eluveitie

I just want to improve my writing and become a professor... It seems kind of strange that having a publishing history should work against me.

My manuscript is going to Acquisitions with a Big-5 publisher next week. If I receive a book offer, should I let the schools know? I am still waiting to hear from a handful of programs. I was accepted into one program, but it only offers funding to a small number of students, so I'm hoping that it might sway them, if this does become a book deal. Edit: I imagine that, if this book is acquired, it may be another several weeks or even a month+ before the Publisher's Marketplace announcement is made.

Can anyone suggest proper etiquette for how to respond after receiving an acceptance? I am still waiting to hear from 7 other schools, and I don't want to accept the offer preemptively, since I don't know the funding situation yet.

I'm 23. I think it's pretty common for applicants to be in their thirties though.

That's a relief that there are other recent grads. From what I've heard, most students are older. My main goal is to improve my writing, but I also want two additional years to hone my skills and the experience that a teaching assistantship brings. I should clarify: it wasn't actually a creative writing degree, but an English degree with a creative writing focus. So, although I've taken several work-shopping classes, I haven't been able to workshop my writing as much as I would have liked. Most of my courseload was devoted to English literature classes, honors courses, and the general requirements. I switched majors from Communications to English in my sophomore year, so that meant I didn't take my first creative writing class until my sophomore year. Yeah, my goal isn't to find an agent through the MFA. I would still like to find connections though, especially since I'd like to work in the publishing industry. Hmm. You've given some good points. I just feel like an MFA offers the structure and education that I can't receive on my own, and allows me to further experiment with my writing.

I'm completing my final year at uni, graduating in late summer (due to study abroad) with a bachelor's degree in creative writing. Do you think that my age will work against me in the applicant pool? I have some nice publishing credentials, have interned at a literary agency, and have an agent. I've heard that a lot of the major fully-funded programs have older applicants. What are your thoughts on this?