LT245-5-SP-CO:
Creative Non-Fiction

The details
2025/26
Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies
Colchester Campus
Spring
Undergraduate: Level 5
Current
Monday 12 January 2026
Friday 20 March 2026
15
26 November 2025

 

Requisites for this module
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)

 

(none)

Key module for

BA W800 Creative Writing,
BA W801 Creative Writing (Including Year Abroad),
BA W803 Creative Writing (Including Placement Year),
BA W808 Creative Writing (Including Foundation Year),
MLITQ392 Creative Writing,
BA QW30 Literature and Creative Writing,
BA QW31 Literature and Creative Writing (Including Year Abroad),
BA QW33 Literature and Creative Writing (Including Placement Year),
BA QW38 Literature and Creative Writing (Including Foundation Year),
MLITQ393 Literature and Creative Writing,
BA WW80 Drama and Creative Writing,
BA WW81 Drama and Creative Writing (Including Foundation Year),
BA WW82 Drama and Creative Writing (including Placement Year),
BA WW83 Drama and Creative Writing (including Year Abroad)

Module description

The study and practice of creative non-fiction will give BA Creative Writing students the opportunity to explore aspects of creativity in writing which go beyond the boundaries of the work done in Creative Writing: Theory and Practice, into areas like the essay, psycho-geography, documentary, (auto)biography and the interview.


The creative aspects of other kinds of writing can widen the writer's scope and sense of possibility, making writing a more connected activity, both to the self and to the public world. Creative Non-Fiction is a subject gaining in popularity, both here and in the US, because of its sense of engagement and experiment.


Much non-fiction in poetry, creative prose writing of all kinds, documentary and features for broadcast media are at least equal in significance, in publishing terms, to fictional writing. The course will also explore the boundaries between fiction and non-fiction, which has always been a fertile area of creativity, from Defoe's Journal of the Plague Year to today's 'misery memoir'. Engaging with creative non-fiction will also help students understand the use of research and attention to factual and sensory detail, all of which are transferable skills, which can enhance creative work more generally. The voices, formal opportunities and approaches explored will increase all creative writers' repertoire, resources and skill level.


Module Supervisor's Research into Subject Area


James Canton has written widely in creative non-fiction forms and taught on the MA in Wild Writing at the University of Essex since its inception in 2009, exploring the fascinating ties between the literature and landscape of East Anglia. He has worked on Radio 4 exploring the writing and landscapes of Essex such as for 'Something Understood' on John Clare and Epping Forest (August 2014) and 'Open Country' on Tollesbury Wick and literary Essex (November 2015). His book Out of Essex: Re-Imagining a Literary Landscape (2013) is inspired by rural wanderings in the county. Ancient Wonderings: Journeys into Prehistoric Britain was published by Collins in 2017.

Module aims

The aim of the module is:



  • To provide students the opportunity to explore aspects of creativity in writing in areas like the essay, psycho-geography, nature writing, travel writing, documentary, (auto)biography and the interview. Creative Non-Fiction is a subject gaining in popularity, both here and in the US, because of its sense of engagement and experiment. Much non-fiction in poetry, creative prose writing of all kinds, documentary and features for broadcast media are at least equal in significance, in publishing terms, to fictional writing.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of this module, students will be expected to be able to:



  1. Write in various forms of non-fiction. Our teaching is accompanied by writing exercises, conducted both inside and outside class to enable students to practically experiment with creative non-fiction forms of writing. Workshops allow students to present their work to the class, while formal assignments allow more in-depth exploration of their chosen genres.

Module information

No additional information available.

Learning and teaching methods

This module will be delivered via:

  • Weekly 2-hour seminar

Bibliography

  • Peter Bradshaw (2015) 'The Revenant review – gut-churningly brutal, beautiful storytelling', Guardian [Preprint]. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/dec/04/the-revenant-review-gut-churningly-brutal-beautiful-storytelling.
  • Charlie Brooker (2012) Charlie Brooker's Screen Burn. Faber & Faber.
  • Charlie Brooker (2010) 'Charlie Brooker: Why I'm calling time on Screen Burn', Guardian [Preprint]. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2010/oct/16/charlie-brooker-leaving-screen-burn.
  • Defoe, D. and Richetti, J.J. (2003) Robinson Crusoe. London: Penguin.
  • Chatwin, B. (1998) In Patagonia. London: Vintage.
  • Krakauer, J. (1998) Into the wild. New ed. London: Macmillan.
  • Jan Morris (2002) Trieste and the Meaning of Nowhere. Faber & Faber.
  • Coverley, M. (2018) Psychogeography. Harpenden: Oldcastle Books.
  • Self, W. and Macfarlane, R. (no date) 'The Road Less Travelled', The Big Issue, (1006), pp. 18–23.
  • Dee, T. (2016) The running sky: a bird-watching life. London: Vintage.
  • Waugh, E. (2003) Scoop: a novel about journalists. London: Penguin.
  • Deakin, R., Hastie, A. and Blacker, T. (2008) Notes from Walnut Tree Farm. London: Hamish Hamilton.
  • Amy Liptrot (2016) The Outrun. Edinburgh: Canongate Books.
The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course.
The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students.
Further reading can be obtained from this module's reading list.

Assessment items, weightings and deadlines

Coursework / exam Description Deadline Coursework weighting
Coursework   Assignment (3,000 words)  10/04/2026  95% 
Practical   Participation    5% 

Exam format definitions

  • Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
  • In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
  • In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
  • In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary, for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.

Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.

Overall assessment

Coursework Exam
100% 0%

Reassessment

Coursework Exam
100% 0%
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Dr James Canton, email: jcanto@essex.ac.uk.
LiFTS Admin Team – liftstt@essex.ac.uk

 

Availability
No
No
Yes

External examiner

No external examiner information available for this module.
Resources
Available via Moodle
No lecture recording information available for this module.

 

Further information
Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies

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