pananoprodigy

I applied for fiction and haven’t heard anything

Kinda bewildered rn -- I just got a copy of Passages North, Northern Michigan's lit mag, in the mail. No note or anything, just this big fat book in a box. Surely they don't send it out to all their applicants, do they? And if not, why did I get it lol. I had been assuming they were a rejection but I haven't heard anything since I applied. And as if that's not odd enough I went to the grocery store right after getting it and saw a guy in a Northern Michigan sweatshirt -- I live in Los Angeles. edit: Assuming this is just the universe's way of making me second guess myself the minute I've actually, finally, made a decision LOL

I'm committing to NAU @everything bagel lover can't wait to get bagels with you in flag!

Take this with sooo many grains of salt because I obviously know nothing, but I think if I were you, I would probs hang in there and wait for final word from CSU before you accept NAU. I haven't gotten any indication in any of my convos with people at NAU that our offers there are in danger of being revoked/deferred/whatever...Now, obviously, as we're seeing, anything can happen, but I feel pretty confident in the NAU offer's sticking power, at least for now. I would just hate for you to end up in the super awkward position of getting your dream CSU funding offer and having the excitement of it all marred by having to back out of an NAU offer you accepted. Of course that wouldn't be the worst thing ever, but I think esp since April 15th is still a wee bit aways, I would probably wait. edit: THAT BEING SAID, I feel firmly that at the end of the day we all have to put ourselves first in this process. These schools are a lot like companies, and I think it's so valid to treat them the way you'd treat potential employers during a job search -- i.e. you don't owe them anything. Obviously we don't wanna burn bridges but like also...see above re: don't owe them anything.

I think it's definitely smart and totally appropriate to send an email letting them know what you said here (that they're your #1 and you would accept a place in the program immediately). A lot's been said here and on draft about how knowing that can realllyyy make a difference, given that these adcoms want the process to be finalized almost as bad as we do. If they're choosing between offering a spot to someone they know will accept it versus someone they're not sure will, oftentimes they'll go with the former. I hope you make it off the waitlist!!

AMAZING!!! Congrats! I published a piece in BER last year (year before? idk) and the whole squad over there was so wonderful. I def didn't win the $1000 prize though - that's HUGE and I hope you're celebrating big tonight!

I see that Boise did poetry interviews in early Feb, but there are no reports for fiction. Last year's spreadsheet only shows interviews for poetry as well. Do we think they only interview poetry for some reason? i.e. as a fiction writer who didn't get an interview, should I count them as a soft r?

I want to say a massive ✨Thank You💫 to everybody who responded to my tiny wee crash out post the other day: @exvat, @curfew, @zaira, @everything bagel lover, @Sumire11, @Tuxedocat, @Chex. I'm so sorry if I missed anyone but I read them all with so much gratitude. Your words were so kind and I'm just really grateful for this community. edit: And for reporting purposes I also got my Brown rejection today. Taking Ls left and right and still we rise lol

Hey guys, mopey ass bummer of a post coming through so if you're feeling fragile like me please ignore lol. I'm just having such a hard time today. Having done this whole shebang last year I knew how competitive it is and I applied to so many programs hoping I would at least end up with a few options. I feel like I don't really have a right to complain since I have a funded offer at NAU, but the stipend simply isn't livable on its own and if I haven't been able to get a job in my current city (I've been unemployed for 5 months) I don't see why it would be easier to get one in flagstaff which is a fraction of the size. I'm just so, so tired of being broke all the time. All I do is apply to jobs and all I hear back, if I'm lucky, is no. My ego is sooo bruised from these applications. I was finally getting to a point in my life/career where I felt like I had a wee bit of credibility as a writer; I finished an mfa in screenwriting, did a cool residency, got some short stories published, etc. But now it's all evaporated and I just feel like I'm in a never ending flop era. On top of all this my cat, my best friend in the world, died unexpectedly on Sunday night. He was kind of all I had going for me and now I'm just sitting here in my empty apartment feeling lost. Sorry to trauma dump, I just don't have anybody irl who really gets how taxing this process is and how it seeps into every other aspect of your life.

Just got my U of Oregon rejection (haven't reported it in draft yet)

Just checked mine - under Admissions Decision it says "In Progress" (I got my letter in the mail yesterday fwiw)

Three years was definitely a big preference for me. From past experience (mfa in screenwriting) I know that in a 2 year program, by the time you sort of get in the swing of things the program is wrapping up. edit: That's not to say that you can't accomplish a ton in two years, just that I think a third really gives you space to incorporate a lot of the lessons (life-wise and curriculum-wise) you acquired in the first two.

This should have been your writing sample fr. Instant As across the board

I feel like I have the opposite problem where I've been mentally counting my waitlists as rejections and have therefore given them zero research or further consideration. If any of them turn into As it's actually going to be really jarring and I will for sure be in panic mode scrambling to make a decision. Yours seems like the healthier approach!!

gahh this is so frustrating, I'm sorry. You never know, it could still come through! But dang what a bummer. I'm really on the fence about these programs that fund some but not all (i.e. the only kind of program I have an acceptance to). Like, I get it -- there's only so much money to be had -- but I can't help feeling like it's a weird dynamic to be in a workshop where some people are struggling to make rent and others are....admittedly still probably struggling to pay rent given these stipends, but like, maybe struggling a little less. I don't know, maybe I'm totally overthinking it and it's not an issue, but I can't help feeling like it's something that would come up in a social situation where you're in a cohort with only 3-5 other people.