Tutorials

Manuscript Evaluation
Individuals who have completed a novel or nonfiction work and are seeking a professional assessment may apply for Manuscript Evaluation. An SMU Continuing Studies Creative Writing Program instructor will review accepted manuscripts, make written notations as to strengths and weaknesses, suggestions for improvements, and potential for publication. Following this review, notes will be shared at a one-hour conference with the author, allowing for one-on-one conversation. $1595. For more information, please call 214-768-9044 or send an email to smuthink@smu.edu.

Manuscript Editing
Individuals who have completed a novel or nonfiction work and are in need of professional copy-editing may apply for Manuscript Editing. An SMU Continuing Studies Creative Writing Program instructor will edit accepted manuscripts in terms of sentence structure, punctuation, grammar, spelling, word usage and overall manuscript presentation. $2395. For more information, please call 214-768-9044 or send an email to smuthink@smu.edu.

Chapter Revision
This service is designed for individuals who wish to refine a section of their work or have a chapter edited before submission. An SMU Continuing Studies Creative Writing Program instructor will edit accepted manuscripts in terms of sentence structure, punctuation, grammar, spelling, word usage, and overall manuscript presentation. $695. For more information, please call 214-768-9044 or send an email to smuthink@smu.edu.

Private Tutorials in Fiction or Nonfiction
The tutorial is intended for a writer who has a manuscript near completion and wishes to have the guidance of an experienced author and Instructor for revision. Tutors, assigned according to availability and interest in a particular subject or manuscript, provide five private, one-hour sessions. Time and location will be arranged with the tutor. $2195. For more information, please call 214-768-9044 or send an email to smuthink@smu.edu.

Manuscript Development
For the student who has the story and characters in mind, and the earnest commitment to produce a full-length publishable manuscript within a limited period of time, this course is for you. Intense, one on one meetings will help you outline, profile and produce the pieces required for a manuscript. Students must have completed Novel One: Elements. This offering covers the content of Novel Two: Synthesis and parts of Novel Three: Polish, on an individual basis, with a flexible schedule. $4,195. For more information, please call 214-768-9044 or send an email to smuthink@smu.edu.

Novel /Narrative Nonfiction Three: Polish (formerly Master Class/Novel Three)
Working with your completed story (fiction or nonfiction) you will learn the techniques of self-editing and the rules of rewriting. In workshop-style classes, you will apply tools that strengthen character relationships, tighten your writing, and dramatize your story. By class conclusion, you should have a polished first thirty pages and a plan for the final rewrite. The final course before applying to the SMU Writer's Seminar in New York. Prerequisites: Novel Two/Narrative Nonfiction Two or SMU Continuing Studies Creative Writing Program private tutorials, and complete manuscript. $395.

In seasons that Novel 3 is not offered as an on-campus class (such as spring, 2008), the course is available in tutorial form for the student who wants to polish a project and has moved through the Novel track or the NNF track. For more information, and to enroll, please visit smu.edu/creativewriting or call 214-768-1020.

*Formula For Success:

The SMU Writer’s Seminar in New York serves as a culmination of the SMU Continuing Studies Creative Writing Program, and as such, carries several prerequisites. These prerequisites help our students move from course to course within the program along pre-determined “paths” that contribute to their success and help to ensure that students gain certain skills before moving on to the next level. In addition, following these prerequisites helps to ensure the highest level of quality for the SMU Writer’s Seminar in New York applicants.

However, we do understand that students come to the SMU Program with a wide range of writing experiences, from true novice to seasoned wordsmith. Given this range of experience, we allow students with extensive and demonstrable experience in academic writing classes an opportunity to "place out" of the introductory course, "Creative Writing Introduction."

For complete program information, including program “paths,” course dates and times, and New York Seminar prerequisites, please visit www.smu.edu/creativewriting. For information about the petition process to place out of the introductory course, please send an email to youngkin@smu.edu.