Brandon Sanderson on Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy: BYU Class (330R Section 002)

I teach a Creative Writing class at my Alma Mater, Brigham Young University each year. It’s always winter semester, one evening per week. It should generally be Thursday at 7:00 pm but not necessarily. The class name is ENGL 330R Section 002. 

My class is split into two sections:

1. Lecture class: ENGL 330R Sec 002 — This section of the class meets in a large lecture hall and is open to anyone who can register for it with BYU’s class scheduling system. It has lectures on the craft of writing things like characters, plot, worldbuilding and so on as well as the business of writing. Many students in this section form their own writing groups to critique each other’s writing, but I will not be able to read and critique these students.

2. Workshop class: ENGL 330R Sec 003 (15 seats, by application only) — In this class, in addition to the lectures, you will be split into writing groups and will critique writing samples from the other students in the workshop class. I will also read and critique your writing. Because of the time commitment for me, I have to limit this group to 15 people. You must complete the application to have a chance at getting into this section.

Students who want to attend the lectures only should sign up for 330R Sec 002 when registration opens. That is also the class for students who want to audit.

Students who want to attend the lectures and complete the full workshop class should apply using the links below. If you need an ENGL 318 credit this semester you should, in addition to applying, sign up for another section and be prepared to drop that class if your application to my class is accepted. If accepted, you’ll need to work with BYU’s English department directly to have my class count as your ENGL 318 credit.

Application For BYU 330R Section 003

YOU MAY SUBMIT APPLICATIONS FOR 1 HOUR FROM 10:00-11:00 PM MOUNTAIN TIME ON OCTOBER 23, EACH YEAR. 

We are now using an online application form instead of emailing a separate application document. The form will only be active during the submission window, so please be ready to answer the following questions:

1. Name:

2. Email address:

3. Year in school for winter semester (e.g. junior, senior, grad student. If you’re not currently attending BYU, write continuing education student):

4. This is an in-person only class. Can you be in Provo at BYU during the times listed above? (If no, Brandon prefers that you not apply)

5. Have you enrolled in and completed Brandon’s workshop class before? (If yes, Brandon prefers that you not apply, so that other students may have the opportunity.)

6. Have you previously completed Brandon’s 321R, 330R, or 490R lecture class or audited his lectures (in person or online) for an entire semester? If so, How many years?

7. How many completed novels have you written?

8. In 400 words or less, tell why Brandon should choose you to be in this class.

9. Writing sample: Please submit the opening chapter of a novel you have written or started writing (1500 words minimum, 3000 words maximum). Make sure this showcases multiple aspects of your writing skills.  Do not include more than one chapter unless the first is less than 1500 words. Write your name and email address at the top of the writing sample, and name the document YOUR_NAME_Writing_Sample_330R.doc

Applications will be accepted for one hour between 10:00 and 11:00 pm Mountain time on October 23 for the class that begins in January the next year. Chosen applicants will be notified via email and given a permission-to-add code before the Winter Semester Add/Drop date, which is usually the end of the first week of January. If you are not selected, you may sign up for ENGL 330R section 002, which is the one-hour lecture portion of Brandon Sanderson’s class.

• Apply Here

What If I’m Not A BYU Student?

Every year we have a few students who don’t currently attend BYU apply and get accepted. The application process is the same from our end. In the application, where it asks for your year in school, write “Continuing Education.”

You do need to be in Provo, Utah at BYU in person in order to take the class. You cannot attend virtually over Skype or Zoom or the like. Some especially dedicated students have moved to Utah for the semester or driven long distances every week to attend. If you cannot meet with the class, please do not apply.

From BYU’s end, you’ll need to register through the Continuing Education program http://visitingstudents.byu.edu. If you are accepted into the workshop section we will provide you with an add code to give them. If you’re just attending the lecture portion, you can add it through the regular process.

For international students, you must be matriculated at BYU–which means you must already be enrolled at BYU to apply for 330R Sec 003.

Please be aware that you will need an ecclesiastical endorsement (a letter from your church leader: pastor, chaplain, rabbi, minister, imam, bishop, etc.) in order to be a BYU student of any kind. You will not be allowed to add classes without one. BYU has a strict honor code, and you have to agree to live by it while attending classes.  Contact the Admissions office for more information.

• Endorsement
• BYU Policies

FAQ

Why Do You Teach Creative Writing?

I teach creative writing so that I can continue to interact with other writers, particularly writers with fresh new perspectives. This helps me in my own writing to keep me from being stagnant. It is also, I believe, a service to the community since as an aspiring writer/a younger writer, I made good use of creative writing education and hope that in returning to teach, I can help other new writers the same way I was helped.

Can you give me some hints on how to get accepted to Brandon’s BYU English 330 Sec 003 class?

Karen here. I’m on the Dragonsteel Editorial team, and I judge the applications each year. There are a few ‘tricks’ to getting accepted, but mostly they’re just common sense. Treat this application as if you are submitting your manuscript to an editor for possible publication.

The first part of this article is the nuts and bolts part. Below that are some things that I’ve noticed over the years about what I accept and what I reject.

Fill out the application and follow the directions EXACTLY. Remember to name your files EXACTLY as requested in the application. If you don’t, I will reject your application without looking at it. .

The writing sample should be the first chapter of your novel and fit the wordcounts listed. If it’s too short, I won’t be able to get a good sense of your writing skill. If it’s too long, I will just stop in the middle and might reject your application for not following the rules. It’s best if you find a good stopping point within the wordcount limits.

Your first chapter is the hook of your novel. It may be the only thing that an editor or reader looks at. Make it something that will make me want more at the end of it.

After reading each writing sample, I’ll write a one sentence summary and give it a Good, Maybe, or No score.

I won’t look at the short answer questions before judging the writing samples. I generally end up with more than 15 ‘Good’ stories, and that’s when I take the short answers into account. 

The essay will either confirm my previous impressions, or turn me off entirely. It’s all well and good to say that you feel your calling in life is to be an author, and that you’re committed to making a career of it, but if you haven’t put in the work of actually sitting down and completing a novel or two, then you’re not ready to get the full benefit of the workshop portion of this class.

Remember that if you are not accepted into the class, it does not mean that I’m rejecting you as a person or as an author. I only have 15 slots. There have been authors who applied one year, got rejected, took the lecture class anyway, then applied the next year and were accepted because they had more experience writing. I hope that you will take the lecture class no matter what your application status is, and that if your schedule permits, you will apply again another year.

When I said that you should treat this application as if you were submitting your novel to an editor for publication, I meant that literally. This is how it works in the field of professional publishing.

More hints

The key, other than just writing really well, is to not turn me off. Knowing that I have a limited amount of mental energy to devote to this task, I’m not going to waste my time on something that I know will not make the cut. You have two, maybe three pages to convince me that I ought to keep reading. Use them well. Here are some things that are nearly always going to get your story rejected.

• Grammar problems – I will stop reading after about the third mistake. There’s no excuse for this. If you aren’t confident about your ability to do a thorough proofread, have someone you trust help you.

• Boring start – I get that you want to show how exciting it is for your character to leave their life behind and answer the call to adventure, but I don’t want to read about a day spent twiddling their thumbs at school.

• Amateur pitfalls – Don’t have your character look in the mirror so that you can have an excuse to describe them. Don’t have a maid and butler scene where people tell each other things they both know in order to explain them to the reader.

• Purple prose – If the gentle breeze kisses the raven locks on the knight’s noble brow as she gazes forlornly at the twisting smoke emerging from the crimson embers of her dying campfire, I’m going to put the book down in less than a page. You don’t need an adjective every other word, and I shouldn’t feel like you’re writing with a thesaurus in your hand.

• White room – You do have to have some description. I need to be able to tell whether your characters are in a forest or a basement as they discuss their plans.

• People have asked me, “If you see this many errors in my writing, doesn’t that mean that I’m the one who most needs to be accepted into this class?” The answer is no. You can get that kind of advice from books or the lecture portion of the class. Brandon’s time is much better spent helping excellent authors take their writing to the next level, and we have enough of those apply that the fifteen slots I have really ought to go to them.

I don’t want this to stop anyone from applying. I hope that people will read this advice and use it to make sure that they’re sending me their very best work. I also want to stress that I only have fifteen slots. I have to reject good stories every year, and it breaks my heart to send out the letters to the candidates who weren’t accepted. Brandon wishes that he could help every one of you, but if you want the next Stormlight or Mistborn book to come out sometime in the next ten years, he’s got to ration his time.

Good luck, and good writing!