Program Overview

Program Overview

The University of Victoria's Masters of Fine Arts in Writing provides supportive, one-on-one mentorship with award-winning faculty in one of the world's most livable cities. In workshops, seminars, and through personalized supervision, students develop works of fiction, creative nonfiction, playwriting, screenwriting, poetry, interactive narratives, and blended forms.

Program Details

• Expected length: 20 months
• Project or thesis: Yes
• Course-based: No
• Program options: Master's
• Study options: Full-time study
• Program delivery: On-campus
• Dynamic learning: Co-op optional

Outcomes

Students will:

• Write a major creative project
• Develop their voice, craft, and revision expertise
• Acquire the skills, experience, and qualifications to teach creative writing at the post-secondary level
• Develop an understanding of professional standards for writers and creators
• Learn to give and receive high-level editorial feedback
• Engage with a community of writers and creators

Faculty Members

The following faculty members are associated with the program:

• Danielle Geller: Acting Associate Dean Indigenous, Assistant Professor, specializing in creative nonfiction, memoir, speculative fiction, documentary studies, archives
• David Leach: Professor, specializing in creative nonfiction, literary journalism, the nonfiction novel, adventure travel, ecological literacy, magazine publishing, teaching with technology, sports writing, memory and creative writing, interactive narrative, video games, digital storytelling, extended reality (XR) technologies, and generative AI
• Deborah Campbell: Associate Professor, Director of Professional Writing, Lansdowne Chair in Fine Arts, specializing in creative nonfiction, literary journalism, memoir, biography, travel writing
• Diane Dakers: Assistant Teaching Professor, specializing in journalism, media studies, fiction for young adults, nonfiction for children
• Gregory Scofield: Professor, specializing in poetry, memoir
• Kathryn Mockler: Assistant Professor, specializing in short film writing, feature film writing, TV writing, poetry, short fiction, experimental writing, hybrid genres, editing and publishing, climate/eco writing, small press publishing
• Kevin Kerr: Associate Professor, specializing in stage, screen, collaborative creation, site-specific theatre, multimedia performance
• Lee Henderson: Chair, Associate Professor, specializing in fiction, creative nonfiction, the graphic novel
• Marita Dachsel: Assistant Teaching Professor, specializing in poetry, drama, installations, hybrid genres, fiction
• Mo Bradley: Professor, specializing in film production, screenwriting, Canadian and queer media arts/film/TV
• Sean Holman: Associate Professor, Wayne Crookes Professor of Environmental and Climate Journalism, specializing in environmental journalism, investigative journalism, solutions journalism, community building journalism, government and corporate secrecy, freedom of information
• Shane Book: Associate Professor, Graduate Advisor, specializing in poetry, filmmaking, screenwriting, fiction, nonfiction, film/literature/visual art/music/dance of the African diaspora, poetics, philosophy, hip hop culture
• Wayde Compton: Assistant Professor, specializing in literary fiction, speculative fiction, poetry, the essay, libretto, sound poetry, the graphic novel, writing for young adults, Black British Columbian literature and history, poetics, anti-racist theory, literary theory

Admission Requirements

• A portfolio: 10-15 pages of poetry or 20-30 pages of playwriting, screenwriting, fiction, creative nonfiction, or multi-genre writing
• A 500-word letter of intent, including:
  • A brief description of writing background
  • What you hope to accomplish in the program
  • A description of the project and the genre you want to work on
• A curriculum vitae (CV) that includes relevant professional/writing experience
• Two references (names and email contacts), who can assess your talent as a writer, academic standing, critical ability, capacity for doing self-directed work, and teaching potential

Format

• Poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction: use a minimum 1.5 line spacing
• Playwriting and screenwriting: follow industry standard formats

Application Deadlines

• September entry: apply by November 30

Funding and Aid

Estimated minimum program cost is based on an average program length. For a per-term fee breakdown, view the tuition fee estimator. Note that estimated values determined by the tuition fee estimator shall not be binding to the University of Victoria.