I have an English degree myself, and it has been a long arduous journey, and at many points during and after I’ve asked myself “what is the POINT of this?”

As Randy mentions, you don’t have to justify your degree to anyone, and you will pick up valuable skills that will help you out down the line. For me, I thrived writing essays and I got in the habit of documenting thoughts very thoroughly. This has lent itself over nicely to creating documents containing background information (like character documents, theme documents, etc.)

Getting a degree is an epic journey in itself, one in which you will probably change as a person. As Randy suggests: if you want something bad enough, you’ll find a way to make it happen. What I think you need to do, Daniel, is to measure your priorities and determine what you want more right now; the degree, or the novel?

In my case, I have delayed work on a novel series due to studies (now completed), and I have to say that if you are set on writing a novel and you have ideas for that, the last thing you want to do is become a full-time student because it will take ALL your time from your writing. It’s not really feasible, unless you’re a workaholic, and even then it seems to me like it would be difficult.

A degree may benefit you, yes, but to be honest save the satisfaction you’ll get from finishing a degree, you can learn everything you need without paying an institution. Sites like this one will teach you the hands-on approach you need, and ultimately you will learn your own tricks from reading canonical works of literature (the kind of thing you’d be doing in an arts degree anyway).

Ultimately I would say yes, there is value in getting a degree, but IMO you should only do it when you are ready and it is your top priority in life.

I enjoyed reading your post about writing degrees and concur with you that whether or not to pursue a degree in writing depends on one’s goals.

I currently am in a unique program pursuing the MFA in Writing Popular Fiction at Seton Hill University. To my knowledge, this is the only program of its kind in that it focuses on the writing of commercial genre fiction.

There is a short residency held twice a year. Unlike most other writing degree programs, this one provides training not only in the writing of popular fiction but also in the marketing of it. Well-known novelists, agents, and publishers are invited to campus during residencies, and students are given the opportunity to pitch their work.

During the program, students are required to write a novel as their master’s thesis. We also have the benefit of one-on-one mentoring with a published novelist/instructor.

One of the features I like most about the program is that it is not theoretical but hands-on and based in the realities of the current publishing industry. Instructors are closely involved with the publishing industry and bring their expertise to the classroom.

As you said, no education is wasted. The two doctorates I’ve earned, the Ph.D. in French and Comparative Literature and the D.Min. in Christian Counseling, have served me well not only in writing fiction but also in daily life.

To improve your novel writing skills, I highly recommend attending writing conferences, taking a fiction writing course at the nearest community college, researching local and national writing organizations, reading magazines and blogs related to writing, checking out books from the library about writing fiction, researching workshops and presentations by authors like Randy, etc.

If you want the degree — go for it. But be aware that there are other avenues to acquire the information you seek to write your best novel.

Now I’ve begun writing and find that the typing class (yes, on actual typewriters) I took has been most helpful. I guess you’re right, Randy, there’s not such thing as a useless degree…

Indeed, I found that a typing class I did in college was by far the best thing I’ve ever done from a writer’s perspective. Ironically they don’t have typing classes required in the BA programs at the university I went to.

Randy, on the other hand, does not have the degree, either. So, I do not think it’s necessary. But if you have both time and money for it, why not? Personally, as a writer, I desire it. One can never tell. For example, Randy has explained to us how his educational background (which, of course, comprises both his pre-doctoral and post-doctoral experiences) has proven helpful in his writing career, instead of a creative-writing degree.

But I repeat: I would like to earn one, nevertheless. You never know how and when it will come in handy.

It is “. . . over a hundred million copies . . .”