REEEEEEE

@Someonehere Thank you. Hope you get your dream school too!

Any news from Boston University?

Hey @archangel_ I woke up reading this post, wondering if I wrote it at night but forgot it because I feel exactly like you do. I agree everything @rooguild @StarryNight_1 said. But I can't help refresh the gradcafe to check others' results, even it makes me super anxious cause if I don't, I feel even worse. So I make some rules for myself. Every day I try to only check the page for twice and do my other things to distract me. I feel the same that the whole process lets me doubt if I should continue pursuing literary writing because it really stresses me out, although I enjoy writing. It is the application, personal statement and having to bother my previous teachers for letters trouble me a lot. But the world runs in its own way, applications are everywhere. I'm also a screenwriter, I applied to a butch of Hollywood contests last year (of course a lot of them require PS and a lot script related documents) but only entered a semi final of one contest. Plus English is my second language, writing anything is not easy for me. Personally, I guess every writer has certain level of self doubt, but we have to handle it and live with it. I just want you know there are a lot others like you out there struggling what you are suffering. My favorite screenwriting teacher once said "I've never seen any writer with talent and dedication hasn't achieved anything." So I hope all of the writers who take writing seriously could achieve something. Good luck to us all.

@JillSpec i think usually BU's result won't come out until mid March to early April.

@Ckoh Haven't heard anything from NYU either, but i don't think they require any interviews.

@blithe_or_anger i regret it as well, and like some others, i've checked with the result page, more anxious after seeing some received acceptance emails.

Mine is much worse cause there is a grammatical mistake in the first sentence that I found out after I submitted....

Thanks! I'll probably apply for Syracuse, Brown, Boston University, NYU, and Cornell.

I may apply to Syracuse as well, I've never been there but now I'm curious. Why does it make you feel it's so awful?

Thanking for offering helps for us. In terms of writing samples(for fiction), do you think it's better to submit the beginning pages of a novel or a collection of 2/3 shorts? Thanks!

I love Saunder's article! Who doesn't want teachers like that? But yea, the least thing I want is overly competitive survival mode place... It seems like your program provides with a lot freedom in terms of choosing the courses by instructors. I heard a lot programs only accept a small group of writers so that basically they have the same classes, teachers and surely same cohort all 2-3 years. I mean it could be great time to make life long friendship but it could be disaster if things go wrong. I totally agree with what you said about "workshop story", it actually reminds me of my experience in London when I was studying in a film school. Most filmmakers there go for the very specific artistic type of film.(code for drama, dull but well-shot, realistic story in which nothing much happens...) The vibe of mentality thinking mainstream/genre films are inferior really bothers me because they're simply different. But my concern is if I submit my writing sample as stories with paranormal element/fantasy/mystery thriller style, I wouldn't get a chance. It's difficult to tell which authors are stylistically similar to mine since I'm still trying to figure my voice out. Maybe Stephen King, Daphne du Maurier(Rebecca) and Neil Gaiman.

Thank you! I'm now less concerned about that. Will focus on finishing the writing samples.

Thank you so much! Much appreciated! I read the article you posted, it's really interesting to read the process of how a writer started his journey to publish his first book. If you don't mind, could you please share a bit of your own workshop experience as well? I actually took one creative writing course of a pretty famous extension school, but it was a bit unease as I was the only person who wrote non literary type of story that during the critique at workshops, I feel they're leading me toward their type regardless the genre I was writing. I guess it was the isolation out of others made me hesitate to apply for MFA just to fear it might end up similar situations I had before.

https://the-artifice.com/genre-fiction-university-writing-programs/

Read an interesting article about genre fiction in MFA. Any opinion on it?