Creative Writing Honors Thesis Proposal

Application Guidelines

Students interested in pursuing a senior thesis project in creative writing should create a proposal according to the guidelines below. They must also show evidence of substantial and successful course work in the specific genre in which they wish to pursue a project (i.e. if the student is interested in a poetry project, they should have already taken at least one poetry writing class, received an outstanding grade in that class, and have plans to take more classes or tutorials in poetry writing and/or to take full advantage of other poetry offerings sponsored by the University, including those sponsored by the Lannan Center).  Students who wish to pursue a hybrid critical/creative project should include elements of both application guidelines in their applications, including their writing samples.

The proposal should include the following:

1. A project description that explains the scope, focus, goals, and intent of the project (3 pages, double-spaced)
2. A brief artist’s statement (2–3 pages, double-spaced) that does the following:

• Provides a narrative account of how the student came to be interested in this particular project (course work, readings, unofficial creative and intellectual explorations);
• Demonstrates the student’s proficiency in the project’s genre, and delineates the course work, tutorials, readings, and extracurricular activities that have prepared them for this project;
• Situates the project, providing an analysis of how it engages with other contemporary works in the same genre and/or its historical precedents;
• Outlines how this project will engage with and contribute to timely aesthetic, intellectual, and creative conversations.