Converge
Creative writing courses
Discover the creative writing courses we offer.
All our courses may be subject to change. You will be notified of these changes if necessary.
We offer a three-year programme in Creative Writing, suitable for beginners as well as those with considerable writing experience.
The programme is designed to help you to develop a full range of skills and techniques to improve your writing. This can prepare you for publication, for further study at University or College, or simply for enjoying your writing. Students can take the course at their own pace: for example, you can take breaks between years, or stop after one or two years if that suits your interests.
The first year is offered across all platforms every year. The other two swap between online and campus, so that whenever you start the course you will be able to continue for the three years.
For autumn term 2026, the Creative Writing on-campus courses on offer are as follows:
Creative Writing: Inspirations
Course length: 8 weeks
Learning type: On-campus, online and by post
Open to Converge students who are applying to start the Creative Writing programme for the first time in autumn 2026. Due to limited space availability, you are unlikely to be offered a place on this course if you have already completed 1 full year of Inspirations.
In Year 1, 'Inspirations', you will learn how to build habits to continuously improve your writing, and practice key techniques relevant to all forms and genres of writing, including:
- Working with the senses for descriptive writing
- Character and place
- Developing your writing process
- Playing with time
- Structure
- Voice
- Clarity in writing
Creative Writing: Writing Lab
Course length: 8 weeks
Learning type: On-campus learning
Open to Converge students that have completed at least 1 full year of Creative Writing Inspirations. You will not be offered a place if you haven’t completed Creative Writing Inspirations.
In this course, you will be encouraged to experiment with your writing and learn from other authors. Topics include:
- Using constraint in writing as a basis for experimentation and defining focus.
- Close reading of texts (not just poems or stories, but TV, movies and scripted Internet content) not for literary analysis but to help us learn from other writers.
- Discussions and sharing of work (your own or other texts you find interesting) as a basis of developing ideas and writing practice.
- Troubleshooting any problems that you're having with your own writing.
- Understanding yourself as a writer and what you want to do with your writing skills.
Creative Writing: Craft of Writing
Course length: 8 weeks
Learning type: Online learning
Open to Converge students that have completed at least 1 full year of Creative Writing Inspirations. You will not be offered a place if you haven’t completed Creative Writing Inspirations.
In this course, you will develop your skills further to find your own style. Topics include:
- Creating your own body of work
- The details of word choices and structure
- Developing and portraying characters
- Rhythm and pacing
- Constructing narrative (voice)
- Writing for performance
Life Writing
Course length: 8 weeks
Learning type: Online learning
In this course students will be introduced to the many forms that Life Writing takes, from the personal to the published. We will consider what constitutes life writing, how it has evolved and how the art of storytelling can enhance the life story. Practical tasks will provide an opportunity to experiment with style and form. We will explore published works, including diaries, the personal essay, autobiography and memoir to gain a greater understanding of this genre and perhaps influence students’ approach to their own writing.
The courses are interesting. I have become a better person and something of a poet!
— Converge student