Master of Fine Arts (MFA) programmes are now a common route for individuals seeking to become authors in the US. Many celebrated contemporary writers have obtained an MFA, including Percival Everett from Brown, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie from Johns Hopkins University, and Jhumpa Lahiri from Boston.
These graduate programmes, which can focus on fiction, poetry, or nonfiction, typically span two years. The cost for an MFA can vary significantly, from $10,000 for a low-residency programme to more than $80,000 per year for a full-time course. Over 250 such programmes are listed by the non-profit group Poets & Writers, primarily located in the US, with thousands of aspiring novelists enrolling annually.
The MFA format originated with the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, established in 1936 as the first creative writing MFA. Its teaching methodology centres on workshops where students discuss each other's work under the guidance of a professor. This environment is intended to encourage analytical examination of writing, focusing on craft.