Creative Writing

Why study Creative Writing at Liverpool John Moores University?

• Opportunities to meet practising writers, publishers, agents, producers and directors

• Professional guidance and peer support to help you develop your writing to publishable standard

• Regular literary events, readings, screenings and open mic nights to showcase your work

• Three-day residential writers' retreat at a country house in rural Wales

• Participate in the production of our student magazine, In the Red

• Creative writing at LJMU ranked 5th in the UK (The Times Good University Guide 2024)

About your course
As a student on the BA (Hons) Creative Writing programme at Liverpool John Moores University you will hear from prestigious visiting writers who regularly deliver readings and workshops. Recent guests have included Ramsay Campbell, Wayne Holloway-Smith, Rebecca Goss, James Rice, Helen Mort, and Eimear McBride

At LJMU, which developed the UKs first Single Honours Creative Writing course, we put an emphasis on a writers career and take special care to instil not just the craft but also the practical approaches needed to become a professional writer. All our staff are published authors, and the Creative Writing university textbooks we have produced are used worldwide.

During this degree, you will study prose, poetry and scriptwriting in your first year and go on to specialise in the disciplines that challenge you the most to produce your best work. Our acclaimed Writer at Work module engages specialists in digital publishing, arts-in-health and literature development and other areas giving you an in-depth understanding as well as experience of the writers professional world. You will hear guest lectures from eminent writers throughout your studies. Recent guests have included: Ramsay Campbell, Rebecca Goss, Cathleen Miller, Wayne Holloway-Smith, James Rice, Stuart Harcourt, Helen Stringer and Dr Jenny Newman.

The degree is taught in the Redmonds Building, located in the heart Liverpool, a vibrant student city, renowned for its cultural events, readings, music events and art galleries.

Teaching by our expert academic team is enhanced by prestigious visiting writers from the worlds of prose, poetry and scriptwriting who deliver readings or workshops.

The Creative Writing residential in Snowdonia, which takes place towards the start of the first term, is a chance to participate in a writing retreat that will kick-start your creativity. It also allows you to get to know your peers and tutors.

In The Red, the student-run magazine of the Creative Writing department, regularly hosts student readings and open mic nights where you can hone your performance skills. Each year, three final year students take over the editorship of the magazine.

Please visit the Liverpool John Moores University website for detailed module information.

All assessment is by coursework with tasks designed to develop your skills as a professional writer.

Around 50% of your coursework will be original creative work such as a portfolio or project and 50% will be essays, commentaries, class-contributions, peer critiques, pitches, presentations, learning logs, group work, treatments, journals or class tests. You will normally be given two or three different assessment tasks per module. In your final year, your creative work or project will normally account for 70% of the course with the remaining 30% taking the form of critical commentary or reflective analysis.

Your tutors will provide feedback on assessments within 15 working days, but they will also provide constructive feedback on draft creative work throughout the course. You will have the guidance of a personal tutor with whom you can discuss your marks and overall personal and/or academic progress at any time. Peer review is also an important aspect of this course and is actively encouraged.