The Humber School for Writers

Creative Writing by Correspondence

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Click HERE for information about the 2010/2011 sessions (pdf)
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FACULTY BIOS

ANNOUNCEMENT:

FAQs

What does this writing program offer?

This program is intended to help you complete a draft of a book-length project.

Most writing courses function on techniques using small sections of text. This program focuses on a large section of text.

If you are working through a draft of a novel, a collection of poetry, a collection of stories, or a book-length non-fiction project, you are in the right place. 

What is the track record of this program?

The Humber School for Writers Correspondence Program has been in existence for over 18 years, employs some of the best English language writers from around the world (Giller prize winners, Booker prize winners, National Book Award winners and many, many others), and has had over 261 students go on to publish books. Some alumni have built whole careers on writing and others, such as Dr. Vincent Lam, have become very prominent in the field. These statistics don't begin to address the countless stories, articles, and poems published by our grads. As well, 53 grads have gone on to self-publish. The Humber School for Writers Literary Agency helps selected graduates to place their work with publishing houses (see the HSW Literary Agency site). While intended for writers who hope to achieve publication, the program focuses on artistic achievement through helping writers hone their craft and polish their texts through writing and rewriting.

Who is the ideal candidate?

A writer who wants to do a book-length manuscript.

This is preferably someone who has taken some writing courses before and has either an early draft of a manuscript, a partial manuscript, or a very strong idea coupled with the motivation to complete a large project. The prospective student should be proactive because one must be able to work without a face-to-face writing mentor or a class full of people.

Blackboard is a closed web site, a notice board devoted to the program, so students speak to one another about their experience. Sometimes students will organize themselves to meet in cafes if enough students are located in their part of the country (or abroad).

The program focuses on the student's text and provides a structure in which one can produce much more than is ordinarily possible in a live classroom setting. The program is also useful for Creative Writing MFA grads who wish to continue mentored work on their manuscripts.

How long is the program?

Thirty weeks, which constitute two back-to-back semesters, or about 7 months. There is a 2-week break over the Christmas holidays for those starting in September, but the  two programs beginning in January and May each go straight through for 30 weeks.

When does it start?

There are now three start dates each year: the beginning of January, the beginning of May, and the beginning of September. Application deadlines are three months earlier. You should receive your first commentary from your writing mentor approximately three weeks after starting the program. The last submission should be made by around the middle of the final month.

What does it mean to say the session is a post diploma, post degree certificate program?

The applicant should be a graduate of a college or university.
The Ontario Colleges Admission System (OCAS) requires that transcripts be submitted to them on application. Exceptions may be made in consultation with Jennifer Hannah in the registration centre. Contact jennifer.hannah@humber.ca

What is the application process?

It is a two-step process. All applicants must apply through the Ontario Colleges Application System (OCAS) first, and then send writing samples, etc. to us. See the brochure for details.

May I e-mail in my writing sample?

Unfortunately not. The safest way to send in your writing sample, cover letter, and Works in Progress form is to mail it, courier it, or drop it off. See the current brochure for the address.

How does the program work?

This is a studio program. There is an assigned text (Janet Burroway's Writing Fiction for prose writers and The Making of a Poem for poets. Francine Prose's Reading Like a Writer is highly recommended)  but in essence, the student submits work to a professional writer who comments upon it and either asks for rewrites or for new material up to a limit of 300 double-spaced pages (about 85,000 written or rewritten words). Some mentors work by email, others by snail mail, and others by a blend. There are no formal classroom sessions or face-to-face meetings with the faculty.

What if my manuscript exceeds the limit?

The writing mentor will comment on the pages up to 300, and the student should employ the lessons learned to apply to the balance of the manuscript.

Can you guarantee representation by the agency?

Unfortunately not. Writing mentors have the option of recommending very strong work to the agency, and the agency has the option of representing it. Poetry is not represented by the agency.

What is the point of the program?

To coach the student writer, to mentor the student writer in order to achieve artistic progress towards writing more vivid prose, more arresting poetry, more intriguing memoir and non-fiction. Since the student writer intends to write a large body of work, the writing mentor focuses on the text, trying to make it as good as possible. The writing mentor serves the text with professional, direct commentary, pointing out its strengths and weaknesses. Unavoidably, most commentary points to weaknesses and provides direction for improvement.

As Antanas Sileika, the artistic director says, "Your friends and family are good readers, but most of them love you more than they love your text, or they have limited experience. The correspondence program gives you a professional writer who loves good text above all else, and will try to help you write a good book."

May I take time off during the thirty weeks and return later?

All such arrangements have to be made before the fact and with the express agreement of both parties: the student and the mentor. It is the responsibility of students who fall ill to notify their mentor and the artistic director as soon as possible. If a writing mentor falls ill or becomes incapacitated, the student will be reassigned by the artistic director. The program runs for thirty weeks or three hundred pages, whichever comes first. If three hundred pages are completed before the end of thirty weeks, the program ends. If three hundred pages have not been completed within thirty weeks, the program still ends.

Can I take this program if I work full time?

Most student writers do. However, the student should be prepared to write or rewrite about ten pages a week to reach the limit of 300 pages.

Why is the price so high?

All programs are regulated by the province. We are not permitted to set prices any lower. Indeed, we have lobbied to have the price set as low as possible. For the current cost, see the brochure.

Are students eligible for Ontario Student Assistance?

Yes, but it is the responsibility of the prospective student to apply. See our current year brochure.

When is the deadline for application?

About three months before the session begins. See the current brochure.

What do I need to submit to apply?

After completing the Ontario Colleges Application Service (OCAS) application form (see brochure for contact details), applicants must submit, in duplicate, up to 15 pages of the piece they hope to work on, a cover letter, and a "works in progress" form with contact information. See the brochure. Scholarship applicants should look below. The pages sent for application will, on acceptance, be forwarded to the assigned writing mentor and constitute the first assignment.

How do I know who my writing mentor will be?

When you apply, you list your top four choices of instructor in order of preference. The placement committee tries to give you the instructor you choose, but reserves the right to place you in the best class possible. The placement committee takes into consideration availability, class size, writing style, and other concerns. You will be informed of instructor placement before being invoiced.

Can I change writing instructor on acceptance?

No, but one may withdraw from the program before paying the fees.

How do I apply for scholarships and what are my chances?

Scholarships are awarded on a combination of writing ability, as demonstrated in the writing sample, and need. Many more students apply than funds can cover. Students must declare their request for a scholarship prominently in their cover letter, and supply documentation of financial need. Documentation might include a photocopy of the last page of last year's tax return, a copy of receipt of social assistance, a copy showing student debt, or some equivalent. No late applicants will be considered for scholarships, as these are awarded first and the funds are allotted shortly after deadline.

Here are the scholarships available in 2010:

January 2011 program:

Timothy Findley / William Whitehead  (1)  (generously funded by HarperCollins Canada): $2,400.00
The Bluma and Bram Appel Scholarship (Ontario residents only) : $2,000.00:  (1) awarded in 2 parts: $1,200.00 on entry, and $800.00 at an awards ceremony in the spring
Writers' Trust of Canada (4) $1,000.00 each
Ben Labovitch (2 or 4) $500 or $250 each
MaryJo Morris (2 or 4) $500 or $250 each

May and September 2010 Programs:

James Appel Scholarship (Ontario residents only) (3 or 6 each session) $500 or $1,000 each

Tuition bursaries are also available through the college. Please see the Humber College web site to calculate whether you are eligible for a tuition bursary.

When must I pay?

Non-refundable OCAS payment must be made up front (see OCAS info on brochure or web page) before the writing sample is mailed in. Accepted students are billed two weeks after notification of acceptance. The work of students who have been accepted but have not paid fees will not be forwarded to writing mentors.

What is the last date to withdraw after the program begins?

This date falls early, generally about 3 weeks into the program. It is the responsibility of students to withdraw before the date if they wish a refund. All requests for withdrawal must go to the registrar.

Further Information:  For details specific to the next session(s), please see the correspondence program brochure or the web page. Write to either Antanas.Sileika@Humber.ca or Hilary.Higgins@Humber.ca

General Guidelines

The First Exchange:

Please be a little patient at first. Your mentors have received the writing of all their students at once and are mulling them over in order to determine the best plan of action for each of you. You should hear from your mentor in approximately three weeks.

Blackboard: Your Electronic Café and Notice Board

Blackboard is a private web site devoted to you and other students in the program. It was created to provide an electronic hearth for all the students all around the world.

E-mail, Snail Mail, Blackboard and Blends

Some of you will be working by post, some by e-mail, perhaps some by Blackboard and some by a blend.

Many mentors prefer the post because, as Ezra Pound once said, "Literature is news that stays news." A regular exchange by post is useful because the mentor has a hard copy he/she can mark up. The mentor will be treating you as he/she is treated by editors, who may mark up the manuscript in the margins or give notes.

E-mail occasionally takes on the characteristics of chat rooms, in which the exchange is fast and furious but the form is poor. Literary writing is very much about form, so you should be producing clean, well thought-out drafts.

Program Beginning and End:

The program begins in January, May, or September, depending on which session you entered. At that point, your instructor begins to mull over your work.

The program ends about end of July, November, or March, after a total of 30 weeks.

Please be aware that mentors may ask for final submissions no later than early July, early November, or early March in order to get your last submissions back by the end of the month.

Sometimes, students disappear from the program for a number of weeks or months, and then return, wanting to extend the program by the number of weeks they have been away. This cannot be done.

Mentors are generally working on busy writing schedules and have allotted a certain time for the program.

Therefore, it is up to you to be regular and methodical in your exchanges with your mentor. It is not good to throw 200 pages at the mentor right up front, or expect the mentor to read a large chunk of text right at the end of the program.

Occasionally, either a mentor or a student might need to be away for a certain portion of the program. If this is so, with advance notice, the mentor and student need to come to a mutual arrangement to make up the missed time. In all cases, this arrangement needs to be made before the fact and not after it, and the understanding must be explicit and mutual.

How Much the Mentors Will Do:

The mentors expect up to 200 -- 300 double- spaced pages of prose in 12 point font over a 30-week period (up to about 85,000 words) but the time and the number work in this way: about 85,000 words or 30 weeks, whichever comes first. In other words, if you send off 300 pages in ten weeks, you will have finished the program. Alternatively, if 30 weeks run out on July 31 and you have done fewer pages, the program still ends. Poetry pages will be fewer, in the range of 50 - 100 pages.

Please be regular and systematic. You must stay pro-active.

Typically, a successful outcome of this program means you have a complete draft of a manuscript together with a complete set of editorial remarks from your mentor. However, many manuscripts require several drafts. This program is intended to take you through a complete draft of an average novel, memoir, or collection of poetry or short stories.

Texts

Many mentors do not use texts and stick with editorial commentary. Some mentors recommend texts that are appropriate to your work. One text I would like all prose writers to read is the following:  Writing Fiction subtitled A Guide to Narrative Craft, by Janet Burroway, published by Longman.

Poets should consider The Making of a Poem, a Norton Anthology of Poetic Forms, by Strand and Boland, from Norton. Karen Connelly, a poetry instructor, has told me this is the best book for poets.

I might add that you should own a good grammar book. Most publishers and editors love the language, and expect you to use it correctly. Even pros make mistakes, though, so please have a grammar handbook around for reference purposes.

The Nature of Professional Commentary:

Some student writers are not accustomed to the directness and honesty of professional writers, who tend to speak in a forthright, frank, business-like manner.

The value of a professional writing mentor is that he or she will tell you what he or she sees, and what you can do about it. Please do not be insulted by professional assessment. The mentor will make suggestions. Listen carefully to the message being sent to you. Take the comments seriously.

Many other writing programs focus on nurturing the writer's ego. We want to nurture you too, but believe this is best done by focusing on the text in order to aim toward writing that achieves, or comes very close to, professional standards. We assume you want to get published, and we try to take you as close to your goal as possible.

It is in the nature of editorial commentary that your mentor will remark more often on what does not work than on what does. Don't be discouraged.

The Point of the Program:

This program does not guarantee a job or success of a manuscript. We hope that you will be a better writer after you have completed thirty weeks with a professional writer. That should be your goal, and we wish you the very best. It is normal to want to be published as soon as possible, but one must develop artistically to reach that point. Aim first for improving the writing as much as possible.

Certificates:

Students who produce 150 pages of prose or 50 pages of poetry written or rewritten to the satisfaction of the mentor will be awarded a certificate, which arrives very late in the year, at convocation in late October. You are welcome, but not obligated, to attend convocation. Awarding of the certificate is based on the discretion of the mentor. There are no grades. All certificates not picked up at convocation will be mailed toward the end of November.

Life After Humber:

We are interested in your writing success, and will do what we can to help you within the limits we have. Some writing students publish several years after leaving us, and some choose to do other things. In any case, I am interested in what you are doing. Please drop me a line from time to time.

If you do publish, please notify me so we can buy your book and add your name to the list of distinguished alumni, who, at this writing, number over 251 published. If your writing mentor has been helpful to your progress, please extend him or her the courtesy of an acknowledgment when you do publish a book. The Humber School for Writers appreciates an acknowledgment as well.

Antanas Sileika
Artistic Director
The Humber School for Writers
Antanas.Sileika@humber.ca