Theodosia

Where is everyone applying? The hyperfixation has been hyperfixating so I'm just about done with applications, even though it's September. I'm applying (in Fiction) to: IWW, Syracuse, Amherst, Brown, Ohio State, Idaho, Minnesota (Twin Cities), Boise State, Bowling Green, NC State, Oregon, Maryland, Washington St. Louis, and Arizona. This is technically my second application cycle because last year I applied to IWW on a hypomanic whim, but this year I'm applying with actual strategy, a sample that I've spent hours on, and an SOP that has been written and revised to avoid some of the mistakes I made last time. Looking forward to spending this application cycle with you all! See you in February.

I submitted my initial application this morning! Even though their website hasn't been updated, the application portal does have an option for you to choose Fall 2027 as your preferred term.

Did anyone else not realize that Miami University (Ohio) is suspending their MFA program?? Because I sure didn't.

Just got my Iowa rejection via email! No note, and I'm fairly certain it was the standard form rejection. "Many people liked your work" type wording. I wonder if they're not doing snail mail for everyone this year?

Has anyone gotten their official rejection letter from IWW yet? According to my research, they've been delivered between the 8th and the 11th for the last few years, so I was expecting to get my letter sooner rather than later.

I'm fiction, but my plan is to reapply with the same sample, just majorly edited, plus another rewritten chapter. I also may not even apply to Iowa again at all, so it will be new to everywhere else anyways. As long as the sample isn't the exact same -- or just minorly edited -- I don't think it's an issue.

I graduated in December after ten years of pursuing my degree while dealing with mental health, so I am in the same postgrad limbo that you're gearing up to experience. I applied to Iowa Writers' Workshop sort of on a whim this year and obviously didn't get accepted. It's devastating to hope and plan for this next step in your career, only to have the universe take it away from you. However, I've already begun taking my next steps in the process, which is helping significantly with the rejection and the knowledge that I won't be in an MFA program until 2027 at the earliest. If you feel ready emotionally and creatively, I recommend beginning to assemble your application materials for the next cycle. I'm currently taking a break from my novel -- and the excerpt I'm using to apply -- but I am working on a short story. When that's finished, I will go back to my novel and write the first draft of a new chapter, that I will then refine along with my current excerpt until the next application cycle begins. When I graduated, I was dead set on beginning my writing/editing career and finding an internship or editorial position. However, I have an interview with a local bookstore on Wednesday and am feeling very positive about that, despite my initial despair at feeling like I was further from my writing career than ever upon graduation. It may be helpful to find a temporary job during this process, just to save money and not allow this time before an MFA to feel like such a waste. I'm likely not going to apply to more internships if I get this job, and instead use the time to work and write as much as I can. Other than when you're in an MFA program, this is the time in your life when you have the most ability to devote yourself to your craft. Use that! Know that this is just a longer journey than you had hoped, but that doesn't mean the destination isn't the same. Sorry, this likely makes no sense! Essentially, my advice for the next ten months before the dawn of the next application cycle is to: bolster your income and savings, work on your craft independently, and do everything you can to put yourself in the absolute best position to be successful in the next cycle. Sign up for workshops, make writerly connections, work on different projects in addition to your application sample, and submit to literary journals. This extra time doesn't have to be a waste even if we don't want it.

Does anyone know anything about Iowa Fiction waitlists this year?

I only applied to Iowa this year, so I am definitely not going to be at an MFA program in the autumn. While this is devastating to recognize, it's helped me to begin planning my year now. I have an interview with a local bookstore next week and began working on my writing sample for the next application cycle yesterday. Having another year to build up savings is actually a blessing in disguise, despite how much it hurts to know that it will be more than a year before I begin a program -- assuming I get in somewhere next year, that is! It's also helped to hold both truths: I hope that I get into Iowa, and I will likely not be getting in. Allowing room in my headspace for both, instead of relying on absolutes, has been horrid for my anxiety but incredibly good for my ability to move forward. Right now, your brain is grasping for absolutes that simply do not exist in this process, as awful as that is. Recognizing that there aren't any, and finding something to be excited for either outcome is crucial.

According to my super low-key, non-obsessive research, Iowa generally finishes making calls by the end of today and snail mail rejections have been received between February 8th-11th for the past three years. So, assuming we don't get a call today, we'll have approximately two weeks of limbo before the official letter arrives.

My god, how I wish I could email Sam Chang and just ask if I got in! I began working on the first draft of my writing sample for the next application cycle today, but even that isn't helping my desperation to know if I will be waitlisted or get a tier rejection. I've been fantasizing about a note at the bottom of my rejection, as rare as that is, and I will be truly devastated if after all this self-imposed mayhem, I receive the formiest of form rejections. 🤣

I'm currently waiting for my acceptance into the Draft group. If someone has a spare moment and would be so kind, could you please update me on how many Iowa acceptances for Fiction have been noted? I'm back to simply hoping for a tiered rejection or personalized note, but I'd love to know how long I should hold out for.

Congratulations!!!!! That is absolutely incredible! May I ask if you got an email/if your acceptance portal has been updated to reflect your acceptance?

I've been telling myself all along that I'm not going to get in, but I still had hope somewhere deep down when I applied, you know? I wish I would just get the rejection already so that I don't have to have this horrid final vestige of "what if?"

Welp. That's quite unfortunate.

Someone else will know better than I, but Iowa is notorious for staggering acceptances.

I feel nauseous! I know the chance is so small, but it's not over until it's over!

Hello! Recent lurker, new account here! I'm Theo (she/her), and applied to Iowa Writers' Workshop sort of on a whim this year. Quite obviously, I won't be getting accepted this year, but I have my sights set on next year. However, I did want to ask for some brutal honesty from those who have more knowledge about the application process, as I can't find a straight answer online. Due to mental health and the fact that I am Autistic, I earned my Bachelor's from SNHU, and my recommendations are incredibly lacking because I have hardly anyone who knows my craft. My writing sample and resume are strong, though. So, I was wondering if it's even worth it to apply next year? I don't want to waste the time, energy, and money I don't have on something that is never going to happen, especially because I require a fully-funded program. Is there an actual chance that someone with my background, lack of pedigree, and terrible recommendations could get into a program like Brown, Amherst, or Ohio? This year, I applied with recommendations from a fiction professor, a poetry professor, and a past employer. Unless something drastically changes, next application cycle will be the same. For reference, I do have three indie poetry collections published, as well some individual poems, and a short story. I was a YoungArts shortlist winner in Fiction, and have been a freelance editor of fiction and nonfiction since 2023. I've also written eleven unpublished novels. My writing sample is strong but sort of niche -- best suited for somewhere like Brown or other programs that are interested in intense, hallucinatory voices. So sorry for the essay! I felt like a lot of information was needed to get a clear answer.