2021 Applicants Forum

[catastroph]

I worked my way through all James Baldwin's fiction and now I guess I'm on to Baldwin's recommendations-- I'm reading City of Night by John Rechy and really enjoying it. I'm thinking I'll only read non-MFA writers for the next while to keep my writing dreams alive, lol ? (Rechy applied to a writing program at Columbia and was not admitted! Baldwin did not attend college!)

[aa2427]

1 hour ago, babypoet2k said:

ust got my first rejection from northwestern! had messed up my sop a bit and lowkey despised one of my critical writing essays so i knew it wasn't going to be a positive response. appreciate the kind email, though! 

I got my rejection from Northwestern this morning as well, and I feel you. I left the diversity question blank (it felt wrong and unfair to people with actual diverse backgrounds to try to dig anything up as a white girl in my 20s) and my SOP just felt...wrong for some reason. Hurts, but I can see why it happened. First rejection does make me very nervous though, eep. Did anyone else get thrown off by the form email that felt personal but then realized it was sent to a lot of us?

[aheather]

27 minutes ago, Ash... said:

Your fav up and coming authors

Going into my first year of MFA school in the fall I want to be up to date with some up and coming  writers. Any recommendations? (This is coming from a lit major who spent too many years reading classics and needs to be refreshed) 

Preferred genres: horror, thriller, psychological, lgbt, fantasy (open to all)

Wahoooo! As a former bookseller, this is my JAM!

If you're cool with YA, Crier's War (Nina Varela) was a really fun lesbian fantasy. You're a former lit major, so you may have already read Song of Achilles (Madeline Miller), but if you haven't, that's a phenomenal place to see old stories merge with new voices (also GAY). I just read Chasm (Dorthea Tanning, yes, the surrealist painter), which was horror and off the wall and just amazing-- also relatively recently published (2003? 2004?) despite Tanning's age. I liked The Water Cure (Sophie Mackintosh) for its deeply unsettling, psychological elements. And now is not the moment I'd necessarily re-read Station Eleven (Emily St. John Mandel), but if you want some fictionalized plague in your life, that book was one of my favorites the year I read it.

Oh! And the biggest rec (in size and quality): The Luminaries, by Eleanor Catton. I deeply believe that Catton will wind up being one of the largest literary voices of our generation, her talent is just unbelievable and her output is already tremendously impressive. The Luminaries is a why-done-it, an unraveling of a murder mystery. It's MASSIVE, so buckle up, but it's so artfully crafted that every little bit of length is done for a reason.

1 hour ago, arden said:

oh my goodness, I'm so sorry!! Getting a physical mail—a big envelope/package, at that!— just feels cruel ?  I hope you get the real deal soon ?

 

what a great selection!! Do you have any recommendations for other craft/litcrit books? I feel similarly that it'd be helpful to recenter myself, and it's something I'm realizing I'm missing in the absence of craft classes recently. (I just graduated in December and it's been a real adjustment to try and settle into writing/reading routines outside of coursework!!) 

 

I love the books mentioned (Dillard! ah!) and want to tack on The Poet's Companion (Kim Addonizio) to the list of good craft books. Usually I find my next one by seeing who is being cited and talked about, and then reading their stuff, so I've found that it pays to start with something general and entry-level and hone in on forms/eras/critics that are interesting. The book I'm reading now referenced George Steiner's On Difficulty, and it sounded fascinating, so I plan to read that next  

[aheather]

1 hour ago, Bug128 said:

Hello! I am nervously awaiting the results like everyone! I made it to phase II for Ole Miss, and I am wondering if anyone has any idea/apprehension how many people are in phase II there? Sorry if this question has been asked elsewhere!

Hello! Congrats on Phase II! 

I also made it to that. I've noticed a lot of people didn't, which indicates that it is good news and not just a thing that happens to most applicants. I've tried to figure out how many people make it to Phase II before being ultimately rejected, and I haven't seen much (it seeeems like most people are WLed or accepted from Phase II), but I don't actually trust the data bc it's sparse and people underreport their rejections.

If you hear anything, please report back! I am at the edge of my seat about Ole Miss.

[Bug128]

6 minutes ago, aheather said:

Hello! Congrats on Phase II! 

I also made it to that. I've noticed a lot of people didn't, which indicates that it is good news and not just a thing that happens to most applicants. I've tried to figure out how many people make it to Phase II before being ultimately rejected, and I haven't seen much (it seeeems like most people are WLed or accepted from Phase II), but I don't actually trust the data bc it's sparse and people underreport their rejections.

If you hear anything, please report back! I am at the edge of my seat about Ole Miss.

Thanks, Aheather. Congrats to you too! I'm hoping for the best for everyone!

[Ash...]

14 minutes ago, aheather said:

Wahoooo! As a former bookseller, this is my JAM!

If you're cool with YA, Crier's War (Nina Varela) was a really fun lesbian fantasy. You're a former lit major, so you may have already read Song of Achilles (Madeline Miller), but if you haven't, that's a phenomenal place to see old stories merge with new voices (also GAY). I just read Chasm (Dorthea Tanning, yes, the surrealist painter), which was horror and off the wall and just amazing-- also relatively recently published (2003? 2004?) despite Tanning's age. I liked The Water Cure (Sophie Mackintosh) for its deeply unsettling, psychological elements. And now is not the moment I'd necessarily re-read Station Eleven (Emily St. John Mandel), but if you want some fictionalized plague in your life, that book was one of my favorites the year I read it.

Oh! And the biggest rec (in size and quality): The Luminaries, by Eleanor Catton. I deeply believe that Catton will wind up being one of the largest literary voices of our generation, her talent is just unbelievable and her output is already tremendously impressive. The Luminaries is a why-done-it, an unraveling of a murder mystery. It's MASSIVE, so buckle up, but it's so artfully crafted that every little bit of length is done for a reason.

I love the books mentioned (Dillard! ah!) and want to tack on The Poet's Companion (Kim Addonizio) to the list of good craft books. Usually I find my next one by seeing who is being cited and talked about, and then reading their stuff, so I've found that it pays to start with something general and entry-level and hone in on forms/eras/critics that are interesting. The book I'm reading now referenced George Steiner's On Difficulty, and it sounded fascinating, so I plan to read that next  

Ahhh thank you so much this is so helpful!

[aheather]

Just now, Ash... said:

Ahhh thank you so much this is so helpful!

pls let me know if you want more!

forcing people to read my favorite books recommending books is my top hobby!

[tippybug]

I wish I could find writing samples online that got people into the MFA programs I applied to... I'm so nosey!!!!!

[Boomer not Ok]

Nice list. I've been "looking" backwards, just finished A Separate Peace and The Talented Mr. Ripley, as they explore young "friendships", something I'm hoping to work on for my thesis. Both hold up quite well. Then, I took a deep dive into Paradise Lost, which I'd never read, but now I'm on my second run. Once you get past the 17th century "thees" and "thous," every other sentence could be a book title. (My favorite: "Which way the nearest coast of darkness lies...")

[aa2427]

16 minutes ago, tippybug said:

I wish I could find writing samples online that got people into the MFA programs I applied to... I'm so nosey!!!!!

I feel the same way, I'm both nosy and love reading other people's work. If anyone knows where to find any, hook it up

[Downtozero]

1 hour ago, aa2427 said:

I feel the same way, I'm both nosy and love reading other people's work. If anyone knows where to find any, hook it up

Idk if you're in Draft 21 but there was an early post that was a call for stories from "draft veterans" and some of the ones posted were successful MFA writing samples from years past. You could find it probably by searching "veterans".

Outside of Draft, I dunno, other than looking at publishing CVs/websites of current students (at the programs that list such things) and extrapolating from the timeline.

This story got someone into multiple programs including Michener, if I recall correctly from their post on the MFA Years blog.

Edited February 17, 2021 by Downtozero
ETA story link

[aa2427]

1 minute ago, Downtozero said:

Idk if you're in Draft 21 but there was an early post that was a call for stories from "draft veterans" and some of the ones posted were successful MFA writing samples from years past. You could find it probably by searching "veterans".

Outside of Draft, I dunno, other than looking at publishing CVs/websites of current students (at the programs that list such things) and extrapolating from the timeline.

I am in Draft, looking now. Thank you so much!

[anamcara]

I've been lurking for months, but the pressure of waiting and the lovely conversation about books has drawn me in! I'm reading Elizabeth Kolbert's new book Under a White Sky: The Nature of the Future. It's fantastic so far -- slightly less anxiety inducing than The Sixth Extinction, but only slightly. Next up is Mrs. Dalloway.

I haven't yet heard back from anywhere I applied to, and I went for all big boys (Michener, Iowa, Syracuse, and Boston). Can't do it without full funding; hopefully that doesn't mean I can't do it at all. Solidarity to everyone who's waiting!

[mrvisser]

3 minutes ago, anamcara said:

I've been lurking for months, but the pressure of waiting and the lovely conversation about books has drawn me in! I'm reading Elizabeth Kolbert's new book Under a White Sky: The Nature of the Future. It's fantastic so far -- slightly less anxiety inducing than The Sixth Extinction, but only slightly. Next up is Mrs. Dalloway.

I haven't yet heard back from anywhere I applied to, and I went for all big boys (Michener, Iowa, Syracuse, and Boston). Can't do it without full funding; hopefully that doesn't mean I can't do it at all. Solidarity to everyone who's waiting!

Welcome! Good list of schools you've got there. I haven't read Mrs. Dalloway, but To the Lighthouse is one of my favorite novels. Woolf is easily one of best writers I've read.

[anamcara]

2 minutes ago, mrvisser said:

Welcome! Good list of schools you've got there. I haven't read Mrs. Dalloway, but To the Lighthouse is one of my favorite novels. Woolf is easily one of best writers I've read.

Thank you, and yes to Woolf! I'd never read her before this year (terrible). Recently someone shared an earlier short story Woolf wrote about Mrs. Dalloway bustling around London before a bomb goes off (maybe?!) with me, and it was one of those stories that was like a completely new window onto what writing can be. Shook me up! Excited to spend more time with her -- will check out To the Lighthouse!

[shanbanan]

4 hours ago, Boomer not Ok said:

Nice list. I've been "looking" backwards, just finished A Separate Peace and The Talented Mr. Ripley, as they explore young "friendships", something I'm hoping to work on for my thesis. Both hold up quite well. Then, I took a deep dive into Paradise Lost, which I'd never read, but now I'm on my second run. Once you get past the 17th century "thees" and "thous," every other sentence could be a book title. (My favorite: "Which way the nearest coast of darkness lies...")

 

2 hours ago, mrvisser said:

Welcome! Good list of schools you've got there. I haven't read Mrs. Dalloway, but To the Lighthouse is one of my favorite novels. Woolf is easily one of best writers I've read.

Posts like these (and all the rest, I just can't quote them all!) make me feel so seen. I've said it before and I'll say it again: the greatest silver lining of this anxious-nail-biting-waiting-to-find-out phase has been, hands down, *virtually* meeting all you lovely people, hearing about what you're reading, and writing. Wow. This was the loveliest things I've read on the internet in ages. 

Yes. YES. To all of the above. Dalloway. Woolf. Paradise Lost. I'm just giggling to myself over here thinking about all the potential book titles. 

As for what I'm reading. For fiction, I'm in the last stretch of Crudo by Olivia Laing and trying to make it last as long as possible. It took me a while to get into the rhythm of it. Once I did, it blew my mind. For poetry, The War Makes Everyone Lonely by Graham Barnhart and Vantage by Taneum Bambrick. For nonfiction, the new Sylvia Plath biography by Heather Clark, Red Comet. OH My GOSH. It is so good. Alright, that's all for me for now. Can't wait to continue learning about what you're all reading, etc.

[Sorensen]

Long lurker first time poster! I’ve been running off nervous energy for weeks now. I’m also a first time applicant and I went for six schools, NAU, University of Washington, Syracuse, UCSD, University of Oregon, and Vanderbilt. (Two Rejections already and another I just know is gonna be rejected. One professor didn’t send their letter to Vanderbilt :Shrug:).

To throw in my own opinion about some authors I included in my SOP were Iain Banks and Erin Morgenstern, I went a bit more modern with little classical influence so we’ll see how that works for me.

I love the super supportive community here with everyone! What’s really brought me out of lurking though was a confusion I have on an email that I got from NAU, I’m confused if I’m getting to stage two or something with them? They say they’re recommending me to the Graduate College, but not that I’ve been officially offered admission yet.

[mrvisser]

55 minutes ago, Sorensen said:

Long lurker first time poster! I’ve been running off nervous energy for weeks now. I’m also a first time applicant and I went for six schools, NAU, University of Washington, Syracuse, UCSD, University of Oregon, and Vanderbilt. (Two Rejections already and another I just know is gonna be rejected. One professor didn’t send their letter to Vanderbilt :Shrug:).

To throw in my own opinion about some authors I included in my SOP were Iain Banks and Erin Morgenstern, I went a bit more modern with little classical influence so we’ll see how that works for me.

I love the super supportive community here with everyone! What’s really brought me out of lurking though was a confusion I have on an email that I got from NAU, I’m confused if I’m getting to stage two or something with them? They say they’re recommending me to the Graduate College, but not that I’ve been officially offered admission yet.

I believe the way it works at almost all schools is that the department chooses who they want, and then they just send it to the graduate department for approval, which is basically just a formality. So you should be good! Congrats! Flagstaff is great.

You're one of the few people I've seen applying to Washington besides myself. I hope they send out acceptances soon.

[babypoet2k]

8 hours ago, aa2427 said:

I got my rejection from Northwestern this morning as well, and I feel you. I left the diversity question blank (it felt wrong and unfair to people with actual diverse backgrounds to try to dig anything up as a white girl in my 20s) and my SOP just felt...wrong for some reason. Hurts, but I can see why it happened. First rejection does make me very nervous though, eep. Did anyone else get thrown off by the form email that felt personal but then realized it was sent to a lot of us?

the diversity question felt valid to me (as a brown, non binary lesbian) BUT same about the sop. i knew before i sent it in that this one AINT it. i was also VERY thrown off by the email. at first i thought that a personal email would mean that i actually have a shot elsewhere, but seeing that it's a form email, my hopes took a hit. either way, on we go waiting for other decisions!

[Ydrl]

SJCNY is reviewing applications right now according to the graduate admissions director.

[Sorensen]

10 hours ago, mrvisser said:

I believe the way it works at almost all schools is that the department chooses who they want, and then they just send it to the graduate department for approval, which is basically just a formality. So you should be good! Congrats! Flagstaff is great.

You're one of the few people I've seen applying to Washington besides myself. I hope they send out acceptances soon.

Thanks for the reassurance there! I’m really hoping the funding on NAU pulls through.

And yeah lurking through the thread I couldn’t see many Washington applications and I’m hoping for an update soon too!

[tippybug]

Anyone wanna tell me what the chances are of ANY of these schools getting results out this month? I applied to UVA, Cornell, Brown, NYU, Columbia, Boston University, and IWW... I was thinking mid-Feb would be more exciting but I'm beginning to realize that I don't think anywhere I applied will get back any sooner than mid-March.

EDIT: I'm losing my mind now that IWW is saying mid-March BTW

Edited February 18, 2021 by tippybug

[spacedumpster]

For my fellow fiction applicants, I present a slightly baseless theory that might give you some hope if you have not heard back from programs which have already accepted folks in poetry/CNF.

Fiction programs generally have much larger applicant pools, and this cycle was almost certainly exceptionally large. Perhaps acceptance decisions for fiction are just taking longer due to an influx of applicants? 

[rcsteel]

31 minutes ago, tippybug said:

Anyone wanna tell me what the chances are of ANY of these schools getting results out this month? I applied to UVA, Cornell, Brown, NYU, Columbia, Boston University, and IWW... I was thinking mid-Feb would be more exciting but I'm beginning to realize that I don't think anywhere I applied will get back any sooner than mid-March.

EDIT: I'm losing my mind now that IWW is saying mid-March BTW

UVA’s website only says they will announce by April 1st. Not many details besides that.

[tippybug]

14 minutes ago, rcsteel said:

UVA’s website only says they will announce by April 1st. Not many details besides that.

Certainly I will die if I have to wait that long!!