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The course will cover the foundations of fiction, poetry and non-fiction. It will be taught by Leesa Dean, author of Waiting for the Cyclone and past editor for the Humber Literary Review. Tuition for this course is $273.12. The college hopes this pilot project will pave the way for a permanent presence of the Creative Writing program in Nelson.

Transferable Course & Skills

Creative Writing education is currently on the rise with many programs in North America seeing increases in enrolment. “I have spent the past ten years in Creative Writing classrooms,” Dean says, “both as a student and an instructor. As far as I’m concerned, Creative Writing classrooms are the best places on earth. What we learn in these courses—critical reading skills, revision, constructive feedback, evocative writing, creative solutions, spontaneity—these skills have a ripple effect that spread to all corners of a person’s life. Creative Writing education changed me. It’s made me a better writer and a better person.”

Almeda Miller and Leesa Dean, Creative Writing Instructors at Selkirk College

The course, Creative Writing 100, is equivalent to first year Creative Writing Courses at Simon Fraser University, University of British Columbia, University of British Columbia Okanagan and Thompson Rivers University, meaning the course is fully transferable for students who plan to continue their studies.  But you don’t have to be a Selkirk College student to take the class. “I’m really hoping to see a mix,” Dean says. “People who already have a writing practice, artists, people who want to start blogs but don’t know where to begin…anyone, really, who has an interest in writing. We chose the evening time slot to be able to cater to as many people as possible. We want to see a full classroom this semester. As Star reporter Will Johnson stated in a recent article, “it’s a very exciting time to be a writer in Nelson.”

For More Information & to Enrol

To enrol, contact Stephanie Peters, Admissions Officer at Selkirk College, at 250.365.1233 or by email.

For questions about the course, contact the instructor Leesa Dean. “If you’re not sure whether you’re eligible to take the course,” Dean says, “get in touch. My concern here is accessibility. I want as many people as possible to give themselves the gift of Creative Writing this fall.”

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