How To Become A Creative Writing Instructor: What It Is and Career Path

What is a creative writing instructor and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted Expert

David McMahan Ph.D.

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a creative writing instructor. For example, did you know that they make an average of $31.37 an hour? That's $65,256 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 12% and produce 159,400 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a Creative Writing Instructor?

David McMahan Ph.D.

Charles A. Dana Professor of Religious Studies, Franklin and Marshall College

Keep open to possibilities beyond the narrow range of what your diploma lists as your major or minor. Whatever job you get trained for today, in 10-20 years, it may be very different. Or it may not exist. Focus on obtaining and maintaining flexibility, critical thinking, creativity, and passion for learning. Being an interesting person is as vital as any credential.

ScoreCreative Writing InstructorUS Average

Salary

5.1

Avg. Salary $65,256

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

4.9

Growth Rate 12%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.2

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.28%

Asian 11.32%

Black or African American 7.05%

Hispanic or Latino 10.05%

Unknown 4.92%

White 66.38%

Gender

female 67.83%

male 32.17%

Age - 46

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 46

Stress Level

4.9

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

7.6

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

6.3

Work Life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a creative writing instructor

Explore creative writing instructor education requirements

Most common creative writing instructor degrees

Bachelor's

69.6 %

Master's

22.5 %

Associate

4.7 %

Start to develop specific creative writing instructor skills

Skills	Percentages
Literature	19.59%
Fiction	17.11%
Course Curriculum	12.31%
English Language	12.01%
ESL	9.72%

Research creative writing instructor duties and responsibilities

Develop lesson plans, teach mechanics and creativity in writing, teach reading, math and manage resource room as needed.
Create PowerPoint presentations for in class lessons and discussions.
Provide support for creative writing instructors for teen program, leading small group literature discussions.
Design and implement an original class syllabus along with daily lesson plans for undergraduate courses.

Prepare your creative writing instructor resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your creative writing instructor resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a creative writing instructor resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

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Apply for creative writing instructor jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a creative writing instructor job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams