Writers, Don’t Get a Degree in Creative Writing.

For me, the only good thing to come out of our current world predicament is that it gave me the opportunity to return to school and complete the degree I started back in 2014 before having to take a break due to financial and personal circumstances.

I appreciate the opportunity I was given, but if you are considering a degree in Creative Writing to help you pen the next great American novel… please reconsider and consider the alternatives that will help you achieve more with your career as a writer.

A degree in Creative Writing will help you learn some of the basics of writing such as plot structure, and forever being reminded by your professors to keep your tense in the present and not the past. Other than this, most of the skills you learn with a Creative Writing degree can be supplemented with online resources such as online certificates and free youtube classes.

What degree should I consider if I want to be a writer?

A Creative Writing degree won’t teach you how to write, the best practice is in just that, practice. You’ll learn more valuable writing skills by listening to feedback, reading novels in your desired publishing genre, independent research, and constant writing.

Of course, a degree is helpful when going for a job in any field as it increases your chance of being hired and increases the amount an employer may pay you, but most employers aren’t posting job listings for Creative Writing majors.

If I could go back and pick my degree all over again, I would have chosen differently.

Business Degree

Writers are their own business in the beginning unless you are going to hire someone, to hire someone else, to do your taxes, manage communications, market your work, and hire necessary assistants such as editors and beta readers.

In the beginning, you’re going to be doing this all on your own.

A Business degree can give you the foundation to learn professional communication, business administration, and financial reporting, all important things you are going to need to self-employ yourself as a writer.

You won't learn any of this with a Creative Writing degree. The most my degree did to assist me with this was a course on building a website, but at the end of the course with limited direction, I had a half-completed website with dead links and no idea what to do with it from there.

Communication Degree

A Communication degree can teach a writer the skills they’ll need to work in the industry of writing while they work on building their portfolio or financing their novel. Journalism, publishing, and public relation are all skills writers will learn with this degree that will help them further their writing careers.

Other important aspects of a writing career include social media management, content marketing, and brand strategy. None of which you will learn with a Creative Writing degree.

Before sending in your college application consider a degree that is writer adjacent as it will teach you the skills you will need to succeed.

With love,

B.K. xo

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