I’d like to address the English / writing portion of the OP’s query. Reading quickly through the responses, I’d say your best bet for a strong writing curriculum, and one that closely matches your financial situation, would be W & M. I don’t think that’s a safety, but I do think you have pretty good chances of being admitted. UVa has had a traditionally top-ranked graduate program in English, and you should certainly apply. But, given your inclinations, you may find the writing environment at W & M a bit more supportive and cultivating. Others, please don’t flame me re : UVa; I surely recognize its nationally competitive English program, and there’s no denying the overall undergraduate curriculum’s strength. It just sounds maybe not as ideal a fit for this prospective student. If UVa somehow ends up being the best deal financially, however, it would be hard to turn down.
To get more concrete responses, you’re going to need some real, initial SAT scores.
I do like the St. John’s idea for you, but not clear if it would be affordable. Unfortunately, I agree that other OOS publics with traditionally strong English departments aren’t likely to give you much $$. Thus I’d suggest, to round out your list, look at some more privates; maybe look one “tier” lower than some of your initial list, and specifically, those which have been known for more generous merit packages. I can’t remember if you listed Grinnell, but I’d check to see if it offers any merit aid. I can’t vouch for it myself, but have read good things (it may be a bit too selective for much aid, but you never know).
If you can get significant aid from University of Iowa, it may be worthwhile. I’ve always been a bit leery of the undergraduate program strength, vs. the famed MFA program in writing. What I mean is, in this very particular case, I’ve not been convinced there’s much of a “trickle down” effect happening from the MFA down to the regular undergraduate pool. But there are still some writing resources available at Iowa that many others cannot offer (and it should actually offer more in the way of linguistics than most others on your list). This is due primarily to the culture that developed around the university (as the writing MFA gained prominence), and its surrounding environs, since roughly the mid-20th century.
For a reach, Brown would offer a great writing opportunity, if you were both accepted, and if they offered reasonable financial aid. Middlebury, Wesleyan, and perhaps Bennington could offer some writing opportunities for you as well, if their packages met your need.
Strong linguistics is traditionally more the domain of larger research universities. Of course, the smaller privates will offer some linguistics study, but not to the level of powerhouse research U’s. More research on your part would be beneficial for potential linguistics schools.