2021 Applicants Forum

[The_Realeo]

I thought about this topic a lot.  My friend thinks I'm crazy for thinking about climate when considering where to move, but I've realized that climate really improves my quality of life in a big way.

[mrvisser]

2 minutes ago, The_Realeo said:

I thought about this topic a lot.  My friend thinks I'm crazy for thinking about climate when considering where to move, but I've realized that climate really improves my quality of life in a big way.

When you grow up on the west coast it's hard to accept moving to a place without volcanoes, but I can make do if it's a big city.

[spacedumpster]

1 hour ago, mrvisser said:

When you grow up on the west coast it's hard to accept moving to a place without volcanoes, but I can make do if it's a big city.

I specifically applied to Oregon State because I miss living in the PNW. Well, that and full funding. 

[The_Realeo]

I applied to Oregon State too!  Hopefully we'll see each other there!

2 hours ago, unfortunate ith said:

 

 

13 minutes ago, spacedumpster said:

I specifically applied to Oregon State because I miss living in the PNW. Well, that and full funding. 

I applied to Oregon State too!  Hopefully we'll see each other there.  Did you also apply for the University of Oregon?  They have the first human shoe.  I always thought that was funny, because it's their big claim to fame, but they actually destroyed the shoe when trying to see how old it was.

[mrvisser]

20 minutes ago, spacedumpster said:

I specifically applied to Oregon State because I miss living in the PNW. Well, that and full funding. 

Have you been to Corvallis? Nice location because of proximity: two hours from Portland, about an hour from the coast, and pretty close to the high desert as well.

[pattycat]

3 hours ago, unfortunate ith said:

Apologies if this has already come up, but the beach talk got me wondering: Did many of you think about climate/location when deciding where to apply? Or, to put it differently, were there places you didn't apply specifically because of their location, and/or programs you were on the fence about but the location pushed you to a "yes"?

My husband really wants to move somewhere warm; UF was already on my list but I added Florida State just for him. I’m considering adding Florida Atlantic as well. 

[spacedumpster]

2 hours ago, The_Realeo said:

I applied to Oregon State too!  Hopefully we'll see each other there!

 

I applied to Oregon State too!  Hopefully we'll see each other there.  Did you also apply for the University of Oregon?  They have the first human shoe.  I always thought that was funny, because it's their big claim to fame, but they actually destroyed the shoe when trying to see how old it was.

Did not apply to UofO, but it will surely be on my list if I don't get in somewhere this year!

[spacedumpster]

2 hours ago, mrvisser said:

Have you been to Corvallis? Nice location because of proximity: two hours from Portland, about an hour from the coast, and pretty close to the high desert as well.

Driven through Corvallis but never spent any time there. I lived in Portland from 2008-2011, but I honestly did not get around all that much when I lived there. I have family all over Oregon (they all moved there after I left, guess I'm a trendsetter) I've been back a couple of times since I moved away. Far and away my favorite state I've spent any amount of time.

[mrvisser]

50 minutes ago, spacedumpster said:

Driven through Corvallis but never spent any time there. I lived in Portland from 2008-2011, but I honestly did not get around all that much when I lived there. I have family all over Oregon (they all moved there after I left, guess I'm a trendsetter) I've been back a couple of times since I moved away. Far and away my favorite state I've spent any amount of time.

It is a fantastic place. I grew up right outside Portland, so between there and living in Seattle later I've been fortunate to see a lot of both states. Definitely my two favorites.

[Michelle Zeller]

16 hours ago, FairleyAlfy said:

I like Spacedumpster's writing for the complexity of it. I'm not a fan of Steele's writing

 

12 hours ago, spacedumpster said:

. Think I'm gonna change that to "vision of cognitive dissonance." Some nice internal rhyme going on, better rhythm. 

There are girls who made fun of me as an undergrad for reading Dannielle Steele. They said they were more sophisticated. They said I write like a farm girl and have no vocabulary. I don’t want the same reputation in mfa school.

It would not have even occurred to me to write something different than "She thought he wasn't the type."

How do I learn to write the fancy way Spacedumpster does, the way FairleyAlfy prefers. "To her mind, I know I am a vision of the antithesis of this scenario."

It might take me a few years to build a vocabulary of fancy words. I had to look up these words for the story. Ravine, antithesis, fractal, incarnate, laminate, cheapjack, gradients (definition didn’t seem to fit), plasticine (not in dictionary) manacled.

I’ll never sound sophisticated till I learn more big words and fancy ways to use them.

[Botanica]

Hi! Just found this thread!

 

I briefly attended a low res program, Warren Wilson, before realizing it wasn't right for me, and now I've applied to 10 schools for Fall 2021.

My list includes Iowa, Michener, U Wisconsin, WashU, U Alabama, Ole Miss, Texas State, Southern Illinois, UNC Wilmington, and GCSU.

 

I'm looking forward to seeing where everyone else is applying/attending!

[pattycat]

On 1/8/2021 at 7:00 AM, Botanica said:

Hi! Just found this thread!

 

I briefly attended a low res program, Warren Wilson, before realizing it wasn't right for me, and now I've applied to 10 schools for Fall 2021.

My list includes Iowa, Michener, U Wisconsin, WashU, U Alabama, Ole Miss, Texas State, Southern Illinois, UNC Wilmington, and GCSU.

 

I'm looking forward to seeing where everyone else is applying/attending!

Welcome! Great list of schools. What is your concentration/genre?

[ZaytandLabna]

9 hours ago, pattycat said:

My husband really wants to move somewhere warm; UF was already on my list but I added Florida State just for him. I’m considering adding Florida Atlantic as well. 

I have a couple of friends who go to UF. 

Just curious have you thought about USF? I went there for my undergrad. Would have applied their for an MFA had I not been limited in location. My husband got a job in NY and I would a 100% be sad at least 50% of the time if I were living away from him lolllll. 

anyway, the professors are amazing there. I would say im biased, but i would honestly tell you if they weren't. 

[ZaytandLabna]

4 hours ago, Michelle Zeller said:

 

There are girls who made fun of me as an undergrad for reading Dannielle Steele. They said they were more sophisticated. They said I write like a farm girl and have no vocabulary. I don’t want the same reputation in mfa school.

It would not have even occurred to me to write something different than "She thought he wasn't the type."

How do I learn to write the fancy way Spacedumpster does, the way FairleyAlfy prefers. "To her mind, I know I am a vision of the antithesis of this scenario."

It might take me a few years to build a vocabulary of fancy words. I had to look up these words for the story. Ravine, antithesis, fractal, incarnate, laminate, cheapjack, gradients (definition didn’t seem to fit), plasticine (not in dictionary) manacled.

I’ll never sound sophisticated till I learn more big words and fancy ways to use them.

Gross.. must be insecure to be putting you down like that. how is that constructive criticism? how is that helpful at all? bye. reminds me of the time I took a song lyrics writing class (idk why, i don't write music) and this girl made it her personal mission to make all of her songs about this girl in class that she didnt like (who happened to be my friend).  and so you can imagine how awkward the workshops were. Just couldnt believe that that was COLLEGE behavior.  

Also my vocabulary is also awful. my professor once pulled me aside and asked if my lack of strong grammar and vocab in my work were because of a language barrier. I do speak arabic but English is technically my first langauge so i didn't have an excuse really. but i still said yes bc i was so embarrassed lollll 

[Botanica]

1 hour ago, pattycat said:

Welcome! Great list of schools. What is your concentration/genre?

I'm concentrating in poetry!

[mrvisser]

5 hours ago, Botanica said:

Hi! Just found this thread!

 

I briefly attended a low res program, Warren Wilson, before realizing it wasn't right for me, and now I've applied to 10 schools for Fall 2021.

My list includes Iowa, Michener, U Wisconsin, Wash U, U Alabama, Ole Miss, Texas State, Southern Illinois, UNC Wilmington, and GCSU.

 

I'm looking forward to seeing where everyone else is applying/attending!

Welcome! We have four schools in common! I kind of wish I added Wisconsin to my list, but it's on there for next year if things don't work out this time around.

[purgatoryparadise]

5 hours ago, mrvisser said:

Welcome! We have four schools in common! I kind of wish I added Wisconsin to my list, but it's on there for next year if things don't work out this time around.

Just fyi, U-Wisconsin Madison (if that's the program you're speaking of) alternates every other year between admitting poetry and fiction. So apps this past cycle were for poetry in Fall 2021, and Fall 2022 will be for fiction.

Edited January 8, 2021 by truffleshuffle

[FairleyAlfy]

14 hours ago, Michelle Zeller said:

 

There are girls who made fun of me as an undergrad for reading Dannielle Steele. They said they were more sophisticated. They said I write like a farm girl and have no vocabulary. I don’t want the same reputation in mfa school.

It would not have even occurred to me to write something different than "She thought he wasn't the type."

How do I learn to write the fancy way Spacedumpster does, the way FairleyAlfy prefers. "To her mind, I know I am a vision of the antithesis of this scenario."

It might take me a few years to build a vocabulary of fancy words. I had to look up these words for the story. Ravine, antithesis, fractal, incarnate, laminate, cheapjack, gradients (definition didn’t seem to fit), plasticine (not in dictionary) manacled.

I’ll never sound sophisticated till I learn more big words and fancy ways to use them.

That was unkind of them to say those things to you. I'm sorry that happened! Liking Danielle Steel is nothing to be ashamed of! She is actually a major best-selling author and has a large audience. She's just not my cup of tea. There are loads of writers who are best-selling authors that just don't tug at my heart strings.  Everyone has different tastes. You don't have to use fancy words to be a good writer. Actually, I have former professors that preferred their students not to use fancy words when conveying a complex emotion. It can be pretentious at times if used frequently. Hemingway is a great example of a writer who uses plain language with no added fluff, but still succeeds in masterful story-telling with well-rounded characters. My vocabulary is by no means great, and I continually try to improve it because I just love playing with language and words, especially in poetry. 

I usually prefer a writer not for their vocabulary, but the way a writer develops new ways of looking at common topics. I want to be surprised when I read, and I also love fiction writing with a rhythm to it because of my love of poetry. I hope this makes sense. I wish you luck with your writing! If your passionate about it and can't imagine doing anything else, then keep writing no matter what anyone says!

[FairleyAlfy]

8 hours ago, Botanica said:

I'm concentrating in poetry!

I'm poetry as well! The warmest welcome!

[CayceCamus]

Hi Everyone!

I just found this forum/thread and need something to distract me from the grad app purgatory as I tear my hair out, haha. I am looking forward to sharing in some camaraderie and support with everyone!

 

My list for Fiction: Iowa, Boston Uni, Cornell, Brown, Uni of Mich, UVA, WaashU, Oregon State Corvallis, North Mich.

[mrvisser]

4 hours ago, truffleshuffle said:

Just fyi, U-Wisconsin Madison (if that's the program you're speaking of) alternates every other year between admitting poetry and fiction. So apps this past cycle were for poetry in Fall 2021, and Fall 2022 will be for fiction.

Well then that's perfect; I couldn't have applied this cycle anyways!

[The_Realeo]

Hey guys, I posted in here yesterday, but didn't introduce myself.  (I'm learning that a lot of people introduce themselves.)  I'm super new to the grad application process, and I too am in total purgatory.  I'm 28, I'm a linguistics major (graduating in the spring) and I've applied for poetry.  I'm both super excited and super nervous.  Glad to meet you guys!  Everyone seems really supportive and that's awesome. 

[pattycat]

21 hours ago, ZaytandLabna said:

Just curious have you thought about USF? I went there for my undergrad. Would have applied their for an MFA had I not been limited in location. My husband got a job in NY and I would a 100% be sad at least 50% of the time if I were living away from him lolllll. 

anyway, the professors are amazing there. I would say im biased, but i would honestly tell you if they weren't. 

I guess I didn't really think about USF. I had both USF and FSU crossed off my list because they have a 2/2 teaching load. But then I added FSU last-minute since they accept Interfolio and I'm not sure if USF does.

[pattycat]

3 hours ago, The_Realeo said:

Hey guys, I posted in here yesterday, but didn't introduce myself.  (I'm learning that a lot of people introduce themselves.)  I'm super new to the grad application process, and I too am in total purgatory.  I'm 28, I'm a linguistics major (graduating in the spring) and I've applied for poetry.  I'm both super excited and super nervous.  Glad to meet you guys!  Everyone seems really supportive and that's awesome. 

Welcome! Where are you applying? 

[pattycat]

On 1/8/2021 at 8:01 PM, CayceCamus said:

Hi Everyone!

I just found this forum/thread and need something to distract me from the grad app purgatory as I tear my hair out, haha. I am looking forward to sharing in some camaraderie and support with everyone!

 

My list for Fiction: Iowa, Boston Uni, Cornell, Brown, Uni of Mich, UVA, WashU, Oregon State Corvallis, North Mich.

Welcome! Looks like you and I have a few crossovers. Which school are you most excited about? I would be psyched to be anywhere, but Iowa is my dream school and I also have eyes for UVA and U of Florida.