Undergraduate Courses
& Registration

Below you will find a list of undergraduate courses offered in creative writing, with detailed information regarding the prerequisites and processes for enrolling. These are only general descriptions; individual instructors conduct their sections differently. For information about courses in our graduate program, see the MFA and PhD Minor pages of this website.

Please note that any creative writing course may be repeated for University credit any number of times. However, only ENGL 301-307 may be repeated for credit toward the English Major with an Emphasis in Creative Writing. Students should not register for more than one creative writing class in any given semester without prior approval of the Program Director.

Although we do encourage creative writing emphasis students to take both prose and poetry workshops, you may take your three required workshops in a single genre. However, we strongly recommend that students not repeat the same course with the same instructor.

ENGL 203: Intro to Creative Writing is open only to sophomores who have completed six or more credits in literature. Students who meet these criteria may enroll online. In this course, students are taught the fundamental elements of craft in both fiction (plot, point of view, dialogue, and setting, etc.) and poetry (the image, the line, sound and meter, etc.).

ENGL 300: Intermediate Fiction & Poetry is similar in structure to ENGL 203, but is open to sophomores, juniors, and seniors and is intended for more experienced writers or those who have already completed "Intro to Creative Writing." Admission to ENGL 300 is by writing sample only: a short story or creative essay or three poems, accompanied by the application form available in the Creative Writing Office. Applications must be submitted in person to Ron Kuka in 6195-B Helen C. White Hall between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. on the Monday of the last week of classes (e.g., if you want to take English 300 in the spring, then submit your writing sample on the last Monday of the fall semester). Stories and essays should be double-spaced and should not exceed 30 pages. Within one week of the application deadline, the list of students accepted to ENGL 300 will be published at the bottom of this page, as well as on the windows of the Creative Writing Office. Please contact Creative Writing Program Coordinator Ron Kuka if you have any questions about this process.

ENGL 301: Intermediate Fiction is an intermediate workshop in fiction only. Students must have completed (or be currently enrolled in) ENGL 203 or in ENGL 300-307 as prerequisites for this course, and may enroll online. Students who do not meet the requirements may submit a writing sample on the last Monday of the semester prior to that in which they want to be enrolled.

ENGL 302: Intermediate Poetry is an intermediate workshop in poetry only. Students must have completed (or be currently enrolled in) ENGL 203 or in ENGL 300-307 as prerequisites for this course, and may enroll online. Students who do not meet the requirements may submit a writing sample on the last Monday of the semester prior to that in which they want to be enrolled.

ENGL 303: Advanced Fiction is offered intermittently, and is intended for students who have taken or are enrolled with good standing in ENGL 301 or 303. Students who meet this prerequisite may enroll online. Students who do not meet this prerequisite may submit a writing sample on the last Monday of the semester prior to that in which they want to be enrolled. Please note: it is not necessary to take an advanced level workshop to graduate with an Emphasis in creative writing.

ENGL 305: Advanced Poetry is offered intermittently, and is intended for students who have taken or are enrolled with good standing in ENGL 302 or 305. Students who meet this prerequisite may enroll online. Students who do not meet this prerequisite may submit a writing sample on the last Monday of the semester prior to that in which they want to be enrolled. Please note: it is not necessary to take an advanced level workshop to graduate with an Emphasis in creative writing.

ENGL 307: Special Topics is offered intermittently and is intended for students who have completed an introductory or intermediate course in creative writing. Students who meet this prerequisite may enroll online. Common topics include "creative nonfiction," "playwriting," and subject-specific, theme-specific, or form-specific aspects of fiction or poetic craft.

ENGL 695: Directed Creative Writing is also known as the Creative Writing Thesis. To enroll in this class, you must be a senior who has completed 9 credits in creative writing at the 300-level, or who has received special permission from the Program Director, Ron Kuka. In this course, students meet one-on-one with a creative writing instructor every other week to complete 60+ pages of creative prose, 30+ pages of poetry, or a play or screenplay of comparable length. English 695 may not be taken concurrently with another creative writing class without prior approval of the Program Director.

The following is a list of students added to Fall 2012 creative writing classes; students who were previously able to register online are not listed below. We regret that we had to turn away some students; please try us another semester if you don't find your name on this list. Remember, if your name appears here, you still need to register online to be enrolled in these classes. If you encounter problems registering for a class, please email Ron Kuka at rfkuka@wisc.edu.

English 300.1 with Sara Gelston, 3:30-5:25 Tues, HCW 7109—
Pete Clancy, Rebecca Gilbert, Nicholas Grabon, Mia Imperl, Brita Larson, Sean Mannion, Michael Schultz, Connor Smith, Jasmine Sola, Seth Stephanz, Cristina Vaughan, Julia Wagner, Arianne Woller

English 300.2 with Amy Quan Barry, 1:20-3:15 Mon, HCW 7109—
Natalie Amend, Marielle Bricker, Melissa Bromberg, Timothy Ho, Caillin Kirby, Kiana Murphy, Eric Obscherning, William Ottow, Jacklyn Pepoon, Jordan Robinson, Trevor Shimulunas, Ben Siegel, Michael Volk

English 300.3 with Ari Banias, 9:55-11:50 Fri, HCW 7105—
Cody Dunn, Marvin Gutierrez, Emily Hegland, Christy Holen, Kristin Kernler, Jacqueline Kursel, Cynthia Lee, Rachel Nathanson, Mollie Olsem, Benjamin Reiland, James Runde, Catie Rutledge, Ashley Stromberg

English 301.2 with Miriam Cohen, 1:20-3:15 Thurs, HCW 7105—
Ari Groth, Drew Rushmer, Sonya Tomosiewicz, Richard Zuern

English 301.4 with Judy Mitchell, 1:20-3:45 Tues, HCW 7105—
Zachary Levin

Students Added to 300-level
Courses, Summer Session 2012

English 301.1 with Ron Kuka, 2:25-4:30 Tues & Thurs, HCW 7105—
Callie Padway, Bronte Wieland

English 301.2 with Ron Kuka, 10:20-12:20 Tues & Thurs, HCW 7105—
Joseph Luis Perez