Master's Concentration or Certificate in Writing
From starving artist to striving artist. Write, publish, and sell a body of work 1-on-1 with a creative advisor, a business advisor, and working writers as mentors. It's a writing master's with an MBA inside: art school without the crippling debt.
- Fiction, Nonfiction & Memoir
- Creative + Business Advisors
- 1-on-1 Mentors
- 100% Remote & Flexible
- Keep Your Job
From Starving Artist to Striving Artist
Most MFA programs teach you to write and then send you off with a manuscript, a pile of student debt, and no idea how to earn a living from your work. The myth of the starving artist is not a law of nature. It is what happens when artists are never taught the business of their art.
At Elton, you learn the craft and the business together. You write with a creative advisor who pushes your work to be its best, and you plan your career with a business advisor who helps you find readers, build an audience, and get paid. You graduate with a published body of work and the professional skills to keep writing for the rest of your life.
Two Goals, One Program
Become a Professional Writer
Learn to work like a writer who makes a living at it: a daily practice, deadlines you keep, and the business skills most writing programs leave out.
- Build a sustainable writing practice and process
- Work with agents, editors, publishers, and platforms
- Learn contracts, rights, royalties, pricing, and taxes for creatives
- Build an author platform, newsletter, and audience
Plan, Write, Publish & Sell a Body of Work
Leave with more than a thesis on a shelf. Your capstone is a real body of work, out in the world and in readers' hands.
- Plan a book, collection, or series with your advisors
- Write and revise it in 1-on-1 workshops with mentors
- Publish it, traditionally or independently
- Launch, market, and sell it to real readers
Choose Your Genre
There is no one-size-fits-all syllabus. Your advisors design your curriculum around the work you want to make.
Fiction
Novels, novellas, and short stories in any genre, literary to speculative. Study structure, character, voice, and scene, and write the book you have been carrying around.
Nonfiction
Narrative nonfiction, essays, journalism, and books of ideas. Learn to research, report, and argue in prose that reads like a story.
Memoir
Turn your life into literature. Shape memory into narrative, write honestly about real people, and find the story only you can tell.
Your Team
You are never writing alone. Every candidate works with a team built around their goals.
Creative Advisor
A working writer in your genre who guides your craft, reads every draft, and helps you shape your body of work from first page to final manuscript.
Business Advisor
A business coach who helps you treat your writing like a venture: publishing strategy, audience, marketing, pricing, and a plan to earn a living from your work.
Mentors & Faculty
Authors, editors, agents, and publishing professionals who join you for workshops, manuscript reviews, and the specific skills your project needs.
How the Program Works
Plan Your Body of Work
With your creative and business advisors, define the work you will create, the readers you will reach, and a custom learning plan to get there.
Write 1-on-1
Meet each week with your advisors and mentors in tutorials of one to three students. Share pages, get line-level feedback, and revise.
Learn the Business
Alongside your writing, learn the MBA skills creatives need: marketing, audience building, finance, contracts, and running a creative business.
Publish & Sell
Bring your work into the world, traditionally or independently, and graduate with a published body of work, real readers, and a plan for what comes next.
Writers Who Want to Make a Life of It
Aspiring authors. You have a book in you and want the structure, feedback, and accountability to finally write it.
Working writers. You already write, and you want to publish more, reach more readers, and earn more from your work.
Career changers. You want to move from your current job into a life as a professional writer, without quitting your job or taking on debt to do it.
Creative entrepreneurs. You want to build a business around your writing: books, newsletters, courses, and more.
Schedule an Admission ConversationEligibility
To enroll in a master's program or graduate certificate, you need one of the following:
- A bachelor's degree, or
- Some college and 5 years of relevant work experience, or
- Proof of your ability to engage in master's-level study.
No standardized tests are required: no GRE, no GMAT.
Tuition & Scholarships
Graduates earn a Master of Arts (MA) in Individualized Studies with a concentration in Writing.
- Start Immediately - Other programs require you wait until September or January to start. With Elton you can start immediately.
- No Risk First Month - If during the first month you or Elton decide that you are not a fit for the college, you will receive a full refund.
- Stacking Credentials - If you stop the program early, you still earn your graduate certificate in writing if you have completed 1/3 of the program.
Program Tuition: $14,000
Enjoy a 10% discount if tuition is paid in full upon enrollment.
Spare Time
18 months
10 Hours/Week
- Creative & Business Advisors
- 1x Mentor
- Access to the Elton Community
- Full-time work allowed
Part Time
12 months
15 Hours/Week
- Creative & Business Advisors
- 2x Mentors
- Access to the Elton Community
- Full-time work allowed if aligned with curriculum
Accelerated
10 months
25 Hours/Week
- Creative & Business Advisors
- 3x Mentors
- Access to the Elton Community
- Part-time work allowed
Graduate Certificate in Writing
Prefer a shorter commitment? Earn the graduate certificate on its own, with the same 1-on-1 professors and coaching as the master's.
- 12 credits, one third of the master's (about 300 hours of engagement)
- Typically about 2.5–6 months, depending on your pace
- Credits stack: continue any time to finish the full master's degree
Full Refund During a 30 Day Trial Period
