One of the great things about studying Creative Writing at Chester is that you’ll have plenty of opportunity to get creative both inside and outside of the lecture room. Whether you are being inspired by experts in the field, or putting pen to paper and producing your own work, this dynamic and creative course will give you every opportunity to master the skills you need to make your mark in the creative sphere.
To get a feel for Creative Writing at Chester, take a look at what we’ve been getting up to over the past few months.
Former Creative Writing student publishes second pamphlet of poetry
We are proud to announce that former Creative Writing student, Jake Campbell, has published a second pamphlet of poetry, The Coast Will Wait Behind You, available from Art Editions North.
Discussing the collection, Dr Ian Seed, Lecturer of Creative Writing at Chester said: “The poems convey such a strong sense of voice and of landscape. They are haunting, unafraid of the world of the dead, yet always feel firmly rooted in the world we live in.”
Thanks to his time on the course, Jake was able to develop new skills that enabled him to transform his passion for poetry into a possible career route. To read more about Jake Campbell’s The Coast Will Wait Behind You take a look at his blog.
Meet our staff
There’s no better way to learn than from experts in the field. That’s why we take great pride in the dynamic team of staff we have on board, who have all experienced successful careers in the industry and continue to remain active in the field. One of which is Programme Leader Dr Ian Seed, who was awarded the 2015 Monograph Prize by the Faculty of Humanities, for his prose-poetry collection: Makers of Empty Dreams.
Discussing the collection, poet and radio broadcaster Ian McMillan said:
“These are superb pieces that give us a glimpse into some kind of translated backlit European hinterland full of the music of menace and desire. I read them in my conservatory in Barnsley and I was instantly transported to a city that I half-knew, full of people I wanted to meet or avoid. Prose poetry at its very best.”
You can find out more about our experienced tutors, scholars, writers and editors by taking a look at the Staff section of our website.
Be inspired by guest speakers
As part of the course we arrange for guest speakers to visit the Department and talk to our students about their work and their creative processes. Novelist George Green recently dropped by to meet our students. He read from his novel-in-progress, set the class a generative writing exercise based on old coins, and discussed the best ways to structure a longer piece of fiction and keep the attention of the reader.
Students on the module Poetry: Other Voices, Other Forms spent a seminar and workshop with poet Tom Jenks. Tom has published ten collections of poetry and his work appears in Salt’s Best British Poetry 2015. Through a series of prompts and exercises, Tom showed us how to generate poems using the internet and computer programs, tempered by human input and intervention. There was a discussion about how to make use of this for writing poetry, for example, exploring new territory, and going out of one’s comfort zone, overcoming writer’s block, and just having fun with the composition of poetry.
And if all that isn’t enough, thanks to the Professor Glyn Turton lecture series you’ll also be able to attend high-profile public lectures on campus. Previous guest lectures have included talks from Professor Glyn Turton, Dr Juliet John and Professor Martin Stannard.
The Department of English is pleased to announce that the ninth talk in the series will be delivered by one of Britain’s most distinguished writers, Simon Armitage CBE; fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and Professor of Poetry at the University of Oxford.
Get creative with Pandora’s Box
Your experience as a Creative Writing student at Chester isn’t confined to the lecture room. Outside of your contact hours there are plenty of extra-curricular activities for you to try your hand at, such as the popular Pandora’s (In)box; Chester’s creative-writing magazine where you can publish your own poems, flashes and short-stories, or even act as editor. Or, why not take part in our popular series of open-mic nights, perfect for getting immediate feedback from your peers.
Want to find out more?
For more information about Creative Writing at Chester, take a look at the course page on our website.
Contact us
If you have any specific course queries, please feel free to contact the English Departmental Administrators:
E: englishadmin@chester.ac.uk T: 01244 513152
For general enquires regarding studying at Chester please feel free to contact us, we’ll be more than happy to help.
E: enquiries@chester.ac.uk T: 01244 511000
Visit us
If you would like to find out more about this course and see what it is like to study and live at the University of Chester, take the opportunity to visit us. And if you have any questions about your visit, we’ll be happy to help.
T: 01244 511000 E: visitus@chester.ac.uk
