mrvisser

Don't worry; I'm always here for you, bud.

Coming from Seattle, housing looks so cheap if I were to get into any of the schools other than my own alma mater. The money in an MFA isn't great, but it's certainly enough to live on.

Haha I'm doing fine. I'm not losing my mind yet, just bored. That's why I like this forum, just to remember that we're all full of anticipation and wondering whether we'll get in. In a non-pandemic year the waiting period would be much easier, although I guess that could be said about anything else, too. I wonder whether COVID will make for shorter or longer turnaround on application decisions.

I've been done for several weeks now, which is both great and awful, since it gives me all the more time to think about it. I also lost my job during the pandemic's early stages, so I've had a lot of days with no real obligations to keep me busy. I try to get distracted from MFA stuff, but that's getting more difficult with Washington State settling into its winter. And so it is that I go down the rabbit hole of looking at apartments in all the cities I could possibly be moving to for school.

I mean, it's true that statistically, anyone you're talking to is unlikely to get into both Iowa and Michener, but there's probably a more tactful way to say it, and given he hasn't read anything I've written outside of this website, it's a silly road to go down. I guess this is what I get for genuinely trying to engage in conversation.

I have a tough time deciding this myself. Iowa has the name and prestige and all that, but, as you said, less money while also having teaching duties. Also, Austin is an awesome city with excellent weather, and I'd much rather live there than in Iowa City. I'm sure the instruction a student receives in Michener is very comparable to that of the IWW. That being said, I want to teach after MFA, and I think Iowa might look a bit better on a resume when applying to jobs, but who knows? I noticed from some of the department's video interviews that it seems like students are kept on at Iowa in some capacity after they graduate, so maybe there's some employment stability there.

Welcome! You've got a great list there. Never too late to the party as long as you get here before the crazy rush of decisions in late January. I imagine that's when the shit will really hit the fan.

Highly suggest adding Annie Dillard's The Writing Life, if you haven't already read it.

Not a polisci student, but I'm pretty sure for most of my schools they said that the deadline for the application is not the same as the deadline for recommendations. Most of my applications were set for Dec. 15, but that was just for the materials that I can submit myself. Many specifically mentioned that letters could come in later.

I just finished Lolita, and now I'm rereading A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving. I haven't read it in a decade so I'm seeing how it holds up against my memory.

Ah, yes. Poor Jake and his love for Brett.

Hope all of my new literary friends are having a festive time!

Agreed. When I squabble I'm later embarrassed to remember that I'm 28 years old, so I've stopped engaging.

Well, if this is the same guy from earlier, I think he said something about being rejected from MFAs in four different years. Maybe you can clarify, but he seems way off on the whole "this is how they're going to teach you to write and read." Seems to me it's more about working on the strengths you already possess rather than pushing any kind of specific pedagogy on students.

Damn if I had known that I definitely would have applied there. I applied to Ole Miss, and they do it the same way: no money, just a writing sample and SOP for phase 1. Their deadline was Dec. 15, so I'm not sure how soon I'll hear back on that one.

If it doesn't send at first, just leave it alone and it should eventually send on its own.

Even if none of us get into MFA programs, it just seems weird to even show hostility in an online forum that's essentially just here to serve as a space for us to relate over mutual excitement/anxiety.

Wow that's early! I didn't apply there, but it's on my "maybe" list for next year if I don't get in this year. Looks like their deadline is the same as Michener Center. I wonder when we can expect to hear back from Texas.

Figured it out! Go to account settings in the top right, and then you can add a signature. I just added mine.

I think when you edit your profile you can add it as a signature or something, although I can't say for certain because the site is having issues and won't let me edit my profile now.

I'm going to avoid getting snobby about my favorite authors and how they attest to my reading comprehension, and instead say: You need to work on your communication skills, dude.

I don't typically, no. I just thought the novel sounded interesting, and it takes place in the Northwest, which is always a plus for me. It won the PEN/Hemingway Award for best first novel the year it was published, so she came right out swinging!

It's quite immersive. When I say it's depressing, I don't just mean sad. It's about a British consul in Mexico who's deeply alcoholic, and it all takes place in one day, very vividly capturing the effects of his addiction and how it affects the people around him. That said, it's also brilliantly written, and does very well to capture a lot of human nuances, which is one of the things I most often gravitate toward in fiction. Other than Housekeeping, I haven't read any Robinson. I know Gilead gets a lot of attention, so I'd like to pick it up at some point. Housekeeping is her first novel, and I found it very touching. Kind of a bildungsroman, but a unique take on the genre.

Nice job! I've been wanting to check out Cleanness. I've been staying pretty busy with reading since finishing my apps. I recently finished Under the Volcano by Malcolm Lowry and Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson, both of which were fantastic. If you want to be intimidated by masterful modernist writing, check out Lowry, but I'll warn that it is an incredibly depressing book. Currently reading Lolita, and trying to decide what will be next after that.

Okay, jeez. I thought something was up with my computer, but I guess it was all of us.