Writing Genre Fiction MA



Our industry-informed teaching and one-to-one mentoring aims to help you establish or enhance a career in commercial genre writing.

Course overview

This course is ideal for writers of all fiction who are looking to take their craft to the next level and develop genre fiction writing skills.  

If you already have talent and ideas, this online degree is designed to add the expertise you need to approach your chosen market with confidence, originality and skill.

During your studies you will focus on popular fiction genres enabling you to professionalise your practice as a writer. Be it science fiction, fantasy, romance, crime, horror and historical fiction — you choose which to put at the heart of your learning journey.

In addition, our team of award-winning and bestselling authors will give you regular one-to-one creative and editorial mentoring sessions to support your development.

This MA is designed to be studied part-time over six trimesters. In the first, second and fourth trimester, you will study two modules each trimester. In the first year third trimester a single module: Creative Mentoring and in the second year fifth and sixth trimesters, you will undertake a single module: Major Project.

This course has a start date in September every year.

Mode of Study:

Online learning (Part-time)

Duration:

2 years

Start date:

Sep

Course details

Uniquely, the course offers a dynamic and pioneering range of popular genre fiction specialisms. Students can pursue their passion for fantasy, crime, mysteries and thrillers, historical, romance, science fiction, horror and writing for young adults.

Our approach to full-length narrative development enables you to deploy a range of unique and dynamic pre-writing techniques invented by our programme. This energetic combination of conceptual development and critical self-reflection aims to transform you into a technically adept, purposeful writer ready to make your mark.

Modules

The following list provides a flavour of the modules you will study in this degree. These are indicative only and reflect the course structure in the current academic year.

YEAR 1

Year 2

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    How you’ll be taught

    This part-time course takes six trimesters to complete, spread across 2 years.

    It is structured to support you through your journey. You will learn by a variety of teaching methods including pre-recorded lectures accessed on demand via the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), live online seminars and independent study. Any 'live' elements will take place during UK business hours (9 am - 5 pm) at a mutually suitable time for international students.

    We host an exciting array of guest speakers each year, ranging from award-winning authors to high-profile industry experts. Recent visiting speakers have included authors Victoria (V.E.) Schwab, L.R. Lam, Sandra Ireland, comics creators Emma Beeby and Will Morris, agents Jenny Brown and Rachel Neely at Mushens Entertainment, and editors Frankie Edwards and Beth Wickington at Headline and Sophie Orme at Bonnier Books.

    In Year One in the first trimester, the two modules you take (Project Development and Narrative Perspectives) each have one live weekly online seminar, which will be timetabled for a time which aims to suit the whole cohort depending on geographical locations. There is also one module with a live weekly seminar in the second trimester (Genre Fictions) and a second module Creative Mentoring which continues into the third trimester. This is a mentoring module when you will have one-to-one mentoring with your own personal mentor at a mutually suitable time.

    In Year Two, two modules (Publishing Pathways and Editorial Mentoring) will be timetabled for a time to suit the geographical locations of the cohort. One of these (Publishing Pathways) will have a weekly online seminar, while the second (Editorial Mentoring) will have one-to-one mentoring with your own personal mentor at a mutually suitable time.

    In the fifth and sixth trimesters (in Year Two) there is one long module (Major Project) with one-on-one project supervision at a mutually suitable time. For the modules (Creative Mentoring, Editorial Mentoring and Major Project), you will have occasional live events again the time of these will aim to suit the geographical locations of the cohort. Mutually convenient times for one-to-one meetings with your programme tutor will be arranged in advance.
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    Assessments

     Throughout the course, there will be formative and summative assessments. The summative assessment for each module will be a portfolio of creative and critical written work.
     
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    Facilities

    This course is taught online.

Meet your Programme Leader and Teaching Team

Throughout your studies, you'll learn from experienced professionals and industry leaders who bring valuable expertise, insight and real-world perspectives to your learning experience.

Programme Leader: David Bishop.

The course is taught by a team of award-winning industry professionals including David Bishop, a successful crime writer and former editor; internationally best-selling science fiction and horror author Nicholas Binge; acclaimed folklorist and weird fiction author Elizabeth Dearnley; and best-selling historical fiction author Noelle Harrison.

Read more about their established academic and professional careers

Disclaimer

Study modules mentioned above are indicative only. Some changes may occur between now and the time that you study.

Full information is available in our disclaimer.

Entry requirements

What are the entry requirements for Writing Genre Fiction?

To apply you will need a Bachelor Honours Degree with 2:2 or above in any discipline or other qualifications/experience which demonstrate through our recognition of prior learning process that you have appropriate knowledge and skills in Writing Genre Fiction equivalent to SCQF level 10.

To succeed on our Global Online degrees you must have access via computer or laptop to view and download written and video content. You will also need basic IT skills that enable you to write and edit document, send and receive email, find your way around our online learning environment and search for and access online learning resources, download files and use online forums. 

Can I get admission into Writing Genre Fiction based on my working experience in this sector?

This course has academic entry requirements which are assessed alongside relevant work experience. Full details of any relevant work experience, including references should be submitted with your application and may be considered for entry where the minimum academic entry requirements are below those required.

Usually, unrelated work experience is not considered sufficient for entry without meeting the minimum academic entry requirements. Please contact us with your specific circumstances by submitting an enquiry form above and we will be happy to discuss your options.

Can I make an appointment with an advisor to discuss further about the admission process?

If you want to get more information on the admission process, please get in touch with the Global Online admissions team by submitting an enquiry form above.

If your first language isn't English, you'll normally need to undertake an approved English language test. The English Language requirements for this programme are IELTS (Academic) with an overall score of 6.5 with no individual component score of less than 6.0. For guidance on the acceptability of other English Language tests please contact goadmissions@napier.ac.uk

We welcome applications from students studying a wide range of international qualifications.
Entry requirements by country

Please note that international students are unable to enrol onto the following courses:
  • BM Midwifery/MM Midwifery
  • MSc Nursing courses
  • All Graduate Apprenticeship courses

See who can apply for more information on Graduate Apprenticeship courses.

We’re committed to admitting students who have the potential to succeed and benefit from our programmes of study. 

Our admissions policies will help you understand our admissions procedures, and how we use the information you provide us in your application to inform the decisions we make.

Undergraduate admissions policies
Postgraduate admissions policies

Fees & funding

The course fees you'll pay and the funding available to you will depend on a number of factors including your nationality, location, personal circumstances and the course you are studying. We also have a number of bursaries and scholarships available to our students.

Tuition fees
2026/27 2027/28
UK Students (per 20 credits) £985 tba
Overseas Students (per 20 credits) £1,005 tba

Modules for your course can be purchased through our online store and must be paid in full at the time of enrolment. You will purchase modules in advance of each trimester of study.

The fee listed above applies to 20 credits. Please note that the full course comprises 120 credits in total for BA/BSc top-up programmes and 180 credits in total for MSc programmes.

Please note that you will pay the module fee according to the academic year in which you study each module. This means that the total cost of your course will vary depending on the year in which modules are undertaken.

If you are paying a fixed programme fee through one of our global partners, the cost will be no higher than if you were purchasing modules directly from our online store.

Tuition fees are subject to an annual review and may increase from one year to the next. For more information on this and other tuition fee matters, please see our Fees and Funding links above.


Please note:

The discount for Edinburgh Napier alumni can only be applied to year one of a full-time Postgraduate degree, any additional years are exempt from the discount.

For part time Postgraduate degrees the discount will apply to years one, two and three only and any additional years will be exempt from the discount.

Please read our full T&C here

Careers & employability

What can you do with an MA Writing Genre Fiction postgraduate degree?

MA Writing Genre Fiction is designed for those seeking to establish or advance their careers as commercial genre fiction authors. It stands out as a unique degree programme in the UK and worldwide for its focus on a wide range of genres including crime, fantasy, horror, science fiction, historical and romance.

This degree programme emphasises an industry-relevant learning approach. It provides graduates with knowledge and skills to navigate the evolving publishing landscape effectively. This knowledge is invaluable for those aiming to succeed in the publishing industry.

Furthermore, the course provides expertise for self-publishing, enabling students to bring their creative works to the market independently. Graduates also have the option to pursue a PhD in Creative Writing, contributing to research in the genre fiction and creative writing field.

What kinds of careers can you explore as a writer?

The world of writing offers diverse opportunities that can cater to a wide range of interests and talents. Writers can often transition between different roles throughout their careers, leveraging their writing skills in a variety of contexts. As a writer, you can explore a wide range of careers and opportunities across various fields. Some potential career options for writers include:

  • Writer of commercial genre fiction
  • Screenwriter and adaptation
  • Playwriting and game writing
  • Teacher of Creative Writing
  • Editor
  • Proof-reader
  • Book coach or mentor
  • Working in the publishing industry
  • Work in literary arts community
  • Arts administration
  • Copywriting
  • Brand storytelling
  • Journalism