And I really love the new layout, Justine! It’s not that different, but it’s awesome.

My degrees didn’t prevent me from getting any of the jobs I subsequently took to support my writing, which included technical editing, journalism, and making rubber stamps. *g*

I still use things I learned in college writing classes, and try to pass them on to other folks. But of course, I also took classes in history, physics, chemistry, comparative lit, psychology, sociology, photography, and ceramics (I flunked that last one. Ooops.) because they wouldn’t let me have a degree without ‘em. They turned out to be useful, too.

I wish people would get this so that they will stop assuming that because I write that I’m at uni for a CW/Eng Lit etc type degree.

Not sure that I would learn anything useful in a writing program, but economics? It’s taught me to write concisely and to the point. My analytical skills have picked up considerably, and so have my research skills. Plus I get the bonus of an ‘employable degree.’

I think that’s the second best way. The best way is to read a lot.

My second major was biology, also useful, in a skills-to-better-understand-the-world way–and it’s let me do some science writing alongside my fiction, too.

I haven’t altogether ruled out writing but my current (writing-related) career makes me happier. I’m much more of a reader by temperament!

The non-Arts half of my double degree, Law, has also turned out to be useful in a backgroundy way. Despite the fact that I didn’t go on to the professional training, so I am not an actual lawyer.

Gabrielle, on BAs in English? I think these days many BAs are mostly about learning to learn and to think critically. “Pure education” subjects such as History, English – rather than “targeted” subjects such as marketing, creative writing – teach you a set of skills that are applicable to a lot of things (or, depending on which way you look at it, nothing at all…)

I will say this though: most English degrees are achievable with 30 or so college credits (of 120 required for graduation). A creative writing degree is only marginally more than that. This leaves 80 or 90 credits of OTHER STUFF an English major must study to get an undergraduate degree. I studied sciences, math, humanities–all sorts of interesting stuff in college–because I had the latitude and flexibility to do so.

My recommendation is if you are considering a career in writing pick up a SECOND major in something that will be useful to you as a starter career. Sitting in a classroom with aspiring writers, thickening your skin to criticism and reading, reading, reading is never a bad thing.

And how cool of a feeling is it to know you have a better publisher than many of your college professors???

For me, part of what I loved about writing classes in college was talking about writing with others, getting and learning how to give feedback (I strongly believe you learn a ton about writing by critting others). But it was also finding the time to write, setting a schedule, working with deadlines. I don’t think a class can teach you how to write, but I think it can give you a way to figure a lot of stuff out on your own.

So while I don’t think that creative writing courses are at all necessary, I do think they can be helpful.

I’m torn about going for an MFA in Creative Writing, not because I think it will be helpful in getting published, but because I yearn for two years in which I do nothing but write and not have to worry about the real world.

Always look at what the writer you are listening to has done. If they have only written 1 book and it is a ‘how to get published’ book, you might want to look else where. It doesn’t make them wrong, but if they had the answers, wouldn’t they have more books?

Always take all advice even from the multi-published with a grain of salt. They are telling you their experience, your mileage may vary. Stephen King’s advice may not be right for you.

One semester I took of CW was total crap.

Now I’m a full time writer.

I’m interested you suggest taking a gap year before uni, because that’s what I did! I think I managed everything you mention in that paragraph, except leaving the country. Oh, and meeting a wide variety of people.

I love the new poll, although I have to say “kid” makes me think of when I was a lot younger. Not those incidents of reading under the desk during year 12…

MFAs are good if you want to be taken seriously in the literary fiction world, but writing and getting published trumps everything.

If I’m going to pen stories, I don’t want to write literature… I want to write something people will actually buy and enjoy reading.

I did a semester of Creative Writing at Uni, and it was all blah blah YOU SHOULD ALWAYS WRITE BY HAND blah blah LET YOUR WORDS FLOW THROUGH YOUR ARM AND OUT YOUR PEN blah blah EVERYONE IS AN ARTIST blah blah nonsense. I learnt much more in Philosophy and Cultural Studies and History. And I learnt more about the craft of writing from my cinema studies class…