Thesis Planning Objective

CWL 599 Thesis, 6 credits: Every student in the M.F.A. in Creative Writing and Literature program must complete a thesis that is a working draft of a book-length work of publishable quality. It may be fiction, non-fiction, poetry, or script for the performed media. It may be a collection of short pieces. The thesis is judged solely on the quality of its intelligence and its writing. Once enrolled in thesis credits the student will be focused on the challenge of completing and shaping the manuscript. This is primarily an independent process. Students should plan to meet with their thesis advisor twice per semester by phone, online, email, or in person. Students will no longer be receiving the kind of line-by-line edits given in workshops. Rather, students will focus independently on the writing of their book-length manuscript while keeping their advisor apprised of their progress towards completion.

I will initially concentrate on writing the first drafts of my recollections and particular anecdotes and stories; fleshing-out and building the characters that will support my journey. With my advisor, I want to focus on research; hopefully obtaining support through libraries (and librarians;) researching the specialized archives that may explain my father’s duties during his time serving as a Tuskegee Airman in the United States Army, as well as information concerning his work with a man named Arthur and the OSS. Hopefully, I will be able to verify my recall of my father’s WWII anecdotes and oral history, as well as obtain information on his appointments and contributions to post-WWII America.