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~ . ~ . ~ University of Southern California Master of Professional Writing Program Program Overview USC's Professional Writing Program's MFA in Creative Writing in 1971 changed the word "creative" to "professional" and became the first multi-disciplinary program in the nation to offer a specialized Master's Degree in Professional Writing (MPW), that prepares individuals for careers in writing in all genres. Now twenty universities have followed its model. One of the oldest and most distinguished programs in the nation, the USC Professional Writing Program has a celebrated faculty and curriculum in novel, film, TV, drama, poetry, and non-fiction, all in one autonomous academic department. Faculty, drawn from internationally renowned writers, have included playwright William Inge, novelists William Goyen and Richard Yates, Academy Award winning screenwriters Harry Brown and Edmund North, poets Ann Stanford and Yevgeny Yevtushenko, and feminist author Betty Friedan. Graduates have published novels, books of poetry and non-fiction, and have received Academy Award nominations and Off-Broadway stage productions. Mark Andrus, the 1997 Academy Award nominated screenwriter for As Good As It Gets is a graduate of the USC Professional Writing Program, as is Pulitzer nominated Gina Nahi (Cry of the Peacock) and NPR commentator Sandra Tsing Loh (Aliens in America). The program emphasizes a multi-disciplinary approach to writing and focuses on theory, techniques, structures, disciplines, and markets. Each class is taught in an intimate workshop atmosphere (8-12 students), and classes meet in the late afternoon and evening hours for the convenience of working adults. Fall courses begin the first week in September. Spring classes begin the second week in January. Program faculty are internationally distinguished authors. They include James Ragan, Program Director and poet (Lusions); Tony nominated Broadway playwright Jerome Lawrence (Inherit the Wind); Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Paul Zindel (The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds); Mel Shavelson, Academy Award nominee (Houseboat); Academy Award nominee Sy Gomberg (Summer Stock); screenwriter Steve Mazur (Liar, Liar); former CBS Sixty Minutes commentator Shana Alexander (Nutcracker); founder of the New Journalism, Gay Talese (The Kingdom and the Power); Noel Riley Fitch (Sylvia Beach and the Lost Generation), Tony and Pulitzer nominated playwright Lee Blessing (A Walk in the Woods); playwright Donald Freed (Secret Honor); novelists S.L. Stebel (Spring Thaw); John Rechy (City of Night); Hubert Selby, Jr. (Last Exit to Brooklyn); and Aram Saroyan (The Romantic); Richard Lid (Ford Maddox Ford: The Essence of His Art); L.A. Times film critic Kenneth Turan; L.A. Times Book Review editor Steve Wasserman; Broadway playwright David Scott Milton (Duet); Academy Award nominee Ehrich Van Lowe (writer-producer The Cosby Show); Shelly Lowenkopf (editor of The Harrad Experiment); Pulitzer nominated novelist Gina Nahai (Cry of the Peacock); novelist Shirley Thomas (Men of Space) and Tristine Rainer (Your Life as Story); humorist Shelley Berman (Up in the Air); poet Holly Prado-Northrup (Specific Mysteries); Jason Square (The Movie Business Book); TV screenwriter Teresa O'Neill (Home Improvement); theatrical producer Beata Pozniak (Discordia Productions); and visiting professor, poet Marvin Bell (The Book of the Dead Man). USC's Los Angeles location offers a superb climate in an energetic urban community. The program's strong ties to publishers, agents, and stage and film venues bring many opportunities for talented writers, including professional internships and positions on the staff of the internationally respected Southern California Anthology, published annually by the Professional Writing Program. For information, contact: |