aww, kaybay...so, something chaotic and unexpected is going to happen to you. I'm deciding to think this chaotic thing will be GRAD SCHOOL :) Which will NOT 'push you over the edge' because you'll be so happy about it!
There. Add 'interpreter of horoscopes' to my resume :)
Please feel free to call me in the evenings. Call late; I don't mind. Mountain Standard Time is very forgiving for calling after the sun sets where you are. You can even call during Lost tonight. I'll keep my phone turned on, and I promise to answer, even if the scene I've been hoping for since before I dreamed of applying -- namely, Jack's death -- is imminent.
Whoever posted the dream about their nose being a magnet -- I laughed my head off about that earlier today :)
Anyway. I need to go home and de-stress. Unrelated to MFA stuff, I just had an all-out crappy day. Time for it to wind down.
I have to have a root canal on March 4. So suddenly, wishing it would be March (so my schools will be notifying) isn't really very attractive to me. I have an out-of-control dentist phobia. Awesome.
If I had access to a time machine, I wouldn't be here on this blog. I'd be very busy making $$$ in Vegas (betting on sports mostly because, you know, I know who won what).
...Aaaand let me leave you all with this lovely little thought. This afternoon I was driving on my street. Some little bird darted RIGHT in front of my windshield. I was like, WTF?, why are you flying so fast right in front of me, little bird? -- when, suddenly, a HAWK in pursuit caught up and nabbed that cute little ball of fluff right before my eyes, and flew away with it. Like some sort of nature-show IMAX, especially for me.
I spent a lot of time trying to work out the symbolism in this. It was obviously a message from the universe. Am I the magnificent hawk? Or the helpless, adorable little bird? Does hawk = adcom? Does grabbing the bird = admission to a program? Does being eaten by a hawk = rejection?
After a while I decided it all means I'm going to be accepted at Florida. Yes. It definitely means that.
I applied mostly because two of my favorite poets teach there (Marie Howe and Tina Chang). It's a program with a really good reputation; however, if admitted, I'm not even sure I'll be able to attend because it is very expensive and not funded, other than merit and federal aid.
I went to their open house and everyone was very nice and helpful. Students do work very closely with the faculty and get a lot of individual attention, it seems. Like instead of class-wide reading assignments, each student gets a personalized reading list from a faculty member.
Sarah Lawrence also doesn't let grad students teach any undergrad classes. I guess it's because the undergrads pay a ton of money to go there (it has the highest undergrad tuition in the country) to be educated by excellent professors, not grad students. That might benefit the undergrads but it's a turn-off for me because I really want to teach.
I asked a current student about this and she said that there are SOME opportunities to teach. Sarah Lawrence has programs for MFA students to teach in NYC high schools and in prisons(!). Also, there's some kind of arrangement where MFA students can teach at SUNY Purchase.
Just thought I'd share what I know about the program! Parts of it look awesome to me. My main concern is the expense.
What it means is, life goes on. The world will continue to spin on its axis around the sun, oblivious to our MFA hopes and dreams.
When I was in high school, a friend of mine and I were eagerly waiting for our college acceptance/rejection letters for several months. Sometime in March, he got into a car accident and was killed. The very next day, he got a letter from Duke saying he was accepted. How's that for cruel?
Haha, love that! But as much as I want to hear back (positively) from my schools, nothing---and I mean NOTHING---would make me miss the scene that I, myself, have been waiting for for years...and that is KATE'S death! ;)
Maybe if they turn out to be the bodies of the mysterious "romeo and juliet," we'd both get our wish! (And, you know, grad school admittance as well).
I'm from Hawaii. Glad to see us at the top! Though lots of people have never left the islands and have nothing to compare their lives to. Still, it's a great place
Brown also had this "experimental" or "avante garde" reputation. Didn't really know what that meant. A short story without any characters? A story about a guy who swims from one New Jersey suburb to another via the backyard swimming pools? Jamaica Kincaid "Girl" stuff?
@Rose - Someone on the Speakeasy at P&W called Minnesota today and asked about nonfiction (all the acceptances were sent out on Monday). This sent me into a panic, of course, and I called to ask about fiction, but no one was in the office. I plan on calling tomorrow. I'll post here what I find out. (Unless you'd rather not know!)
The VT interview is 20 minutes long (or short?). I have no idea what they're going to ask me. My guess:
Why VT? What do you know about VT? What is your philosophy of teaching? Whose work do you admire? What is your 10-year goal? What is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow?
...and a few others. I don't think I have to prepare anything. I imagine they'll ask me things I should've already resolved in my head. Just stay composed, be natural, and answer truthfully.
@A. Astur A. -- I love Barthelme's work. One of my favorites. In fact, I have his 60 Stories collection right here on my desktop. Somehow, I don't find his work to be "experimental" simply because they read like modern fairy tales to me. And they're so funny and horrifying at the same time, e.g., "The School."
The word "experimental" really doesn't mean a whole lot. It's going to be different things to different people, and what is generally perceived to be avante-garde changes with generations. A lot of people wouldn't consider David Foster Wallace to be experimental but a lot of the literary "tricks" and "tools" he used in his work was the bread and butter of older writers (i.e. Coover at Brown) that were, at least at one point in time, considered experimental.
@Woon - I'm very surprised you don't find his work experimental. I just read 60 stories a few months ago. Maybe it's just a sign of the times that his work has now been swallowed and accepted by the mainstream. Kind of like how unenthusiastic I was the last time I watched Apocalypse Now. I do agree with you, however, about some of the stories in there being really funny.
I've never really understood what people mean by experimental fiction. Much of what's been pointed out as contemporary experimental fiction to me seems less innovative or divergent from the norm than Finnegans Wake, Tristram Shandy, or Robbe-Grillet.... *shrug*
Maybe that's something I can learn about in grad school. Someone let me in! ;)
@frankish - I know what you mean! How divergent from divergent can you get? I tried once. I read Burroughs' The Soft Machine backwards with one eye closed.
Ironically, when you do that the entire narrative becomes a romance novel about a man in search of good a good cornbread recipe.
It kind of didn't work because I remember a similar article in McCall's.
Actually, I've been spending my "free" time watching crap DVDs like "Hawaii 5-0." For the most part, "Hawaii 5-0" is really bad (terrible writing, bad cinematography, bad composition, bad scene design, bad costume, bad acting, etc.). The show represents what's wrong with TV, but on several occasions, the writers/directors tried to do something new (at the time, that is) and tried to tell stories in a non-traditional way (non-traditional to TV, that is): 1st person POV, unreliable memory, non-linear storytelling, etc. Looking back, it seems very fresh and risky. Not being a TV historian, I don't know if all TV shows from the late 1960s and early 1970s experimented in that fashion. But in some ways, I found newfound respect for the producers of "Hawaii 5-0" for wanting to do something different and unique. Not all the time, but enough to notice.
After reading about the rejection-stuffed mailboxes, I prepared myself for a disappointing day. I was about to leave work when my partner calls and says, "I didn't open it, but I held it to the sun and saw the word 'waitlist'-- do you mind if I look?"
Waitlist for CNF at Wyoming!
Hadn't heard anything about a WY waitlist on his blog so I thought I'd share.
Cheers to all who've had good news and good luck to the rest.
Does anyone happen to know where Montana is in their process? I think earlier on someone posted that they spoke with the program and were told decisions would be made in mid-late March, but this seems a bit late, given the April deadline. Any other news?
according to TSE's response databank, Montana has called acceptances between the 1st and 12th of March.... most within the first week of March, though...
I just wanted to offer what little insight I have into the way UNCG handles their applications. I have no idea when they'll start notifying, but they tend to make their offers in batches. What I'm saying is don't lose hope if a few people get in or start getting friendly emails. I didn't hear anything from uncg until late in the game last year (mid to late March) so don't give up hope!
Things tend to move really slowly here (and possibly have been slowed down even more by a couple weeks of snowstorms and ice). Anyway, hope that helps a little... I have very clear memories of how stressful this time was. Good luck to all!
A few people got accepted. A lot got rejected. One or two went crazy waiting and baked/ranted/ate paint. The rest wait with bated breath and no fingernails for tomorrow and hope/pray/beg for answers.
My constant semi-neurosis with this whole process has lead me to one conclusion...that being, it is time to get a puppy. So, now I have a puppy!! And I recommend this too everyone else, don't think about it, just get the puppy!
Hi all! I've heard that some programs (like Virginia) offer an optional 3rd year for students if they choose to teach. Does anyone know if this is common?
When I move wherever I'm going to move, I'm getting a hamster. And possibly a hedgehog. I'm just not ready to commit to a puppy. Possibly ever, after the constipated puppy story my friend just told me.
@NickMcRae - Congratulations on your Vanderbilt waitlist! The way you're going, they'll probably admit you NEXT WEEK. ;-) I've been a fan of yours since last year, so your successes absolutely electrify me!
@MRM - Congratulations on Arizona State! This was from a two years ago, but it sounds like ASU has phenomenal summer travel fellowships and other great summer support. From a post at P&W:
Besides the TAships there are a bunch of 'summer fellowships': basically $5000 to spend over the summer, and an array of 'travel opportunities'-- they take you around the world giving you teaching experience and paying for you... currently there are programs in singapore and china, though 6-8 students went to mexico over winter, a bunch have been to india, and there's plans to start a program in australia next year. all these grants come with free airfare and lodging, and a stipend (singapore is $4000, China is $2000), and you can apply for it after your first or second years. There's also a number of 'individual travel fellowships' where they give you money to travel-- that's in limbo this year, but they're restarting it soon apparently. http://www.pw.org/speakeasy/gforum.cgi?post=260121#260121
I'm sorry if this is already well-known information. Just, when I read your acceptance, this funding is the first thing that came to mind! If you get any more information on this, would you please be kind enough to update us on ASU's travel funding situation?
@YellowLux - Congratulations on George Mason! I think you're the first one here with an official official acceptance.
@EPAC - Congratulations on getting into Northwestern! Please tell us more about it, as you learn more.
@amanda & BradSmith - Congratulations on your impressive waitlists! You made it through a lot of tough competition to earn those spots. Boo-Yah!
@MountainKing - Congrats on breaking into Syracuse's waitlist -- and good luck this year! After reading about your struggle last season, your determination and your efforts to tighten up your work, I'm really cheering for you. You seem like a super-dedicated writer and a well-centered person, I hope that all of your positives come though as strongly in your application packets as they do on this blog.
Thanks for taking the time to help clarify. Thinking about waiting to hear til late March makes me a tad nauseous, but in truth, UNCG is worth waiting for.
@Jasmine: you have just posted at number 666. Make sure you do not get a slavering gray puppy with burning eyes and burping fire as a pet. Also stay away from heavyset middle-aged women wearing awful tweed who jump off rooftops. Oh, and make sure your head does not turn all the way round when you're throwing up.
I see now that I have cursed myself into having some kind of hellspawn rodent in grad school. I will be prepared with some power of Christ in my pocket.
My mom met one of the profs at U of Michigan last week, and he said that they got 1100 applications, and were still reading through them. He said they were still reading fiction, and hadn't really started on the poetry ones. I reckon it'll be a while.
Just got a funding update -- full numbers, full details -- from Pete Turchi at ASU. This was last night. TSE has been updated with the new information. This should be seen as the definitive word on ASU funding right now -- any ancillary fellowships are not being advertised by the program as available to all students, and any non-listed topping-up fellowships should be presumed to go to few enough students that they should not be part of anyone's matriculation decision. The upshot is $16,133.33/year (average) for three years in guaranteed money to all. That includes all sources of income given to all students, not just TAships -- i.e., yes, summer, travel, and other stipends have been included. This moves Arizona State to #9 nationally in funding.
@chrissy MAN, and here was getting all excited because Michigan seems to notify around 2/18 like clockwork.
At least they are taking the much higher number of applications seriously and (I presume) spending more time with them instead of giving each applicant half of the reading time before.
Call from an unknown number this morning while I was driving to class. Dug through my bag frantically for the phone, heart pounding, answered with a very excited voice, and it was my doctor's office. This is getting crazy.
I keep thinking that ONE of these times, it has to be an MFA program! Instead of the doctor, or my school, or the other places with unknown/out-of-state numbers that have called me recently, not knowing how disappointed I would be that they are calling to say "you need to make an appointment!" instead of "congratulations on your acceptance!" :P
@LauraT Same thing just happened to me! I had a call from an unknown number with a strange area code… it was a bill collector. Double letdown.
Also, am I the only person who is so nervous that they’re scrambling to research programs with a March 1st deadline? I applied to seven schools (what I thought was a reasonable number), but I’m finding myself envious of people who sent out ten or twelve or fifteen applications.
@Lizzie I am in that boat as well. I applied to 7 programs and they are all pretty selective. This is my first time going through this process and I have already learned a lot. If I dont get in anywhere, I am applying to 12-15 programs next time!
Lizzie, I applied to twelve and am finding myself envious of people who applied to twenty! But I think that if I had applied to twenty, I would be wishing I'd applied to thirty... The only thing that stops me from applying to late-deadline schools is how much I don't want to ask my recommenders to do any more work than they already did!
Fill us in on that fin aid form... you have me semi-freaking out about CSU not sending me anything (aside: didn't someone get a GNE from them awhile ago, about a background check for TA-ships or something? Woon?)
Between these two pieces of info I'm thinking CSU doesn't want me (unless John and Woon are both in poetry, then maybe I'll have a smidge of hope left)
I'm into taking the worst case scenario whenever possible, can you tell
I really hope it means something good though. It's a link to their RAMweb system, which I am currently locked out of, so I can't see the form. Hopefully after work I will straighten it out...
... yes! hopefully it means something good!!! Even if they don't want me (although the different genre thing just increased my hope slightly), I hope they want you! Ignore my bitching and gloominess... I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!
I was thinking about adding 1-2 programs because I have extra sealed and signed letters from my recommenders. I spent a long time researching programs and picking the ones that fit me best. I doubt that being accepted to a school I didn’t love would be much better than not being accepted at all.
I think I’m just overwhelmed and disappointed that nearly two weeks after a GNP, I’m still without an acceptance.
Question, all, is it out of line to call all the programs I applied to and ask if they know when/how they'll be notifying people? I feel like it would ease my mind a little...
So far, waiting to hear from these schools has been the worst experience of my life. The first two rejections crushed me. The possibility of another 7 rejections--I don't know. I read a post earlier that said something about being prepared for these rejections. I'm not prepared.
I applied to 11 schools. Originally that felt like the perfect number. Big enough to cover my ass..or so I thought.. Now, like everyone, I'm thinking..maybe it wasn't enough.
Anyone stuck in a rut in terms of a "plan B"? I want to keep trying on one hand, but also know, if I keep trying, other bits of my life will remain in limbo; my greatest concern of which is my long-term relationship. I probably won't be able to decide until I get a yay/nay from my schools..but still..why not obsess about it if I've got the time, yea? haha
Your GNP could have happened right after they read your writing sample, after which point they could have still had the majority of samples left to read. Believe it or not, some of these programs do try to avoid admitting anyone until they're nearing a good understanding of their final/overall admissions decisions. Which means no matter how much they liked you early on, you're going to be waiting along with everyone else.
My plan B is pretty unimaginable: keep working the same job that I hate... I just got back from Mardi Gras to find a rejection from Wyoming. Hungover, withdrawing from toxic substances is not an ideal state in which to deal with rejection. Here's to hoping for better...
I'm so sorry nono <3 I know exactly what you mean. I've only gotten two rejections so far but it's seriously doing a number on me... I woke up at 4AM in the morning and had a crying fit/anxiety attack about getting rejected from all six schools. keeping fingers crossed for everybody...
@ Meredith, I know what you mean about dreading-the-future mode. I'm finishing undergrad in May, and if I get into an MFA program this year, it'll basically be the best thing that's ever happened to me, a new and exciting period of my life, etc. But without an acceptance, graduation looks like the most dreaded thing, because I have no idea what else to do other than go to grad school, and I don't really want to do anything else!
Mountain King, I love your attitude. It's a good approach; good luck.
YARebels, sorry to hear about Wash U :(
Ashley B, Happy Birthday for yesterday!!!!!!
Everyone else, chin up! There's always next year. I applied to 7 top ten schools and already have one definite no and two implied rejections. You gotta just keep on truckin'. A writer writes, MFA acceptance in the bag or not. Shitty jobs n'all. There are enough writers to emulate on this front!
Big good luck and hang in there vibes to you all - oh, and cupcakes.
Just called Michigan--they told me that they'll have letters mailed out early next week at the latest. I asked if they notify any other way, and the woman confirmed that they do send emails as well. So, we'll know by next week at the latest!
Thanks Vivian for sympathizing. Thanks also to Eli for the encouraging words. I just can't let myself get so down because I got a couple rejections. Even if I don't get in anywhere, it won't stop me from writing.
If I don't get in, I'm going to have to keep working a job that I just CANNOT imagine working at in a few months. The idea alone keeps me awake at night. I graduated from undergrad almost two years ago now, always with the plan of going to grad school this fall.... any other route = hello alcoholism. Srsly, I'm freaking out (panic attacks in my cubicle, not kidding) more and more every day that goes by with no acceptance. Please GOD let us all get in!
@John and Meredith - I am in at CSU for poetry (spoke with the director this weekend), and did not receive the financial aid email. I also did not ask whether they had notified all the accepted students in each genre. I apologize; i was overwhelmed and should have scoured for more community information. I know how nerve wracking this process is.
As for the speak of Plan B's. I applied last year to 5 schools and was universally rejected. I won't lie - it was devestating, I felt lost, and I considered quitting. But, I mustered the energy, and reapplied this year to 8 schools. I did more research on the programs, put together a more solid portfolio that I think represented me, took my GREs again, yada yada. I had a Plan C this year in place, just to be proactive and avoid the emotional turmoil of last year's rejections. But, it was worth it, and I'm so stoked about CSU's program...
@ Chelsea on the plan B question - I am 31 and married; both states have altered how I look at my situation re grad schools.
The short of it is, every single option has its pluses and drawbacks. Maybe you say "duh," but I don't think me at 25 would have grasped the nuances (or had my current attachments).
My best option is getting into the Mitch, UVa, Cornell, or another such tip-top fully funded MFA paradise. Even that really awesome (but highly unlikely) outcome means that I and spouse have to leave our good life in NYC, where we've got tons of friends, an apartment we like, professional contacts and her job, and an overall setup that works for us. At a certain age just up and moving like that starts to lose its luster. We'd do it, most likely, but that option's not without cost.
The alternative is, I go somewhere in NYC. No, I don't go into med-school debt for Columbia. I go into moderate, new-car debt for a CUNY school, if I'm lucky enough to get in. But there's still cost of living and quality of life too. New York on my salary is doable - New York on student loans and a part-time job is not as fun.
So I'll be disappointed if I don't get in, but I like my current life too, and I'm glad to live it for another year if that's how the cards fall. I understand that me at 25 would scowl at this supine attitude, but there it is.
I suppose the other thought I have is that, while an acceptance would be a major encouragement for my work and would help me move it forward (it might even be crucial for its development), it's just one step in the path, and not a necessary one. The more I realize just how responsible I am for the creative work I produce (and not just the creating but the dissemination, the business of it, everything), the more an MFA becomes just one avenue for moving the work forward. Believe me, each rejection will disappoint me, but I don't know that I'll be crushed in the primal way I would have at ages 20-25. Previous rejections have broken me in a bit, partially bc I see that I will in fact continue what I need to, and partially bc once the shock and grief (which are real) pass, you do gain knowledge and clarity on what's important and how you will keep going, which has a strange reassurance.
Of course, we'd all rather be blogging the lessons learned from amazing success...
When I opened my Wyoming rejection, it was kind of like when you know someone is going to dump you, so you start talking to other people anyway and then when the end comes it's sort of like, meh. No problem.
Wisconsin (rejected) Umass Amherst Michigan Brown Iowa UNH
Given that list, my hopes are not high. An amazing apartment is available to rent NOW. Do I go ahead and sign a lease? I don't want to break the lease(should I get in) But I also don’t want to pass on an amazing apartment when the odds of being accepted are so low.
Haha my Plan B is to move to NYC, hope I sell another book, work in a bakery or something, and live in a shack apartment with two-three other starving writers. Anyone up for it?
I don't think I have good advice on the apartment, but for the schools, the "odds" are low only in terms of how many people applied vs how many get in, not in terms of whether or not you're a good fit for any of those schools. That's unquantifiable. An acceptance could happen for you or anyone even at a highly selective school, that's the nature of the game. Don't count yourself out just yet.
Your reply gives me a bit of disorienting hope. Which is a compliment. Trust me :)
I'm basically @ a place where, if I got in, it would more or less be perfect timing. I graduated last year, took a year off to keep writing on my own and attend many workshops @ Grub St in Boston. I'm very much itching to get back into school.
My worry is, if I don't get in this round, the more time between undergrad and graduate will infintely complicate my future. To elaborate; "life" as it were, will get in the way and my opportunities will diminish and putting an MFA off will just become a habit.
I got the CSU financial aid email today too. First I checked my application status - still pending. So I went through the steps they said but all I get is screens saying they've gotten my FAFSA and I'm not eligible for financial aid because, well, I haven't been accepted yet!
I really don't get the point of this, but I'm not overly concerned. Especially because the email mentions processing documents by NOVEMBER 2010. WTF? I don't know. But whatevs!
Yeah, I'm a literary YA author, and my first book comes out with Disney*Hyperion August 2011 (they have a two YEAR pub cycle, it's crazy! But they put out award-winners, so I like em :p) My debut's called The Near Witch, and it's a dark fairy tale :)
Alright, raise your hands if you want to move to NYC with me and open a bakery? :p
Emerson: They're still saying it'll be 6-8 weeks after your application was complete via mail. No other info.
George Mason: They said the majority of applications have been read, but there are still many more. They've already made a few offers in fiction because they're further along in that process. They'll notify via email.
UMass-Amherst: SOON! They'll be calling in notifications in the next day or two, according to their receptionist!
Virginia: they're on track for early March, and will notify via email or mail (depending on the offer, not acceptance or rejection; i.e. if you got a fellowship, they might email you the offer).
Arizona: They'll notify the beginning of March by phone or email (rejection=formal letter). The woman said CNF was on track, but poetry and fiction were a little behind.
I'll keep you posted when I get in touch with the other schools I called!
@Jojee: Congrats on CSU. I'm a Colorado girl (though I went to their rival, University of Colorado). My college boyfriend and still best friend went to CSU (I lived there for 6 months with him). Fort Collins is a sweet little town. Nice coffee shops, mostly quiet, near Poudre Canyon/River. It's a nice place to be.
I also applied to CSU in poetry and received the financial aid email, but I assumed it was just a formality. I haven't received a phone call, email or letter, so I'm losing hope.
Congrats to all acceptances and waitlists!
@Ashley Brooke: A belated Happy Birthday to you!! I am sorry about that adulterating bad news, but I wish good things for you this week!!
Good luck everyone. I'm starting (so fucking lazily) to consider plan B.
I'd like to be in charge of the vegan baked goods. I've got this muffin, it's called the "Why Can't We All Just Get Along" muffin. It's vegan, with maple syrup, black, white and peanut butter chocolate chips and bananas.
This is one degree where I believe that plan Bs aren't that bad.
This isn't undergrad or law school where not getting into a program for one year means you won't get in next year. That gives you another eight months or so to improve as a writer before you try again. Read, write, submit to magazines, and find some people to critique your work (online if need be). Just keep the momentum going in the right direction.
I had a professor in undergrad who wouldn't even write a recommendation for anyone to get into an MFA until they had been out of school for at least two years. While his reasoning was that people needed life experience outside of academia (and having a job you hate is part of that), I think it also was a way to weed out the people who didn't really want to do it. They wanted to get an MFA because it was the next degree. As a piece of paper, an MFA isn't worth much. You'll probably get out of a program with a book-length manuscript in your genre, but that is less important than the next book-length manuscript you create. If you aren't able to produce work without an assignment as your only motivation, an MFA isn't going to do much for you.
Basically every great writer has hundreds of stories about the seemingly endless stream of rejections they received up until their first acceptance. It's just part of the writing life. Persistence is probably just as important as talent, if not more so.
So, if you don't get in, just keep writing. Prove through your work that this is something you need to do, and you should have a much stronger portfolio for next year. Or hell, you could just write a great novel and not have to go to an MFA at all.
@pencore: That sounds great. The more ridiculous ingredients, the better. That's also my general rule of thumb when it comes to butter in baking. I may be the only person under 110 lbs. who will croak from cholesterol-related heart problems.
Also for anyone who was in the same boat as me for Michener, with the application status reading just "We've received all your materials", mine FINALLY says it's been forward to committee. So hooray, rejection is now more imminent! :P
Loving the Plan B talk. Getting excited about non-MFA options has been the only thing keeping me sane through this process.
As of now: follow my bf to Chicago, where he just got into grad school. Live for free in his apartment. Get a crappy job and use the money to pay for classes at the Second City and iO, which will keep me fulfilled while I'm applying to MFAs again. I like!
@pencore: Sorry about that rude butter comment after your vegan posting. I'm vegetarian, but the buck stops at no butter. I kid. I have many treasured vegan recipes also. I, too, crown you king of vegan muffins.
YArebels - I think by now the Cornell fiction acceptances have to be done :( we've already heard from at least two people on the board who got in and there are only four spots... odds are high that the other two just don't post here. But then again, waitlists, etc, are still a possibility.
@Vivian alas, that's what I figure. But with such a short list of schools, I don't like to mark anything OFF until I get an actual notice. There's always waitlist :p
I applied to CSU for Fiction, but honestly, I wouldn't be too freaked out - considering that the email led absolutely nowhere online, it's a bit of a stretch to assume an acceptance from it, so don't lose heart! :)
My baking is butter-free! It's because I am one of those people who eats what I make, so I have to bake stuff that won't bloat me out.
I've also got these "Holy Shit! You're Alive" cookies, baked in honor of some friends who were in Indonesia when that big earthquake happened years ago. That one is chunky chocolate chips to the max.
@ Chelsea - I don't know. "Life" getting in the way sounds nebulous. As someone who decided to do this after ten years out of school and just recently married, I found that that most things are negotiable. Life might complicate things - ie rule out certain schools for various reasons - but I don't feel it's gotten in my way so far. Two friends of mine of similar ages just started their MFAs and had babies this past fall. It can be done.
@ SamStod: Great perspective. Thanks. Also, there are many ways to write in some capacity in the job world. Yeah, no one is going to pay me to write bizarre, morbid poetry, but someone might pay me to write clever copy for their print work.
And aiming for publication is a great way to move forward. You're very right.
Originally my Plan B was to keep working at my decent (well-paying and somewhat tolerable) job and save up more money. But that Plan B is increasingly filling me with despair and dread. I'm thinking now, as financially imprudent as it would be, that I may owe it to my sanity to move somewhere else (somewhere very cheap) and get some sort of mindless job for the next year so that I can really devote time to writing. My current job is so time-consuming and mind-consuming (and keeps me awake nights) that it's so difficult to make time to write or to even devote mental space to thinking about writing. The money's decent, and in this economy it seems like such a ridiculous thing to leave such a good job - but when you feel like your soul is being sucked out of you, maybe you should leave anyway?
Ugh. I get depressed just thinking about possible Plan Bs. Let's hope it doesn't come to that!
Caleb, Thanks! I've received no such e-mail or login information but I sure am reloading my inbox like crazy. Were you applying for an MFA or PhD? Also, what schools are you waiting on?
Anybody else hear from Kansas?
My Plan B is teaching English in Taiwan. I've wanted to do that for a while, but as this gets more and more real I get more opposed to it because the idea of applying from abroad next year just makes me realize it will take even MORE work. But I will do it if I must!
That's not too bad. Some well-regarded presses (albeit the smaller and "newer" outfits Akashic and Dzanc) have a backlog so long that their writers have to wait years until their books come out. I actually have a friend that works in a bakery now. He's taking advantage of all that schoolin in physics and applied mathematics : - ) He's having the time of his life. It's all what you make of it I suppose.
I have 6 left to hear from. My plan B is to find a job that, in theory, provides more writing time (perhaps a bakery?) and continue working on my novel and story collection (and of course getting more stories published). I'll apply again.
Jamie, very well said. Especially the last paragraph - similar to my thinking these days. It'll be 10 years since undergrad when/if I reapply next year and it's been a bloody interesting 10 years. I can certainly deal with it continuing in its current state - (it being crap jobs, no time to have a life anymore becos the weekends are spent writing, etc) - if I don't get extremely lucky this year and get in somewhere. I appreciate how things are and that it can be useful sometimes to not get what you want. I've always got exactly what I wanted academically, so this will be undoubtedly pants, but because of the odds, I'm giving myself a break. We have to rock on regardless.
SamStod, you're right. Rejection upon rejection has always been part of this particular game. Gotta make peace with it, though it's extremely hard when you've worked so hard - of course...
@ Andrew: Good question. It's unclear. Email Marnie (the MFA administrator - address on their website). She's pretty responsive when she has the time. Good lady.
@ Samstod - I got an encouraging note from my sister yesterday along those same lines. She wrote, "an MFA isn't your *life* - it's a *part* of your life." I don't mean to sound trite, as I'm not trying to belittle anyone's dream, but Plan B can be as good as Plan A, really. Maybe we all (myself included) just need to challenge ourselves to think of some really amazing "Plan B"s that will have MFA committees saying, "Woa, who is this person?" (in a good way) next year. Yes?
So I actually decided to call the Financial Aid department at CSU and it just seems that the email gets sent out when they receive your FAFSA but you haven't been accepted yet. Kind of stupid Catch-22 situation. So I would assume you just wouldn't get the email if you haven't applied for financial aid. Weirdness. But not an acceptance, unfortunately. :P Oh well, hopefully we'll hear soon!
@Lizzie--they don't know who you are! And usually are reallllly nice. The woman at George Mason asked my name and checked my application status for me. She was very kind. Don't worry about calling! It completely destressed me, and I empower you to do it! I just had a script, and went for it. (I'm nervous on the phone).
@everyone--you're welcome! It's good to know something, right?
@WT, true, true. Two years isn't so bad. A lot of it is that the editors are PERFECTIONISTS and so I'm in a seven-month edit cycle, not even counting the design and production that follows.
@Chrissy and others who've called programs for status updates:
Thank you so much for calling to get answers for the rest of us. I still have trouble ordering a pizza over the phone, so I'm not brave enough to do this legwork. But it's so nice to have answers (even if they're conservative, less-than-completely-honest answers from programs). Being in the dark is truly driving me crazy!
That's good advice. An MFA is (in the nicest sense of the word) a do-nothing degree. You might be able to get a job teaching comp at a high school or community college, but if you want to teach writing, then you have to write. And if you want to write, well...you know, you have to write.
An MFA gives you time to devote to writing, and an environment to help you focus your energy. Viewing the MFA as a stepping stone to your eventual goal as opposed to the goal itself should help put it in perspective. No one is going to turn your book down because you didn't get into Iowa. Focus on the writing any everything else will follow.
What did she tell you when she checked your application status?
I had a similar situation at Northwestern and I knew that she knew, but didn't give me an answer. She just hesitated and then said that about half the acceptances still need to be notified.
@ Ashley Brook: oh my goodness, go to Taiwan! I spent two years teaching English in Japan, and had an amazing time. On another note, I applied from abroad this year (not Japan, but still) and would be happy to pass on any tips. It wasn't difficult at all. I got really organized in October, and did what everyone else did as far as keeping up with recommenders. The only drawback was that I couldn't send all my info (transcripts etc) in one big packet. Drop me your email if you want to chat specifics.
@Jasmine, No celiac here, but my boyfriend's brother has it, so I've learned to reform my baking habits when need be. My favorite gluten-free desserts so far are:
@YARebels: Amazing! With a title like that it sounds like just the sort of book I would have gobbled up much too late at night with a towel stuffed under my door to block the late-night reading light from my parents'. I have such admiration for well-written YA. Congratulations!
I've just joined the waitlist ranks for Wyoming! For fiction! They like my stories! I love Wyoming!
But now what? How many people are accepted into their program? How many people are on the waitlist? Is there an order? Is anyone familiar with this process? Is there something I should be doing to gently nudge my status from 'waitlisted' to 'accepted'?
@Katie Thank you! There's SO MUCH amazing YA out there, and they tend to vanish beneath the blanket of shitty commercial paranormal romance, which is sad b/c then people don't take ANY of YA seriously.
Ashley B, applying from abroad is easy enough, just expensive - I used fedex to make sure my applications were delivered ok. Big bucks. Hopefully you won't have to do it (my fingers are crossed for ya!) but it's no bigger hassle than applying from anywhere else, i reckon...and whenever I was stuck, I turned to this 'ere handy blog for advice, and everything was peachy! So go to Taiwan! Or somewhere!* Would be sweet!
I also make these "Sweet Sweet Solidarity Bars" which are like soft, chewy peanut butter granola bars with black and white chocolate chips in neat button rows next to each other. Ha!
OH! And I've been working with a chocolatier. With the right equipment, this could be a bakery/confectionary. We can make truffles after our favorite authors. Flannery O'Connors truffle is gonna be maple syrup'd (after Waffle House, obvs), Lorrie Moore's truffle will be banana walnut with a hint of rum, JD Salinger's truffle is going to be infused with coconuts.
Heck yeah! Calling our bakery "Sweets to the Sweet" too cliche?
Jamie, I know you're right about life. That newer, different opportunities are opportunities nonetheless. And if by chance, I don't make it in this round, I keep writing and living. Simple as that. I think my nerves get the better of me at different times throughout the day. Thanks for screwing my head back on! Much needed!
K Peaquash; sappy or not, I really enjoy that notion of the MFA not being someone's life but being a part of it. It's something that can keep a writer focused and kepe shit in perspective. Again, much needed. haha
I'm enjoying the Plan B talks, btw. It's getting me to smile through my nerves.
@YARebels — Some of my favorite books, still, are the books I read as a child and into my early teenage years. You have such an opportunity to really amaze and delight and hook readers then. I feel like I remember details from "The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler" FAR better than most things I read in college, sadly...
In fact, sometimes I miss being able to read like I could read then, without analyzing and picking apart language and marveling at craft. Really, it was more about swallowing books whole at that point in my life.
@pencore We'd be quite a team. My mom was a dessert caterer for awhile, and I bake A LOT. When I first decided I wanted to own a bakery, I wanted to call it Drury Lane after the Muffin Man rhyme :p
@DFW1986 First she couldn't find my name. Haha. But then when she did, she said that it was still being read. I told her that I had just gotten the "Your application is complete/processed" email yesterday, and was concerned because I'd heard of some fiction acceptances via email, and she told me not to worry, that they were still reading. So, I guess I can't trust it, but since I did just get the notification that my application was being forwarded for review, I tend to trust her a bit more.
@Rose--you can call and ask where you are on the waitlist and how many others their are. Then you'll feel a little more comfortable in your standing. According to the MFA Handbook, the first few spots often get in.
@Katie Sadly, I pick apart YA books the same way I pick apart adult ones :p But YA books, when done WELL, can have an immediacy to them, as well as the literary presence of adult lit. that makes them far more un-putdownable :)
Feeling a bit empowered (thanks, Chrissy), so I just spoke to the graduate coordinator at Alabama and she says that while they have notified accepted writers, they will continue to accept and notify students from all genres over the next months.
@ Chelsea - Glad I could do my little bit. Because I can say my best thoughts doesn't make me a picture of calm either - I have been waking up at night with anxiety too and questioning whether obsessing over acceptances/rejections is good for my health.
1,757 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 601 – 800 of 1757 Newer› Newest»aww, kaybay...so, something chaotic and unexpected is going to happen to you. I'm deciding to think this chaotic thing will be GRAD SCHOOL :) Which will NOT 'push you over the edge' because you'll be so happy about it!
There. Add 'interpreter of horoscopes' to my resume :)
oh, and i can't think i've said it yet, but happy birthday Ashley :-)
Dear AdCom Members Who Lurk on this Blog,
Please feel free to call me in the evenings. Call late; I don't mind. Mountain Standard Time is very forgiving for calling after the sun sets where you are. You can even call during Lost tonight. I'll keep my phone turned on, and I promise to answer, even if the scene I've been hoping for since before I dreamed of applying -- namely, Jack's death -- is imminent.
Sincerely,
X
Whoever posted the dream about their nose being a magnet -- I laughed my head off about that earlier today :)
Anyway. I need to go home and de-stress. Unrelated to MFA stuff, I just had an all-out crappy day. Time for it to wind down.
I have to have a root canal on March 4. So suddenly, wishing it would be March (so my schools will be notifying) isn't really very attractive to me. I have an out-of-control dentist phobia. Awesome.
@ pencore,
My boyfriend is an engineer... want me to get him working on that internet-traveling, baby-brother-throttling machine? ;)
@Xataro,
You made me smile. Thanks!
@megan -- Congrats on your great horoscope!
@ LauraT
Yes, please. I'll bake him the most delicious vegan muffins if he can put something together!
If I had access to a time machine, I wouldn't be here on this blog. I'd be very busy making $$$ in Vegas (betting on sports mostly because, you know, I know who won what).
...Aaaand let me leave you all with this lovely little thought. This afternoon I was driving on my street. Some little bird darted RIGHT in front of my windshield. I was like, WTF?, why are you flying so fast right in front of me, little bird? -- when, suddenly, a HAWK in pursuit caught up and nabbed that cute little ball of fluff right before my eyes, and flew away with it. Like some sort of nature-show IMAX, especially for me.
I spent a lot of time trying to work out the symbolism in this. It was obviously a message from the universe. Am I the magnificent hawk? Or the helpless, adorable little bird? Does hawk = adcom? Does grabbing the bird = admission to a program? Does being eaten by a hawk = rejection?
After a while I decided it all means I'm going to be accepted at Florida. Yes. It definitely means that.
re: Sarah Lawrence
I applied mostly because two of my favorite poets teach there (Marie Howe and Tina Chang). It's a program with a really good reputation; however, if admitted, I'm not even sure I'll be able to attend because it is very expensive and not funded, other than merit and federal aid.
I went to their open house and everyone was very nice and helpful. Students do work very closely with the faculty and get a lot of individual attention, it seems. Like instead of class-wide reading assignments, each student gets a personalized reading list from a faculty member.
Sarah Lawrence also doesn't let grad students teach any undergrad classes. I guess it's because the undergrads pay a ton of money to go there (it has the highest undergrad tuition in the country) to be educated by excellent professors, not grad students. That might benefit the undergrads but it's a turn-off for me because I really want to teach.
I asked a current student about this and she said that there are SOME opportunities to teach. Sarah Lawrence has programs for MFA students to teach in NYC high schools and in prisons(!). Also, there's some kind of arrangement where MFA students can teach at SUNY Purchase.
Just thought I'd share what I know about the program! Parts of it look awesome to me. My main concern is the expense.
@ pencore,
Hehe I'll see what I can do... although I'd probably eat all the delicious vegan muffins myself :)
@ Lauren:
HAHAHAHAHA. This totally cracked me up. I can imagine having the same reaction. Did you figure it out? Fluff or hawk?
What it means is, life goes on. The world will continue to spin on its axis around the sun, oblivious to our MFA hopes and dreams.
When I was in high school, a friend of mine and I were eagerly waiting for our college acceptance/rejection letters for several months. Sometime in March, he got into a car accident and was killed. The very next day, he got a letter from Duke saying he was accepted. How's that for cruel?
Xataro,
Haha, love that! But as much as I want to hear back (positively) from my schools, nothing---and I mean NOTHING---would make me miss the scene that I, myself, have been waiting for for years...and that is KATE'S death! ;)
Maybe if they turn out to be the bodies of the mysterious "romeo and juliet," we'd both get our wish! (And, you know, grad school admittance as well).
Thank you, Woon, for your uplifting practicality.
lol@Cratty. Took the text straight outta my head.
A Yahoo! article I just picked up:
The Happiest States (U.S. states whose residents are happiest):
Hawaii: 70.2
Utah: 68.3
Montana: 68.3
Minnesota: 67.8
Iowa: 67.6
Vermont: 67.4
Colorado: 67.3
Alaska: 67.3
North Dakota: 67.3
Kansas: 67.2
---
North Dakota?!?!?!
@Cratty - Thank you. *bows* I've got plenty more where that came from.
My state (Rhode Island) ranked among the top ten unhappiest states in one of those articles! Beware to anyone who applied to Brown...?
Ignorance is bliss, perhaps?
I'm from Hawaii. Glad to see us at the top! Though lots of people have never left the islands and have nothing to compare their lives to. Still, it's a great place
I didn't apply to Brown because I looked them up in Google maps and "walked" the town via their Street View feature. Didn't really like what I saw.
@ Brad
Thanks, a lot! Yeah it looks amazing. I've been accepted at Wash U. for poetry also, I am excited to visit STL and Tempe soon!
Brown also had this "experimental" or "avante garde" reputation. Didn't really know what that meant. A short story without any characters? A story about a guy who swims from one New Jersey suburb to another via the backyard swimming pools? Jamaica Kincaid "Girl" stuff?
Woon, I meant to ask - did you have your interview with V Tech yet?
Heh, I applied to Brown, but have little/no shot of getting in, so it's alright.
@Cratty -- not yet re. VT.
@Rose - Someone on the Speakeasy at P&W called Minnesota today and asked about nonfiction (all the acceptances were sent out on Monday). This sent me into a panic, of course, and I called to ask about fiction, but no one was in the office. I plan on calling tomorrow. I'll post here what I find out. (Unless you'd rather not know!)
I'm not sure I want to be Emily Watson's (Hermione in Harry Potter movies) TA at Brown. All eyes would be on her, not me. Teaching would be a b***h.
@Woon - I take it you're not a Donald Barthelme fan.
@Everyone - Bored at work, I happened on this really amazing essay and I thought I'd share!
http://bit.ly/7m2W4k
congrats to brad, MRM and anyone else i missed!
The VT interview is 20 minutes long (or short?). I have no idea what they're going to ask me. My guess:
Why VT?
What do you know about VT?
What is your philosophy of teaching?
Whose work do you admire?
What is your 10-year goal?
What is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow?
...and a few others. I don't think I have to prepare anything. I imagine they'll ask me things I should've already resolved in my head. Just stay composed, be natural, and answer truthfully.
@Lauren - I hope so :(
12 and growing. You guys send me a message if you want to join our little writer-limbo online haven off-board. mandasue at gmail dot com.
And Woon: WOW. That was just the wake-up call I needed. Definitely adds a perspective.
@A. Astur A. -- I love Barthelme's work. One of my favorites. In fact, I have his 60 Stories collection right here on my desktop. Somehow, I don't find his work to be "experimental" simply because they read like modern fairy tales to me. And they're so funny and horrifying at the same time, e.g., "The School."
The word "experimental" really doesn't mean a whole lot. It's going to be different things to different people, and what is generally perceived to be avante-garde changes with generations. A lot of people wouldn't consider David Foster Wallace to be experimental but a lot of the literary "tricks" and "tools" he used in his work was the bread and butter of older writers (i.e. Coover at Brown) that were, at least at one point in time, considered experimental.
@Woon - I'm very surprised you don't find his work experimental. I just read 60 stories a few months ago. Maybe it's just a sign of the times that his work has now been swallowed and accepted by the mainstream. Kind of like how unenthusiastic I was the last time I watched Apocalypse Now. I do agree with you, however, about some of the stories in there being really funny.
I've never really understood what people mean by experimental fiction. Much of what's been pointed out as contemporary experimental fiction to me seems less innovative or divergent from the norm than Finnegans Wake, Tristram Shandy, or Robbe-Grillet.... *shrug*
Maybe that's something I can learn about in grad school. Someone let me in! ;)
Cheers!
A lot of movies that dazzled me when I was younger now look dated. And my god, the hair-do!
@frankish - I know what you mean! How divergent from divergent can you get? I tried once. I read Burroughs' The Soft Machine backwards with one eye closed.
Ironically, when you do that the entire narrative becomes a romance novel about a man in search of good a good cornbread recipe.
It kind of didn't work because I remember a similar article in McCall's.
I guess I'm not in the secret club either!
Actually, I've been spending my "free" time watching crap DVDs like "Hawaii 5-0." For the most part, "Hawaii 5-0" is really bad (terrible writing, bad cinematography, bad composition, bad scene design, bad costume, bad acting, etc.). The show represents what's wrong with TV, but on several occasions, the writers/directors tried to do something new (at the time, that is) and tried to tell stories in a non-traditional way (non-traditional to TV, that is): 1st person POV, unreliable memory, non-linear storytelling, etc. Looking back, it seems very fresh and risky. Not being a TV historian, I don't know if all TV shows from the late 1960s and early 1970s experimented in that fashion. But in some ways, I found newfound respect for the producers of "Hawaii 5-0" for wanting to do something different and unique. Not all the time, but enough to notice.
Wow so many comments today! What did I miss???
Greetings from a regular lurker.
After reading about the rejection-stuffed mailboxes, I prepared myself for a disappointing day. I was about to leave work when my partner calls and says, "I didn't open it, but I held it to the sun and saw the word 'waitlist'-- do you mind if I look?"
Waitlist for CNF at Wyoming!
Hadn't heard anything about a WY waitlist on his blog so I thought I'd share.
Cheers to all who've had good news and good luck to the rest.
Justin
Congrats, Dry Leaves!
Does anyone happen to know where Montana is in their process? I think earlier on someone posted that they spoke with the program and were told decisions would be made in mid-late March, but this seems a bit late, given the April deadline. Any other news?
Hooray Justin! congrats!
@ cb
according to TSE's response databank, Montana has called acceptances between the 1st and 12th of March.... most within the first week of March, though...
other than that, I have no clue
@coughdrop!
YAY passing comps!!! DO pass go, DO collect your BA!
I was wondering why the MFA blog went silent, and now i'm subscribing... 700 posts? geez. i'm not reading all that.
I just wanted to offer what little insight I have into the way UNCG handles their applications. I have no idea when they'll start notifying, but they tend to make their offers in batches. What I'm saying is don't lose hope if a few people get in or start getting friendly emails. I didn't hear anything from uncg until late in the game last year (mid to late March) so don't give up hope!
Things tend to move really slowly here (and possibly have been slowed down even more by a couple weeks of snowstorms and ice). Anyway, hope that helps a little... I have very clear memories of how stressful this time was. Good luck to all!
@Ryan Duke, I'll sum up.
A few people got accepted. A lot got rejected. One or two went crazy waiting and baked/ranted/ate paint. The rest wait with bated breath and no fingernails for tomorrow and hope/pray/beg for answers.
@ YARebels
Well summed.
from a UNCG applicant, thank you wishfulthinking!!
@ YARebels
well said.
My constant semi-neurosis with this whole process has lead me to one conclusion...that being, it is time to get a puppy. So, now I have a puppy!! And I recommend this too everyone else, don't think about it, just get the puppy!
Hi all! I've heard that some programs (like Virginia) offer an optional 3rd year for students if they choose to teach. Does anyone know if this is common?
*but then you have to move said puppy if you get in anywhere
@Research Writer
lawlz
New day, new day, new day, new day. Good luck everyone! Let the obsessing begin!!!
LA Falcon,
When I move wherever I'm going to move, I'm getting a hamster. And possibly a hedgehog. I'm just not ready to commit to a puppy. Possibly ever, after the constipated puppy story my friend just told me.
Happy Birthday, Ashley!
@NickMcRae - Congratulations on your Vanderbilt waitlist! The way you're going, they'll probably admit you NEXT WEEK. ;-) I've been a fan of yours since last year, so your successes absolutely electrify me!
@MRM - Congratulations on Arizona State! This was from a two years ago, but it sounds like ASU has phenomenal summer travel fellowships and other great summer support. From a post at P&W:
Besides the TAships there are a bunch of 'summer fellowships': basically $5000 to spend over the summer, and an array of 'travel opportunities'-- they take you around the world giving you teaching experience and paying for you... currently there are programs in singapore and china, though 6-8 students went to mexico over winter, a bunch have been to india, and there's plans to start a program in australia next year. all these grants come with free airfare and lodging, and a stipend (singapore is $4000, China is $2000), and you can apply for it after your first or second years. There's also a number of 'individual travel fellowships' where they give you money to travel-- that's in limbo this year, but they're restarting it soon apparently.
http://www.pw.org/speakeasy/gforum.cgi?post=260121#260121
I'm sorry if this is already well-known information. Just, when I read your acceptance, this funding is the first thing that came to mind! If you get any more information on this, would you please be kind enough to update us on ASU's travel funding situation?
@YellowLux - Congratulations on George Mason! I think you're the first one here with an official official acceptance.
@EPAC - Congratulations on getting into Northwestern! Please tell us more about it, as you learn more.
@amanda & BradSmith - Congratulations on your impressive waitlists! You made it through a lot of tough competition to earn those spots. Boo-Yah!
@MountainKing - Congrats on breaking into Syracuse's waitlist -- and good luck this year! After reading about your struggle last season, your determination and your efforts to tighten up your work, I'm really cheering for you. You seem like a super-dedicated writer and a well-centered person, I hope that all of your positives come though as strongly in your application packets as they do on this blog.
@wishful thinking
Thanks for taking the time to help clarify. Thinking about waiting to hear til late March makes me a tad nauseous, but in truth, UNCG is worth waiting for.
Thanks again.
@Jasmine: you have just posted at number 666. Make sure you do not get a slavering gray puppy with burning eyes and burping fire as a pet. Also stay away from heavyset middle-aged women wearing awful tweed who jump off rooftops. Oh, and make sure your head does not turn all the way round when you're throwing up.
Nadiya
I see now that I have cursed myself into having some kind of hellspawn rodent in grad school. I will be prepared with some power of Christ in my pocket.
Did anyone else get a financial aid email from CSU??
I've noticed no one has really been freaking out about Michigan. They historically notify this week, no?
@Hobo Bobo
My mom met one of the profs at U of Michigan last week, and he said that they got 1100 applications, and were still reading through them. He said they were still reading fiction, and hadn't really started on the poetry ones. I reckon it'll be a while.
Arizona State Update.
Just got a funding update -- full numbers, full details -- from Pete Turchi at ASU. This was last night. TSE has been updated with the new information. This should be seen as the definitive word on ASU funding right now -- any ancillary fellowships are not being advertised by the program as available to all students, and any non-listed topping-up fellowships should be presumed to go to few enough students that they should not be part of anyone's matriculation decision. The upshot is $16,133.33/year (average) for three years in guaranteed money to all. That includes all sources of income given to all students, not just TAships -- i.e., yes, summer, travel, and other stipends have been included. This moves Arizona State to #9 nationally in funding.
S.
@chrissy MAN, and here was getting all excited because Michigan seems to notify around 2/18 like clockwork.
At least they are taking the much higher number of applications seriously and (I presume) spending more time with them instead of giving each applicant half of the reading time before.
@John
Nope, no fin aid email from CSU. Was it from the grad school? Did it say anything other than the usual "contact the financial aid office for more..."?
@ Andrew
it gave me a link to a form and asked me to send it in. Not really sure what it is though.
good morning everyone. glad to be joining you on another day of anxiety.
sending out more positive vibes for everyone today. i hope your phones are ringing!
@sahaider
My phone just rang, and I felt a jolt of excitement. Wasn't for me, though. Boo. Way to wound up!
Finally got my Rejection from WashU.
Call from an unknown number this morning while I was driving to class. Dug through my bag frantically for the phone, heart pounding, answered with a very excited voice, and it was my doctor's office. This is getting crazy.
@Laure T
I just LOLed all over myself. I know exactly how you're feeling.
And I meant to spell your name Laura. :)
I keep thinking that ONE of these times, it has to be an MFA program! Instead of the doctor, or my school, or the other places with unknown/out-of-state numbers that have called me recently, not knowing how disappointed I would be that they are calling to say "you need to make an appointment!" instead of "congratulations on your acceptance!" :P
@LauraT Same thing just happened to me! I had a call from an unknown number with a strange area code… it was a bill collector. Double letdown.
Also, am I the only person who is so nervous that they’re scrambling to research programs with a March 1st deadline? I applied to seven schools (what I thought was a reasonable number), but I’m finding myself envious of people who sent out ten or twelve or fifteen applications.
@Lizzie I am in that boat as well. I applied to 7 programs and they are all pretty selective. This is my first time going through this process and I have already learned a lot. If I dont get in anywhere, I am applying to 12-15 programs next time!
Lizzie, I applied to twelve and am finding myself envious of people who applied to twenty! But I think that if I had applied to twenty, I would be wishing I'd applied to thirty... The only thing that stops me from applying to late-deadline schools is how much I don't want to ask my recommenders to do any more work than they already did!
Yo John
Fill us in on that fin aid form... you have me semi-freaking out about CSU not sending me anything (aside: didn't someone get a GNE from them awhile ago, about a background check for TA-ships or something? Woon?)
Between these two pieces of info I'm thinking CSU doesn't want me (unless John and Woon are both in poetry, then maybe I'll have a smidge of hope left)
I'm into taking the worst case scenario whenever possible, can you tell
amen to everything Laura T just said... 14 apps seems too few now and I'm in constant dreading-my-future mode
I only applied to 7, too, and now have 1 official rejection, two unofficial, and only 4 left to hear from :\
Meredith,
I am in poetry, so you can rest easy on that.
I really hope it means something good though. It's a link to their RAMweb system, which I am currently locked out of, so I can't see the form. Hopefully after work I will straighten it out...
Laura T, EXACTLY. That right there is why I'm not adding any more schools!!
... yes! hopefully it means something good!!! Even if they don't want me (although the different genre thing just increased my hope slightly), I hope they want you! Ignore my bitching and gloominess... I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!
I was thinking about adding 1-2 programs because I have extra sealed and signed letters from my recommenders. I spent a long time researching programs and picking the ones that fit me best. I doubt that being accepted to a school I didn’t love would be much better than not being accepted at all.
I think I’m just overwhelmed and disappointed that nearly two weeks after a GNP, I’m still without an acceptance.
Question, all, is it out of line to call all the programs I applied to and ask if they know when/how they'll be notifying people? I feel like it would ease my mind a little...
Thanks, Meredith. That's very kind of you. I'll be doing the same for you.
So far, waiting to hear from these schools has been the worst experience of my life. The first two rejections crushed me. The possibility of another 7 rejections--I don't know. I read a post earlier that said something about being prepared for these rejections. I'm not prepared.
@Lizzie & Laura T
I applied to 11 schools. Originally that felt like the perfect number. Big enough to cover my ass..or so I thought.. Now, like everyone, I'm thinking..maybe it wasn't enough.
Anyone stuck in a rut in terms of a "plan B"? I want to keep trying on one hand, but also know, if I keep trying, other bits of my life will remain in limbo; my greatest concern of which is my long-term relationship. I probably won't be able to decide until I get a yay/nay from my schools..but still..why not obsess about it if I've got the time, yea? haha
@Chelsea, I am formulating my plan b right now :p
@Chrissy I say call, but know that they might not tell you the truth.
Lizzie,
Your GNP could have happened right after they read your writing sample, after which point they could have still had the majority of samples left to read. Believe it or not, some of these programs do try to avoid admitting anyone until they're nearing a good understanding of their final/overall admissions decisions. Which means no matter how much they liked you early on, you're going to be waiting along with everyone else.
My plan B is pretty unimaginable: keep working the same job that I hate... I just got back from Mardi Gras to find a rejection from Wyoming. Hungover, withdrawing from toxic substances is not an ideal state in which to deal with rejection. Here's to hoping for better...
I'm so sorry nono <3 I know exactly what you mean. I've only gotten two rejections so far but it's seriously doing a number on me... I woke up at 4AM in the morning and had a crying fit/anxiety attack about getting rejected from all six schools. keeping fingers crossed for everybody...
@ Lizzie, good idea getting those extra letters!
@ Meredith, I know what you mean about dreading-the-future mode. I'm finishing undergrad in May, and if I get into an MFA program this year, it'll basically be the best thing that's ever happened to me, a new and exciting period of my life, etc. But without an acceptance, graduation looks like the most dreaded thing, because I have no idea what else to do other than go to grad school, and I don't really want to do anything else!
What we need right now is some spiked coffee and a round of good phone calls from Michigan.
Mountain King, I love your attitude. It's a good approach; good luck.
YARebels, sorry to hear about Wash U :(
Ashley B, Happy Birthday for yesterday!!!!!!
Everyone else, chin up! There's always next year. I applied to 7 top ten schools and already have one definite no and two implied rejections. You gotta just keep on truckin'. A writer writes, MFA acceptance in the bag or not. Shitty jobs n'all. There are enough writers to emulate on this front!
Big good luck and hang in there vibes to you all - oh, and cupcakes.
Just called Michigan--they told me that they'll have letters mailed out early next week at the latest. I asked if they notify any other way, and the woman confirmed that they do send emails as well. So, we'll know by next week at the latest!
@Chrissy That's hopeful!!
Chrissy, thanks - much as I'm trying to be the relaxed (self)-defeatist, that's exciting news!
Good luck today everyone!
@YARebels I know! I'm about to call all my other programs to see what they say. I'll have more info on other schools soon!
Thanks to everybody who posted birthday wishes for me yesterday! And congrats to the rest of my Wyoming waitlists!
Thanks Vivian for sympathizing. Thanks also to Eli for the encouraging words. I just can't let myself get so down because I got a couple rejections. Even if I don't get in anywhere, it won't stop me from writing.
@ John and Laura T
If I don't get in, I'm going to have to keep working a job that I just CANNOT imagine working at in a few months. The idea alone keeps me awake at night. I graduated from undergrad almost two years ago now, always with the plan of going to grad school this fall.... any other route = hello alcoholism. Srsly, I'm freaking out (panic attacks in my cubicle, not kidding) more and more every day that goes by with no acceptance. Please GOD let us all get in!
@John and Meredith -
I am in at CSU for poetry (spoke with the director this weekend), and did not receive the financial aid email. I also did not ask whether they had notified all the accepted students in each genre. I apologize; i was overwhelmed and should have scoured for more community information. I know how nerve wracking this process is.
As for the speak of Plan B's. I applied last year to 5 schools and was universally rejected. I won't lie - it was devestating, I felt lost, and I considered quitting. But, I mustered the energy, and reapplied this year to 8 schools. I did more research on the programs, put together a more solid portfolio that I think represented me, took my GREs again, yada yada. I had a Plan C this year in place, just to be proactive and avoid the emotional turmoil of last year's rejections. But, it was worth it, and I'm so stoked about CSU's program...
My situation's a bit weird:
I'm currently in a program
I'm accepted at one program (deferred from last year)
and I applied to 7 new programs this year!
MFAguy:
May I ask if you're dissatisfied with your current program? I mean, I guess it's pretty clear you are, but what is causing the dissatisfaction?
@ Chelsea on the plan B question - I am 31 and married; both states have altered how I look at my situation re grad schools.
The short of it is, every single option has its pluses and drawbacks. Maybe you say "duh," but I don't think me at 25 would have grasped the nuances (or had my current attachments).
My best option is getting into the Mitch, UVa, Cornell, or another such tip-top fully funded MFA paradise. Even that really awesome (but highly unlikely) outcome means that I and spouse have to leave our good life in NYC, where we've got tons of friends, an apartment we like, professional contacts and her job, and an overall setup that works for us. At a certain age just up and moving like that starts to lose its luster. We'd do it, most likely, but that option's not without cost.
The alternative is, I go somewhere in NYC. No, I don't go into med-school debt for Columbia. I go into moderate, new-car debt for a CUNY school, if I'm lucky enough to get in. But there's still cost of living and quality of life too. New York on my salary is doable - New York on student loans and a part-time job is not as fun.
So I'll be disappointed if I don't get in, but I like my current life too, and I'm glad to live it for another year if that's how the cards fall. I understand that me at 25 would scowl at this supine attitude, but there it is.
I suppose the other thought I have is that, while an acceptance would be a major encouragement for my work and would help me move it forward (it might even be crucial for its development), it's just one step in the path, and not a necessary one. The more I realize just how responsible I am for the creative work I produce (and not just the creating but the dissemination, the business of it, everything), the more an MFA becomes just one avenue for moving the work forward. Believe me, each rejection will disappoint me, but I don't know that I'll be crushed in the primal way I would have at ages 20-25. Previous rejections have broken me in a bit, partially bc I see that I will in fact continue what I need to, and partially bc once the shock and grief (which are real) pass, you do gain knowledge and clarity on what's important and how you will keep going, which has a strange reassurance.
Of course, we'd all rather be blogging the lessons learned from amazing success...
When I opened my Wyoming rejection, it was kind of like when you know someone is going to dump you, so you start talking to other people anyway and then when the end comes it's sort of like, meh. No problem.
One rejection down, thirteen to go!
The location and the university mainly; NMU is so remote and cut off and there's little to do.
I need advice.
I ended up applying to the following schools:
Wisconsin (rejected)
Umass Amherst
Michigan
Brown
Iowa
UNH
Given that list, my hopes are not high. An amazing apartment is available to rent NOW. Do I go ahead and sign a lease?
I don't want to break the lease(should I get in)
But I also don’t want to pass on an amazing apartment when the odds of being accepted are so low.
Just got a rejection from Kansas. So I'm at two official rejections, four unofficial, and only six more programs to go through.
My Plan B is not much of a Plan. It's basically move in with my brother and work a crappy job until I can apply next year.
@chrissy: you are my hero. thanks for sharing that info about michigan!
Haha my Plan B is to move to NYC, hope I sell another book, work in a bakery or something, and live in a shack apartment with two-three other starving writers. Anyone up for it?
Laura B
I don't think I have good advice on the apartment, but for the schools, the "odds" are low only in terms of how many people applied vs how many get in, not in terms of whether or not you're a good fit for any of those schools. That's unquantifiable. An acceptance could happen for you or anyone even at a highly selective school, that's the nature of the game. Don't count yourself out just yet.
Good luck!
Caleb,
Did the Kansas rejection come by e-mail? I've heard nothing! I'm nervous!
People who have applied to Cornell, do we know if they're done done with their YES's?
@Jamie
Your reply gives me a bit of disorienting hope. Which is a compliment. Trust me :)
I'm basically @ a place where, if I got in, it would more or less be perfect timing. I graduated last year, took a year off to keep writing on my own and attend many workshops @ Grub St in Boston. I'm very much itching to get back into school.
My worry is, if I don't get in this round, the more time between undergrad and graduate will infintely complicate my future. To elaborate; "life" as it were, will get in the way and my opportunities will diminish and putting an MFA off will just become a habit.
Caleb,
I was so nervous that I forgot to include my condolences. You're still got options and it ain't over until it's over!
New School admissions office deflected me to the general admissions office, who said March and then put me on hold.
@ John
I got the CSU financial aid email today too. First I checked my application status - still pending. So I went through the steps they said but all I get is screens saying they've gotten my FAFSA and I'm not eligible for financial aid because, well, I haven't been accepted yet!
I really don't get the point of this, but I'm not overly concerned. Especially because the email mentions processing documents by NOVEMBER 2010. WTF? I don't know. But whatevs!
YARebels,
Another book? Do you have a book out? Shareeeee!
@YARebels
It seems that we have similar plan Bs. If I can't go to school and write, I'll write, bake and wait til next year.
Here's hoping that all of our plan Bs go untouched!
So...random question.
Any celiacs in the house? Anyone? No? Okay.
@Ashley B
Yeah, I'm a literary YA author, and my first book comes out with Disney*Hyperion August 2011 (they have a two YEAR pub cycle, it's crazy! But they put out award-winners, so I like em :p) My debut's called The Near Witch, and it's a dark fairy tale :)
Alright, raise your hands if you want to move to NYC with me and open a bakery? :p
@ AB
I received an email telling me to check my status at a decision login website.
The Kansas letter is nowhere near as smooth as the Wash U rejection. I'm afraid I'm becoming something of a connoisseur : (
@Lizzie I'm there! But yes, let's hope we can put off those Plan B's :p
@Sister Ray
Wait, are you poetry or fiction??
(Please say poetry! I applied to CSU in fiction and did not get an email from them today...)
YARebels,
Count me in if we can do some gluten free goodies too.
FOLKS! I just called six more programs!
Emerson: They're still saying it'll be 6-8 weeks after your application was complete via mail. No other info.
George Mason: They said the majority of applications have been read, but there are still many more. They've already made a few offers in fiction because they're further along in that process. They'll notify via email.
UMass-Amherst: SOON! They'll be calling in notifications in the next day or two, according to their receptionist!
Virginia: they're on track for early March, and will notify via email or mail (depending on the offer, not acceptance or rejection; i.e. if you got a fellowship, they might email you the offer).
Arizona: They'll notify the beginning of March by phone or email (rejection=formal letter). The woman said CNF was on track, but poetry and fiction were a little behind.
I'll keep you posted when I get in touch with the other schools I called!
Chrissy, thanks! Good to know.
@ YARebels
A bakery is a great idea! With all the baking that happens on this blog, we've probably been running a full shop already.
@ AB
Thanks! Good luck with KU!
@Jojee: Congrats on CSU. I'm a Colorado girl (though I went to their rival, University of Colorado). My college boyfriend and still best friend went to CSU (I lived there for 6 months with him). Fort Collins is a sweet little town. Nice coffee shops, mostly quiet, near Poudre Canyon/River. It's a nice place to be.
I also applied to CSU in poetry and received the financial aid email, but I assumed it was just a formality. I haven't received a phone call, email or letter, so I'm losing hope.
Congrats to all acceptances and waitlists!
@Ashley Brooke: A belated Happy Birthday to you!! I am sorry about that adulterating bad news, but I wish good things for you this week!!
Good luck everyone. I'm starting (so fucking lazily) to consider plan B.
@YAR
I'd like to be in charge of the vegan baked goods. I've got this muffin, it's called the "Why Can't We All Just Get Along" muffin. It's vegan, with maple syrup, black, white and peanut butter chocolate chips and bananas.
My Plan B-3 is to go to NYC and try not to die.
On Plan Bs:
This is one degree where I believe that plan Bs aren't that bad.
This isn't undergrad or law school where not getting into a program for one year means you won't get in next year. That gives you another eight months or so to improve as a writer before you try again. Read, write, submit to magazines, and find some people to critique your work (online if need be). Just keep the momentum going in the right direction.
I had a professor in undergrad who wouldn't even write a recommendation for anyone to get into an MFA until they had been out of school for at least two years. While his reasoning was that people needed life experience outside of academia (and having a job you hate is part of that), I think it also was a way to weed out the people who didn't really want to do it. They wanted to get an MFA because it was the next degree. As a piece of paper, an MFA isn't worth much. You'll probably get out of a program with a book-length manuscript in your genre, but that is less important than the next book-length manuscript you create. If you aren't able to produce work without an assignment as your only motivation, an MFA isn't going to do much for you.
Basically every great writer has hundreds of stories about the seemingly endless stream of rejections they received up until their first acceptance. It's just part of the writing life. Persistence is probably just as important as talent, if not more so.
So, if you don't get in, just keep writing. Prove through your work that this is something you need to do, and you should have a much stronger portfolio for next year. Or hell, you could just write a great novel and not have to go to an MFA at all.
@pencore
I name you head of vegan muffins :)
@pencore: That sounds great. The more ridiculous ingredients, the better. That's also my general rule of thumb when it comes to butter in baking. I may be the only person under 110 lbs. who will croak from cholesterol-related heart problems.
Also for anyone who was in the same boat as me for Michener, with the application status reading just "We've received all your materials", mine FINALLY says it's been forward to committee. So hooray, rejection is now more imminent! :P
Loving the Plan B talk. Getting excited about non-MFA options has been the only thing keeping me sane through this process.
As of now: follow my bf to Chicago, where he just got into grad school. Live for free in his apartment. Get a crappy job and use the money to pay for classes at the Second City and iO, which will keep me fulfilled while I'm applying to MFAs again. I like!
Checked my Texas application status today. DENIED. We could have been great, Michener. Could have been great.
@pencore: Sorry about that rude butter comment after your vegan posting. I'm vegetarian, but the buck stops at no butter. I kid. I have many treasured vegan recipes also. I, too, crown you king of vegan muffins.
chrissy - you are a ROCK STAR. thank you.
YArebels - I think by now the Cornell fiction acceptances have to be done :( we've already heard from at least two people on the board who got in and there are only four spots... odds are high that the other two just don't post here. But then again, waitlists, etc, are still a possibility.
@Vivian alas, that's what I figure. But with such a short list of schools, I don't like to mark anything OFF until I get an actual notice. There's always waitlist :p
Does anyone have any idea on how many applications CSU got this year? I don't think TSE has the numbers.
@ Sarah
I applied to CSU for Fiction, but honestly, I wouldn't be too freaked out - considering that the email led absolutely nowhere online, it's a bit of a stretch to assume an acceptance from it, so don't lose heart! :)
My baking is butter-free! It's because I am one of those people who eats what I make, so I have to bake stuff that won't bloat me out.
I've also got these "Holy Shit! You're Alive" cookies, baked in honor of some friends who were in Indonesia when that big earthquake happened years ago. That one is chunky chocolate chips to the max.
@ Chelsea - I don't know. "Life" getting in the way sounds nebulous. As someone who decided to do this after ten years out of school and just recently married, I found that that most things are negotiable. Life might complicate things - ie rule out certain schools for various reasons - but I don't feel it's gotten in my way so far. Two friends of mine of similar ages just started their MFAs and had babies this past fall. It can be done.
@pencore The goods in our bakery would have the BEST names ever :)
@ SamStod: Great perspective. Thanks. Also, there are many ways to write in some capacity in the job world. Yeah, no one is going to pay me to write bizarre, morbid poetry, but someone might pay me to write clever copy for their print work.
And aiming for publication is a great way to move forward. You're very right.
Thanks for the boost!
Originally my Plan B was to keep working at my decent (well-paying and somewhat tolerable) job and save up more money. But that Plan B is increasingly filling me with despair and dread. I'm thinking now, as financially imprudent as it would be, that I may owe it to my sanity to move somewhere else (somewhere very cheap) and get some sort of mindless job for the next year so that I can really devote time to writing. My current job is so time-consuming and mind-consuming (and keeps me awake nights) that it's so difficult to make time to write or to even devote mental space to thinking about writing. The money's decent, and in this economy it seems like such a ridiculous thing to leave such a good job - but when you feel like your soul is being sucked out of you, maybe you should leave anyway?
Ugh. I get depressed just thinking about possible Plan Bs. Let's hope it doesn't come to that!
Caleb,
Thanks! I've received no such e-mail or login information but I sure am reloading my inbox like crazy. Were you applying for an MFA or PhD? Also, what schools are you waiting on?
Anybody else hear from Kansas?
My Plan B is teaching English in Taiwan. I've wanted to do that for a while, but as this gets more and more real I get more opposed to it because the idea of applying from abroad next year just makes me realize it will take even MORE work. But I will do it if I must!
@ Chrissy
YOU ROCK!
Thanks for the info.
Chrissy, you are such a champ! I'm too nervous to call some of my programs.
YARebals,
That's not too bad. Some well-regarded presses (albeit the smaller and "newer" outfits Akashic and Dzanc) have a backlog so long that their writers have to wait years until their books come out. I actually have a friend that works in a bakery now. He's taking advantage of all that schoolin in physics and applied mathematics : - ) He's having the time of his life. It's all what you make of it I suppose.
I have 6 left to hear from. My plan B is to find a job that, in theory, provides more writing time (perhaps a bakery?) and continue working on my novel and story collection (and of course getting more stories published). I'll apply again.
Jamie, very well said. Especially the last paragraph - similar to my thinking these days. It'll be 10 years since undergrad when/if I reapply next year and it's been a bloody interesting 10 years. I can certainly deal with it continuing in its current state - (it being crap jobs, no time to have a life anymore becos the weekends are spent writing, etc) - if I don't get extremely lucky this year and get in somewhere. I appreciate how things are and that it can be useful sometimes to not get what you want. I've always got exactly what I wanted academically, so this will be undoubtedly pants, but because of the odds, I'm giving myself a break. We have to rock on regardless.
SamStod, you're right. Rejection upon rejection has always been part of this particular game. Gotta make peace with it, though it's extremely hard when you've worked so hard - of course...
Chrissy, thank you again!
@ Andrew: Good question. It's unclear. Email Marnie (the MFA administrator - address on their website). She's pretty responsive when she has the time. Good lady.
@ Samstod - I got an encouraging note from my sister yesterday along those same lines. She wrote, "an MFA isn't your *life* - it's a *part* of your life." I don't mean to sound trite, as I'm not trying to belittle anyone's dream, but Plan B can be as good as Plan A, really. Maybe we all (myself included) just need to challenge ourselves to think of some really amazing "Plan B"s that will have MFA committees saying, "Woa, who is this person?" (in a good way) next year. Yes?
@ Sarah, John, CSU applicants...
So I actually decided to call the Financial Aid department at CSU and it just seems that the email gets sent out when they receive your FAFSA but you haven't been accepted yet. Kind of stupid Catch-22 situation. So I would assume you just wouldn't get the email if you haven't applied for financial aid. Weirdness. But not an acceptance, unfortunately. :P Oh well, hopefully we'll hear soon!
I will be checking out your book when it's out, YARebels! Congratulations!
And thanks to the birthday wishes that I am still getting the next day. Much love! :)
@Lizzie--they don't know who you are! And usually are reallllly nice. The woman at George Mason asked my name and checked my application status for me. She was very kind. Don't worry about calling! It completely destressed me, and I empower you to do it! I just had a script, and went for it. (I'm nervous on the phone).
@everyone--you're welcome! It's good to know something, right?
@WT, true, true. Two years isn't so bad. A lot of it is that the editors are PERFECTIONISTS and so I'm in a seven-month edit cycle, not even counting the design and production that follows.
Haha thanks Sister Ray! That makes me feel, well, only marginally hysterical.
Dear CSU adcom, why did you not email me about financial aid?? I need money too!
@Ashley B Thanks!!
Now, channeling my positive energies toward Michigan. Come on, Michigan.
@Chrissy and others who've called programs for status updates:
Thank you so much for calling to get answers for the rest of us. I still have trouble ordering a pizza over the phone, so I'm not brave enough to do this legwork. But it's so nice to have answers (even if they're conservative, less-than-completely-honest answers from programs). Being in the dark is truly driving me crazy!
So, thanks for the detective work, all.
@K. Peaquah
That's good advice. An MFA is (in the nicest sense of the word) a do-nothing degree. You might be able to get a job teaching comp at a high school or community college, but if you want to teach writing, then you have to write. And if you want to write, well...you know, you have to write.
An MFA gives you time to devote to writing, and an environment to help you focus your energy. Viewing the MFA as a stepping stone to your eventual goal as opposed to the goal itself should help put it in perspective. No one is going to turn your book down because you didn't get into Iowa. Focus on the writing any everything else will follow.
@Chrissy
What did she tell you when she checked your application status?
I had a similar situation at Northwestern and I knew that she knew, but didn't give me an answer. She just hesitated and then said that about half the acceptances still need to be notified.
@ Ashley Brook: oh my goodness, go to Taiwan! I spent two years teaching English in Japan, and had an amazing time. On another note, I applied from abroad this year (not Japan, but still) and would be happy to pass on any tips. It wasn't difficult at all. I got really organized in October, and did what everyone else did as far as keeping up with recommenders. The only drawback was that I couldn't send all my info (transcripts etc) in one big packet. Drop me your email if you want to chat specifics.
Taiwan - yes!
@Jasmine, No celiac here, but my boyfriend's brother has it, so I've learned to reform my baking habits when need be. My favorite gluten-free desserts so far are:
Clementine Cake: http://batesroad.wordpress.com/2010/01/13/clementine-cake/
Chocolate financiers: http://smittenkitchen.com/2007/10/gluten-free-chocolate-financiers/
@YARebels: Amazing! With a title like that it sounds like just the sort of book I would have gobbled up much too late at night with a towel stuffed under my door to block the late-night reading light from my parents'. I have such admiration for well-written YA. Congratulations!
@Sister Ray,
Oh, ok, got it...thank you! Definitely feel better now, I didn't apply for financial aid so obviously would not have received the email.
I've just joined the waitlist ranks for Wyoming! For fiction! They like my stories! I love Wyoming!
But now what? How many people are accepted into their program? How many people are on the waitlist? Is there an order? Is anyone familiar with this process? Is there something I should be doing to gently nudge my status from 'waitlisted' to 'accepted'?
@Katie Thank you! There's SO MUCH amazing YA out there, and they tend to vanish beneath the blanket of shitty commercial paranormal romance, which is sad b/c then people don't take ANY of YA seriously.
Ashley B, applying from abroad is easy enough, just expensive - I used fedex to make sure my applications were delivered ok. Big bucks. Hopefully you won't have to do it (my fingers are crossed for ya!) but it's no bigger hassle than applying from anywhere else, i reckon...and whenever I was stuck, I turned to this 'ere handy blog for advice, and everything was peachy! So go to Taiwan! Or somewhere!* Would be sweet!
*if you don't get a place this year
I also make these "Sweet Sweet Solidarity Bars" which are like soft, chewy peanut butter granola bars with black and white chocolate chips in neat button rows next to each other. Ha!
OH! And I've been working with a chocolatier. With the right equipment, this could be a bakery/confectionary. We can make truffles after our favorite authors. Flannery O'Connors truffle is gonna be maple syrup'd (after Waffle House, obvs), Lorrie Moore's truffle will be banana walnut with a hint of rum, JD Salinger's truffle is going to be infused with coconuts.
Heck yeah! Calling our bakery "Sweets to the Sweet" too cliche?
@K Peaquah & Jamie
Jamie, I know you're right about life. That newer, different opportunities are opportunities nonetheless. And if by chance, I don't make it in this round, I keep writing and living. Simple as that. I think my nerves get the better of me at different times throughout the day. Thanks for screwing my head back on! Much needed!
K Peaquash; sappy or not, I really enjoy that notion of the MFA not being someone's life but being a part of it. It's something that can keep a writer focused and kepe shit in perspective. Again, much needed. haha
I'm enjoying the Plan B talks, btw. It's getting me to smile through my nerves.
Katie,
Thanks! I'm actually planning on making a clementine cake next week. A poet friend of mine recommended it.
Try this for your boyfriend's brother:
http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/2007/01/flourless-chocolate-cake_11.html
I'ts UNBELIEVABLE. Everyone can enjoy it, and no gluten eaters will make a face.
@YARebels — Some of my favorite books, still, are the books I read as a child and into my early teenage years. You have such an opportunity to really amaze and delight and hook readers then. I feel like I remember details from "The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler" FAR better than most things I read in college, sadly...
In fact, sometimes I miss being able to read like I could read then, without analyzing and picking apart language and marveling at craft. Really, it was more about swallowing books whole at that point in my life.
@pencore We'd be quite a team. My mom was a dessert caterer for awhile, and I bake A LOT. When I first decided I wanted to own a bakery, I wanted to call it Drury Lane after the Muffin Man rhyme :p
@DFW1986 First she couldn't find my name. Haha. But then when she did, she said that it was still being read. I told her that I had just gotten the "Your application is complete/processed" email yesterday, and was concerned because I'd heard of some fiction acceptances via email, and she told me not to worry, that they were still reading. So, I guess I can't trust it, but since I did just get the notification that my application was being forwarded for review, I tend to trust her a bit more.
@Rose--you can call and ask where you are on the waitlist and how many others their are. Then you'll feel a little more comfortable in your standing. According to the MFA Handbook, the first few spots often get in.
Chrissy, THANK YOU for your proactivity!!!
Also, LET'S GO AMHERST!!!
I just love being rejected. Really, it feels awesome.
Lit mag rejection just moments ago.
I am going to write them back to say that they're too late; I gave up rejections for Lent.
@Katie Sadly, I pick apart YA books the same way I pick apart adult ones :p But YA books, when done WELL, can have an immediacy to them, as well as the literary presence of adult lit. that makes them far more un-putdownable :)
Feeling a bit empowered (thanks, Chrissy), so I just spoke to the graduate coordinator at Alabama and she says that while they have notified accepted writers, they will continue to accept and notify students from all genres over the next months.
@ Chelsea - Glad I could do my little bit. Because I can say my best thoughts doesn't make me a picture of calm either - I have been waking up at night with anxiety too and questioning whether obsessing over acceptances/rejections is good for my health.
Can we talk about Plan B in more detail?
I am moving to Berlin
My Plan B is to audition for The Real World.
I want to do the Amazing Race.
You could be the first graffiti-stencil artist on The Real World
@ umIrenic: I'm digging the Berlin plan. My husband and I recently started a business, so I'll definitely be pouring energy into that as Plan B.
I'll also send out more stories for publication. Just had one picked up last week, which was very exciting, and softened the Wisconsin rejection.
My Plan B:
(1) Read James Joyce's Ulysses (finally!).
(2) Work on Chapter 2 of my novel.
(3) Write more short stories and submit them.
(4) Get a hair cut.
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