts from around and beyond the Academy.

WRIT 994.0 – Thesis

The Major Work culminates the MFA in Writing. The objective is a substantial, original slice of writing: a novel, a collection of short stories, a sequence of poems, a play, or nonfiction book or series of nonfiction work. The Major Piece of work is to be completed in the second year of the programme. At the end of the second twelvemonth, the pupil will submit the completed work, meet with an examining commission, and defend the piece of work submitted.

Note: In a special case situation where a pupil requires more than two years to consummate the MFA in Writing plan, continuous registration in WRIT 990 and WRIT 994 will exist required on completion of the MFA.

How to Use

Entry into the MFA in Writing requires a iv-yr Available's caste (or equivalent), with a minimum of lxx% in the last two years, and a strong portfolio of writing. In exceptional cases, applicants without the caste may enter the program on a probationary basis: equivalency volition be judged on previous participation in reputable workshops such as those offered past the Banff School of Fine Arts, the Sage Hill Writing Experience, and the Saskatchewan Writers' Gild; on relevant work feel; and on substantial publication.

Minimum Admission Requirements to the College of Graduate Studies and Research for Masters Caste, please click here.

Applications should get in by Jan 31th each year to exist considered for access in the post-obit September. Late applications will be considered but nether exceptional circumstances.  The MFA in Writing Programme has only one intake a year, in September.

Adjacent Application Deadline: January 31, 2022

Application Checklist

All applications for access must include:

• online application for admission: http://grad.usask.ca/programs/writing.php
• a not-refundable application fee of $xc (in Canadian or equivalent US funds), which is payable online through the online application process
• iii letters of reference (the referees whose e-mail addresses y'all provide in your online awarding will automatically be directed to an online class to submit). Please ask your references to assess your writing ability and work ethic, and your ability to work within a collaborative group workshop setting
• statement of intent, indicating the genre(s) of literature in which y'all wish to specialize.  Applicants should be every bit detailed as possible with respect to the writing project they aim to undertake during their study (to be uploaded on your online application)
• CV (resume) (to be uploaded on your online application)
• portfolio of 30 pages of writing
  • This portfolio volition be judged for evidence that the candidate has achieved a preliminary standard of originality, craft, manner and literary sophistication. This tin be submitted electronically in PDF format.The writing portfolio volition establish a substantial portion of the bidder's qualification for admission. (to be uploaded on your online awarding)
    
• transcripts from all mail secondary institutions attended (to be uploaded on your online awarding)
• test results of proof of English linguistic communication proficiency from applicants from not-English speaking countries (eg. TOEFL, IELTS).  Click here for details.

MFA Student Resource

SAMPLE ARTIST'Due south STATEMENT

A practiced example of an creative person's statement is found here (PDF file volition open in new window).

Used with permission of Elise Godfrey, 2014.

SAMPLE THESIS Front Affair

A good example of the front matter of a thesis can exist found here (PDF file volition open in new window).

Used with permission from Leah MacLean-Evans.

Faculty

Kinesthesia from the Humanities and Fine Arts departments volition participate in the MFA in Writing as instructors and supervisors.

Program Director & Faculty Jeanette Lynes Jeanette Lynes holds a PhD in Canadian Literature from York University and an MFA in Writing from the University of Southern Maine'south depression-residency Stonecoast Program. She has been a Author in Residence at Saskatoon Public Library, Kwantlen Polytechnic University, and Northern Lights College in Dawson Creek, B.C., in addition to being appointed Pathy Professor of Canadian Studies at Princeton Academy in 2003. She is the writer of one novel,The Manufactory Voice (Coteau Books), long listed for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and a ReLit Honour. The novel was too a 'Top 100' book in the World and Mail for 2009. Jeanette's seventh poetry drove, Bedlam Cowslip: The John Clare Poems (Woksak and Wynn/Buckrider Books) was shortlisted for two Saskatchewan Book Awards. Her co-edited volume,Where the Nights are Twice as Long: Dearest Letters of Canadian Poets (with David Eso) was published past Goose Lane Editions in 2015. Jeanette was nominated for a 2016 Saskatoon YWCA Women of Distinction Award in the Arts, Civilization and Heritage category. In summer 2016, with support from the Canada Council for the Arts she presented her verse at the 2017 Edinburgh Fringe Festival with 'The Shaken and the Stirred' Canadian poets; she will besides present readings of her work in London and Northern Ireland. Her poetry recently appeared in Prairie Fire, Room Mag, and Gutter Magazine (UK). In summer 2017 Jeanette and Daniel Scott Tysdal will lead the Emerging Writers group at the Sage Hill Writing Feel. Jeanette'south second novel, The Small Things that End the Discussion, will be published by Coteau Books in 2018. Visit Jeanette'south wikipedia folio here View Jeanette's sample publications here. Photo: Matt Braden Photography

Kinesthesia Sheri Benning Sheri Benning is the author of iii books of poesy, almost recentlyThe Season'southward Vagrant Light: New and Selected Poemspublished by internationally esteemed verse publisher, Carcanet Press (Manchester United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland). Her previous two collections,Thin Moon Psalm(Brick Books) andEarth Afterwards Pelting(Thistledown Press) each won two Saskatchewan Book Awards.Thin Moon Psalm was likewise nominated for the ReLit Verse Prize and won the Alfred Thou. Bailey manuscript award. Her poems, essays and brusque stories have appeared in Canadian, British, Irish gaelic and Italian anthologies and literary magazines. She's currently working on a novel, excerpts of which take been shortlisted for the CBC short story prize, received honourable mention in the National Magazine Awards, and accept been published or are forthcoming in Canadian and Scottish journals. In support of the novel she'southward won grants from the Canada Council for the Arts and the Saskatchewan Arts Board. An early draft received a John V. Hicks Manuscript Laurels. Benning completed her PhD at the University of Glasgow. Her inquiry interests include the intersection of contemporary poesy and poetics with ecocriticism and environmental philosophy, likewise as literary nonfiction in the Anthropocene.

Affiliated Kinesthesia Jon Bath Jon has been at the Digital Research Middle since it opened in 2006, and became the Director in the summertime of 2011. He joined the department of Art & Art History in 2015 equally an Banana Professor. He completed his PhD in English at the University of Saskatchewan in 2009. His PhD thesis,Blowing the Crystal Goblet: Transparent Book Blueprint 1350-1950, traces the development of the "crystal goblet" metaphor for printing- the belief that the main office of those who arts and crafts data interfaces is to make the medium as unobtrusive every bit possible so that readers tin can have the illusion of unmediated communication with their called authors. He is now working on a monograph, tentatively titledCoding the Crystal Goblet, which examines the discourse surrounding the design of electronic interfaces for the persistence of this conventionalities that the "invisible" user interfaces are superior to those that affirm their own materiality. He is an active scholar in the field of  Digital Humanities and Media/Book History. Well-nigh notably, he is a co-leader of the Modeling and Prototyping Team of the Implementing New Knowledge Environments (INKE) project, a SSHRC Major Collaborative Inquiry Initiative.

Beverly Brenna Bev Brenna is a Professor in Curriculum Studies, College of Education, whose work focuses on literacy and children's/immature adult literature. She has published ten books for young people and her serial of novels nearly a teen with autism, outset with Wild Orchid, has earned a current identify on CBC'southward listing of 100 Young Developed Books That Make You lot Proud to be Canadian:http://www.cbc.ca/books/books100ya.html. The White Bicycle, also from the Wild Orchid series, was shortlisted for a 2013 Governor General'southward Award and won a 2013 Printz Laurels book Award. For more information, please seehttps://www.beverleybrenna.com orhttp://world wide web.usask.ca/education/ecur/profiles/brenna/index.php.

Dwayne Brenna Dwayne Brenna is the versatile author of several books of humour, poesy, and fiction. Coteau Books published his popular series of humourous vignettes entitledEddie Gustafson'due south Guide to Christmas in 2000. His two books of poetry,Stealing Abode andRequite My Honey to Rose, were published by Hagios Press in 2012 and 2015 respectively.Stealing Habitation, a poetic celebration of the game of baseball game, was shortlisted for several Saskatchewan Book Awards, including the University of Regina Volume of the Year Award. His get-go novelNew Albion, virtually a laudanum-addicted playwright struggling to survive in London'southward E Terminate during the wintertime of 1850-51, was published past Coteau Books in autumn 2016. His short stories and poems accept been published in an array of journals, includingGrain,Nine, andThe Antigonish Review. Brenna is as well the author of several books on theatre research. His phase plays have been produced at Dancing Sky Theatre in Meacham, 25th Street Theatre in Saskatoon, and the Neptune Theatre in Halifax.

MFA Mentors, Past & Present

What Our MFA In Writing Students Are Saying

"There comes a point in virtually every writer's journey when a deeper delivery is required to achieve a new and richer level of craft. I'm that writer. I searched long and hard for a style to accelerate my writing. I was searching for a way to claiming everything I thought I knew nearly writing. I'm an established poet only I wanted to report new genres, immerse myself in the craft of fiction, creative non-fiction, and playwriting and, in the process, re-visit my own agreement of verse. I wanted to write and revise and test my limits but I did not want to pursue this part of the journey lonely. I knew that doing and then would frustrate me. I'd fall back on old practices and habits. Fortunately, I heard about the MFA in Writing programme at the U of S. The program has exceeded my expectations. I've found equally driven and committed students who are on the same upward climb. I've found instructors who heed, pay attention, provide critical feedback, give direction, and share their own difficult-earned wisdom. I've stepped into a community where my work is understood, where breaking boundaries is celebrated. I feel respected, supported, and encouraged to continue pushing myself. Is there annihilation better for a writer? I don't think then." -Katherine Lawrence, Class of 2017

"The Saskatchewan writing community offers support, camaraderie and mentorship. Past being part of the MFA, you observe yourself thick in the middle of information technology, surrounded by writers who've been in the business for years and are willing to share their knowledge and mentor emerging writers. The MFA at the Academy of Saskatchewan is pocket-size and dedicated and about brand new. Yous're encouraged to make your marking, but you're as well asked to work hard. So you do, and the hard piece of work pays off." -Sarah Taggart (Fiction) Class of 2014

"The MFA in Writing is an splendid programme because of its accent on mentorship in a province with such an abundance of distinguished authors. Saskatchewan'south literary landscape is vast and varied: from Saskatoon's thriving spoken word poetry scene to the Sage Hill Writing Experience in the picturesque Qu'Appelle Valley, writers of all kinds will find a wealth of opportunities to help them connect and create." -Elise Godfrey (Poetry) Class of 2014

"The MFA in Writing exposes me to a breadth of genres that reveals and develops untapped skills. As part of the programming, we are injected into the writing community and given the tools to navigate the often-choppy waters of publishing. The support of the staff and all-encompassing experience of the educators in the program instill confidence that helps me exercise what I came hither to do, write. " -James Pepler (fiction) Grade of 2014

"The mentorship was a tremendous and rewarding experience. Working with established authors not only provides writers with excellent readers for their work but it also makes you privy to valuable advice about the basics and bolts of writing that volition sharpen and hone your ability to what Hunter Due south. Thompson once chosen the "loftier white betoken." -Adam Hawboldt (Fiction) Form of 2013

"Having the opportunity to meet with an accomplished poet and intensely deconstruct my piece of work on a bi-weekly basis was a virtually enriching attribute of the MFA plan. The intimacy that the mentorship allows for, and the prophylactic it creates, accelerated the development of my own personal vocalization. I too learned to recognize and respect my own process as a author, and to have all of these things validated and refined by the advice of an admired author was invaluable. - Leanne Bellamy (Poetry) Grade of 2013

"Working one-on-i with a mentor is a relational and invaluable, the crux of the MFA program. I was able to piece of work with Sean Virgo, someone I respect immensely – a bright and well-read author who works in diverse genres and has extensive editorial experience. The community of writers we have in this province is an unnatural resources we would all benefit from tapping into – the MFA in Writing program is built around that wealth of talent that abides here." -Andrea Ledding (Poetry) Form of 2013

"The mentorship exposes united states, necessarily, to the expertise of published authors. I profoundly appreciated the care taken to match my interests with a mentor – from Sandra Birdsell, I received much-needed criticism and encouragement, too equally insights into her process. How encouraging it was to see ane of her seventh generation manuscripts thoroughly marked in red past her editor. I always came abroad from our meetings full of nutrient for thought and an impetus to keep writing. - Lorelie Gerwing-Sarauer (Fiction) Grade of 2013

Newsletter

• 2021 WinterTide Newsletter
• Newsletter Annal

MFA Variety Testify

The MFA in Writing Variety Evidence is a collaborative, creative infinite for current students, alumni, faculty, and mentors of the program to share writing they love with the wider customs.

The idea for this project was born in the spring of 2020, during a time of unexpected isolation and uncertainty. We hope that the MFA in Writing Variety Show celebrates our community of writers, boosts morale, and showcases a collection of imaginative work for us to enjoy together.

The River Volta Serial

River Volta Review of Books

The River Volta Review of Books (RVRB) is edited and published by the University of Saskatchewan's MFA in Writing. There are three components to RVRB: one) book reviews; 2) interviews past our MFA students with their mentors and other established writers; and three) brusque essays analysing elements of arts and crafts in literary works.

Writing is solitary, but nosotros believe in the value of a literary customs that encourages and expands the possible via reading suggestions and disquisitional attention to craft. We believe in celebrating our student-writers and aim to provide them with a identify to share their voices.

For more information, delight visit their website.

River Volta Reading Series

The River Volta Reading Serial is a monthly serial founded and run by MFA in Writing Students. The series was established in 2014 by MFA alumni Sara-Jane Keith and Chelsea Forbes. Each calendar month The River Volta presents featured authors followed by open mike readings. The series takes place in a cozy cafe, and offers a friendly, warm environment for writers of all levels to test-drive new work at the open up mike. The last River Volta reading for 2016 was a packed business firm to hear featured authors Guy Vanderhaeghe and Lloyd Ratzlaff, followed past an open up mike. In 2017, the new organizers for The River Volta are MFA students Geoff Pevlin, Daniel Kim, and Simon Bohm. Many thanks to outgoing River Volta organizers Shannon McConnell and Lindsay Kiesman! The River Volta Reading Series is supported by The ICCC and The MFA in Writing.

News Annal

• News Listing

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Source: https://artsandscience.usask.ca/english/graduates/mfa.php

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