School of Creative Arts, Film and Media (SCAFM)

Creative Writing

Creative Writing at Portsmouth combines a number of exciting strands, offering the opportunity to engage with a range of writing practices which are all taught by staff with significant writing and research experience. You will experiment with a variety of forms including story writing, play writing, screenwriting and poetry, before then specialising and developing your competences to a more professional standard.

Portsmouth has a rich literary history being the birthplace of Charles Dickens, the original home of Sherlock Homes (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) and HG wells, who began his career here. The city has a lively, creative optimism and has undergone significant regeneration in the last ten years, making it one of the most dynamic places on the South coast.

The curriculum is designed to encourage the development of original writing of various types and to provide opportunities to develop in-depth skills. For example, there is a possibility of working with a director and cast towards an actual studio production of a play that you may write. Or you may wish to combine the practise of screen writing with the development of other film making skills through the production of a short film.