The Publishing Laboratory

The Publishing Laboratory
The Publishing Laboratory
The Publishing Laboratory

The Publishing Laboratory

 

“The department’s Publishing Laboratory affords it professional instruction in publishing that, probably, no programs in the U.S. have yet matched, partly because UNCW’s affiliated literary magazines and press are so excellent, and partly because the program integrates publishing so well into its curriculum. The department has developed a new hybrid program, a studio/research/publishing type.”
     —Association of Writers & Writing Programs

Integral to the Department of Creative Writing, The Publishing Laboratory incorporates into the apprenticeship of creative writers an applied learning experience in the process by which literary manuscripts, including their own, are edited and designed into books and published to a wide audience of readers. Courses in the art and business of publishing lead to Certificates in Publishing at both the BFA and MFA levels.

Students have opportunities to study the history of the book, the publishing process, the craft of editing, book design and production, as well as to explore special topics including book arts, access in publishing, book marketing and publicity, and grant writing, among others. Students learn skills beneficial in adjacent fields—from public relations to arts management. Foregrounding the department’s nationally award-winning indie imprints Lookout Books, Ecotone, and Chautauqua, the certificate tracks offer apprenticeships in both book and magazine publishing, and an ongoing partnership with HarperCollins pairs students with senior publishing professionals for career advice and networking.