CRWR Honors Thesis Guidelines
The creative writing thesis will be an original, arresting text or set of texts that demonstrate good knowledge of the chosen field and genres. Ideally, it will also make use of sophisticated or complex concepts and/or methodologies, create a distinctive voice, using fresh and vivid language, and constitute an innovative addition to writing in its field. A prose thesis (fiction or creative nonfiction) should be 40-80 double-spaced pages; a poetry thesis should be 20-30 pages; a screen or stage work should be 50-100 pages.
The creative writing thesis that is awarded Honors will be a sophisticated and polished final product that demonstrates satisfactory ability in the chosen genre (poetry, creative nonfiction, fiction, or screenplay).
CRWR Honors theses must be prepared in a specific manner, i.e.:
- A binding margin of 1 and ½ inches must be provided on the left side of each page. All other margins must be at least one inch.
- The title page must conform to the format shown on the Charles Center website for honors and will be sent to seniors by the CRWR Honors director each spring. Committee members will sign the cover page at the completion of the exam. One signed cover sheet will be submitted with a digital copy that will be archived by the university; take an additional cover sheet if you wish to have a bound, signed copy.
- One copy of the CRWR Honors thesis must be submitted to the Director of CRWR in mid-April, at a date determined yearly by the Charles Center. (A digital copy will suffice for the CRWR Director). Three copies should be distributed to the student's examining committee (one copy per committee member) by the same deadline. Please consult your committee members about whether they would prefer electronic copies. If they do not prefer electronic versions, the default mode of delivery is a printed copy on any type of standard paper.
- Students should submit electronic copies of their theses (ETDs) to the W&M Publish platform, which is the William and Mary Libraries’ online platform for scholarly work.
A final copy of each defended thesis should be uploaded, with a signed cover sheet, to W&M Publish no later than 5:00 on the Friday before the commencement (for students defending in the spring) and 5:00 on the last day of exams (for students defending in the fall).
Full instructions from W&M Publish can be found here.
Contact wmpublish@lists.wm.edu with any additional questions.
