Travel Writing – (M.A.)

One of the earliest 'hybrid' genres, which can combine literary nonfiction with an element of 'life-writing', travel writing is an area recognised as increasing in popularity by both publishers and critics.

What will you study?

You will have the opportunity to develop your creative writing skills, specialising in this chosen genre. You will also study literary criticism and theory and will look at the professional elements of writing, such as copy-editing and how to get your work published.

Students are encourages to submit short pieces for publication. Recent Recent published work includes items in MTV's Long Way Down and in Busabout.com Ezine

Travel Writing MA: What our students say Student profiles Don't just take our word for it – here's what some of our current and recent students say about what it's like to study at Kingston.

Name: Alice Thurling
Course: MA Creative Writing

Alice did her first degree in English Literature and then completed an MA in Issues in Twentieth Century Literature at Kingston four years ago. She is now studying for the Creative Writing MA.

"This course is giving me the structure, self-discipline and direction I need. I've always written poetry - I started when I was just seven - but I have done it in a very unstructured way. As I'd had a good experience on the MA in Twentieth Century Literature and Kingston is my local university, I decided to do the creative writing MA. Completing work for the weekly writers' workshops has been very useful. I've attended creative writing evening classes before where we shared our work, but the comments and criticism from other students on the MA is at a much higher level.

"For the workshops you can choose your own genre: I've written mainly poetry and some prose. Other students focus on their own particular specialism - we encouraged one of our workshop members to write something else as well as science fiction. Next year, I will be able to specialise in poetry for the Special Study workshops.

"The module on publishing has also been much more interesting than I expected. A wide variety of speakers have provided insights into the practical side of getting work accepted. Writers in different genres, as well as a publisher and agent, talked about their experiences from their different points of view.

"By the end of the course, I aim to be writing in a more disciplined way on a regular basis and would like to get my work published. Lisa DiVito, another student on the MA, and I have set up a literary review, Ripple, to publish the work of students at Kingston University. We've just launched the first issue and are looking for submissions for the next one."

Name: Katerina Koulouri
Course: MA in Creative Writing

"The main reason I've chosen the MA in Creative Writing at Kingston University is the variety of genres you can choose from on the course. I am writing poetry, but I wanted to get involved with people who are writing other things so I could experiment with different genres and learn from them too. The MA in Creative Writing not only gives you that opportunity, but also lets you choose workshops that reflect exactly your style of writing.

"One of the most useful parts of the course is the Elements of Professional Writing module, which focuses on the practical side of being a writer. It offers advice on everything from how to stay positive to how to present your work to get it published.

"By the end of this course I believe that I will have significantly improved my writing skills and that by being in contact with other writers I will have become more confident in presenting myself as a writer (thanks to the readings, feedback and advice from both tutors and students)."