Luis López Nieves (1950) two times National Award for Literature of Puerto Rico, is a Puerto Rico writer and professor of recognized international standing. He is the creator of the first Masters in Creative Writing in Latin America at the University of the sagrado COrazón (San Juan). He founded and directs the important Digital Library Ciudad Seva (more than 45 million visitors since its begining).
Nives López is the author of Hear of Voltaire, the international critically acclaimed novel as one of the most original of the century. He also wrote the famous historical account Seva, which has become one of the greatest literary successes of Puerto Rico, introducing a new literary from known as "history bartered".


   
www.ciudadseva.com



    Come in, Professor Miguel de Cervantes, please

   
   
The vast majority of Occidental universitires grant degrees in the field of Humanities. And usually afairly routine process and logical. A painter is studying a BA or MA in painting, and paint in it. A musician can receive a degree while learning to play an instrument. It is also common to see departments that grant degrees in, say, sculpture, acting or singing... and students learn to sculpt, act, or sing.
 
 In contrast, when
a student enters a department of traditional literature finds that he can learn to be a literary critic, literary historian, literary theorist or teacher... but in the classes he will not write novels, short stories, poems or dramas. That is, there may not be a writer. It is a scandal that this remains a reality in the vast majority of universities, especially in Spanish speaking countries.

  
  
In order to combat this cruel discrimination, in 2004 I founded the first Masters program in Latin America Creative Writing at the University of the Sagrado Corazón (San Juan de Puerto Rico). The following year it's been founded a similar program in Bogota, Colombia. Then, it's been founded another in Lima, Peru. Since then I have been reports of other masters in Latin America and Spain. But these programs are still a small minority exceptions.

   
 
Why do so many Occidental countries are full of traditional literature departments, but just have a university (if any) with a program of Creative Writing? Do they think that can be taught to paint, play guitar or sing, but you can not teach writing literature? Such ignorance is it possible?

 
  We're not in the Middle Ages. In a few weeks will begin in 2012. It is time for both universities and high schools and other preuniversity schoolsto erradicate this terrible discrimination and open doors to creative writing.
  
  
Why do we fear the professor Miguel de Cervantes?


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