2024 Creative Writing MFA Applicants Forum

[garfieldlives]

My lesson from this weekend is that it's too early in the process to give up hope. On Friday night, a couple of people got waitlisted for fiction at Oregon State. I figured that meant that nonfiction acceptances had gone out, and I hadn't been accepted. I felt defeated and destined for rejection across the board. I thought my best chance would be the California College of the Arts, but I won't hear back from them until March. I still haven't heard back from Oregon State, but I did hear back from the University of Montana this weekend. 

Yesterday morning, I decided that I was going to spend the day without looking at this forum, the results page, or the Draft spreadsheet. It's a holiday weekend, so I figured I wouldn't hear anything until Monday or Tuesday at the earliest. I started playing Palworld (the best game for distraction) and did my best to let go of all the decision anxiety and panic. Then I got a phone call from a Missoula, MT number. I WAS ACCEPTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA!!! I was not expecting to get in, let alone get a Saturday morning call. 

We still have two weeks until March! Don't give up hope yet! Wishing the best for everyone!!!

1a/0r/0w/4p

[3feetofsnow]

2 minutes ago, Scribe said:

bingo. all of this. 

i wonder if that urban legend is true: every now and then some smart ass types up a classic novel, sends it out to publishers and agents, and watches it get roundly rejected. 

let's not forget timing. I'm not the same writer I was last year. 

 

{fun fact while i wait for the delay: last year there were 492 responses on the draft spreadsheet. as of now, we're up to 463}

Right, and also timing in the sense that different types of writing are more or less in vogue at different times, just like with your hypothetical about the classic novel!

3 minutes ago, garfieldlives said:

My lesson from this weekend is that it's too early in the process to give up hope. On Friday night, a couple of people got waitlisted for fiction at Oregon State. I figured that meant that nonfiction acceptances had gone out, and I hadn't been accepted. I felt defeated and destined for rejection across the board. I thought my best chance would be the California College of the Arts, but I won't hear back from them until March. I still haven't heard back from Oregon State, but I did hear back from the University of Montana this weekend. 

Yesterday morning, I decided that I was going to spend the day without looking at this forum, the results page, or the Draft spreadsheet. It's a holiday weekend, so I figured I wouldn't hear anything until Monday or Tuesday at the earliest. I started playing Palworld (the best game for distraction) and did my best to let go of all the decision anxiety and panic. Then I got a phone call from a Missoula, MT number. I WAS ACCEPTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA!!! I was not expecting to get in, let alone get a Saturday morning call. 

We still have two weeks until March! Don't give up hope yet! Wishing the best for everyone!!!

1a/0r/0w/4p

Omg congrats! Hoping some of this energy rubs off on me, haha

My reactions replenished right as I went to put a heart on this, maybe that’s a good omen XD

[itsbeensnowing]

21 minutes ago, 3feetofsnow said:

also, hello fellow snow-themed username!

Kindred spirits!! ❄️

22 minutes ago, 3feetofsnow said:

There are definitely some schools that don’t allow you to pursue an MFA with an MA, while some let you progress through the MFA program more quickly if you have one. You’d have to look at or contact the particular MFA programs you’re interested in to see what their policies are.

8 minutes ago, Scribe said:

doubtful. i can't say for sure but in the link i posted above were two PhD's who went for MFA's. Some schools do want a ba in a related field, some don't care at all. i would bet dollars to donuts the overwhelming majority of programs, like 99% wouldn't care. 

and if you knew who they were, don't tell them. 

Fair enough to both of you! I should probably preemptively do some research about that, at least for my top programs, just in case. It's like I'm worrying about the hypothetical of a hypothetical, but I guess that's what we have to do when we don't know exactly where our lives are going next! Of course, if I do end up getting into an MFA this season (especially with funding), that'll be a pretty easy decision. If not, I'll treat this as a potential backup plan.

[GoldenTree]

2 hours ago, triciadawn said:

Just got my Ole Miss rejection. 🥳 I went to high school in Oxford, so it stings a little. 
 

not to diss the program or take away from anyone who made it to round 2 but what are they looking for exactly? I went to their info sesh and they just look for “quality work.” I workshopped with my prof who told me I would get in for sure. I also read alumni work which was so similar to my own work. Really frustrating when your best still isn’t enough. I’m scared Iowa and Michigan are definite long shots now. 
 

Congrats to all phase 2 contenders! 

I'm definitely feeling the same honestly. I noticed they had Aimee Nezhukumatathil on staff alongside one or two other poets who sometimes write about the natural world, and I honestly thought I had a chance considering nature is pretty much present in everything I write. I even studied Aimee for my honors project. But I'm not from the south and don't write about the south, so honestly, I'm not too shocked. 

Congrats to everyone that made it and has been accepted! But I also think it's important to remember if one school doesn't feel wowed by us, that doesn't mean another school won't. Writing is art, and art can be very subjective. I also remember hearing Kaveh Akbar speaking once. He's well known in the lit community now but he was talking about how he was rejected from all these fully funded programs and had to push himself into a low residency MFA. He's an amazing writer and his story I think, should teach us that it's not these schools, that determine how great we are. It isn't. These programs can help us with our work definitely, but it's the writer oftentimes that defines themselves, not the school or program or award. 

Edited February 19 by GoldenTree

[prufrock_]

2 hours ago, Scribe said:

{fun fact while i wait for the delay: last year there were 492 responses on the draft spreadsheet. as of now, we're up to 463}

That '23 draft spreadsheet lost all data submitted prior to 2/24/23 for whatever reason, so it's not really possible to see if this round has a larger application pool or not.

 

edit: i guess i do see about 100 manually added submissions that might have been the whole picture from before 2/24.

Edited February 19 by prufrock_

[g kons]

when does brown typically send out notifications for cross disciplinary? do they call? anyone know

[pananoprodigy]

22 minutes ago, g kons said:

when does brown typically send out notifications for cross disciplinary? do they call? anyone know

Pretty sure Brown has trended towards mid-March from what I've seen on past years' threads, but maybe somebody else has other info?

[Chex]

7 hours ago, itsbeensnowing said:

Kindred spirits!! ❄️

Fair enough to both of you! I should probably preemptively do some research about that, at least for my top programs, just in case. It's like I'm worrying about the hypothetical of a hypothetical, but I guess that's what we have to do when we don't know exactly where our lives are going next! Of course, if I do end up getting into an MFA this season (especially with funding), that'll be a pretty easy decision. If not, I'll treat this as a potential backup plan.

I've seen a number of people with MAs in Creative Writing, both from within and outside the US, go on to get MFAs in the US. Matter of fact, someone who got the one-year MA from University of Kansas got multiple acceptances from MFA programs a couple years ago, and ended up choosing Cornell. It's not prior MAs that limit your chances, it is prior MFAs in Creative Writing, because MFAs are their own class of degree. Your one-year MA barely gives you the same of amount of time or nature of coursework. It's largely preparatory. I wouldn't worry about it. 

2 hours ago, g kons said:

when does brown typically send out notifications for cross disciplinary? do they call? anyone know

Mid March is the general time for MFA programs in the Literary Arts department. 

[Chex]

7 hours ago, GoldenTree said:

Congrats to everyone that made it and has been accepted! But I also think it's important to remember if one school doesn't feel wowed by us, that doesn't mean another school won't. Writing is art, and art can be very subjective. I also remember hearing Kaveh Akbar speaking once. He's well known in the lit community now but he was talking about how he was rejected from all these fully funded programs and had to push himself into a low residency MFA. He's an amazing writer and his story I think, should teach us that it's not these schools, that determine how great we are. It isn't. These programs can help us with our work definitely, but it's the writer oftentimes that defines themselves, not the school or program or award. 

I agree. While there can be some trends in acceptances (e.g., a set of applicants getting accepted across multiple programs), these trends are not mathematical. People regularly get rejected at lower-ranked programs and get accepted at higher-ranked ones. It IS subjective. If you look at the spreadsheet on Draft, some of those rejected by Ole Miss in Phase 1 already have acceptances from other programs. It's the same with submitting writing for publication. I've had a piece rejected by what you might call "safety" lit mags, and then picked up by a long shot lit mag to my utter surprise. 

We're often tempted to judge ourselves by rejections and to catastrophize what that means for us, but I'm here to tell you (and myself) that a rejection is just that: one rejection. It has no bearing on your pending applications. You can mourn it and let it go. There are other chances ahead and other places that might like your work. 

[writernity]

10 hours ago, g kons said:

when does brown typically send out notifications for cross disciplinary? do they call? anyone know

 

10 hours ago, pananoprodigy said:

Pretty sure Brown has trended towards mid-March from what I've seen on past years' threads, but maybe somebody else has other info?

Yes, Brown tends to send responses early-mid March. Some rejections may come before acceptances/waitlists as well.

[writernity]

Happy Monday all! Might be a slow day due to the holiday, but hoping for some kind of news this week as we move into late February! 🙏 JHU will probably(hopefully) finish with rejections this week, and Pittsburgh is likely to send final decisions this week based on past trends. We'll likely see more NYU acceptances as well moving into March.

From my Aggregated Data, I'm forecasting final results before the end of the month from Cornell and Syracuse. Hunter may request interviews soon, but may be later this year than usual. Manhattanville and Stony Brook should also be making some moves soon (I don't think I've heard of any interview requests yet for SB aside from that vague email?)

This has been your Writernity Weekly Forecast. If I am correct about at least half of this I am claiming psychic powers. 🔮 

[electricstardust]

hi all! i've been lurking on here, and i've been wanting to ask (and hopefully it's not too off topic!): does anyone have any tips for submitting their work to mags/contests? or has anyone here found success submitting their work? i submitted poems to a bunch of places last year and didn't get many yeses so i stopped, but this process has made me want to try to get my work out there! appreciate any thoughts

[prufrock_]

4 minutes ago, electricstardust said:

hi all! i've been lurking on here, and i've been wanting to ask (and hopefully it's not too off topic!): does anyone have any tips for submitting their work to mags/contests? or has anyone here found success submitting their work? i submitted poems to a bunch of places last year and didn't get many yeses so i stopped, but this process has made me want to try to get my work out there! appreciate any thoughts

someone might have more detailed advice, but mine is: rejections are part of the process! as long as you're submitting your best work to a place where it fits in, then there's no reason to stop submitting.

[pananoprodigy]

5 minutes ago, electricstardust said:

hi all! i've been lurking on here, and i've been wanting to ask (and hopefully it's not too off topic!): does anyone have any tips for submitting their work to mags/contests? or has anyone here found success submitting their work? i submitted poems to a bunch of places last year and didn't get many yeses so i stopped, but this process has made me want to try to get my work out there! appreciate any thoughts

My best advice (and I'm still learning!) is to just submit, submit, submit. Make it a habit of getting on Submittable every day and submitting to 5+ places. Once you're used to it you can do it really fast. When you're submitting that much the rejections will start to roll in which will feel demoralizing at first, but eventually you get to a place where a) you're submitting so much that you don't even always remember submitting to the place that rejected you and b) the rejections almost start to feel validating because it's evidence of how many places you've submitted. Or maybe that's just me lol. 

[jadedoptimist]

20 minutes ago, electricstardust said:

hi all! i've been lurking on here, and i've been wanting to ask (and hopefully it's not too off topic!): does anyone have any tips for submitting their work to mags/contests? or has anyone here found success submitting their work? i submitted poems to a bunch of places last year and didn't get many yeses so i stopped, but this process has made me want to try to get my work out there! appreciate any thoughts

@electricstardust I have no advice, just solidarity (I am almost entirely unpublished and struggle with putting myself out there) and a suggestion that recently there was a post on Draft you might consult with a ton of lit mags in the comments. Also, congrats on your acceptances! You're doing great!

[Scribe]

I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I would barely know where to get started submitting to literary journals. I know nothing about the business end of this. There's a bunch of links up on draft for figuring out where to submit but even that seems foreign to me. I mean, i just know i'd do something wrong. I cannot believe all the missteps I made during the application process. maybe i just need to break the seal. 

[electricstardust]

4 minutes ago, Scribe said:

I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I would barely know where to get started submitting to literary journals. I know nothing about the business end of this. There's a bunch of links up on draft for figuring out where to submit but even that seems foreign to me. I mean, i just know i'd do something wrong. I cannot believe all the missteps I made during the application process. maybe i just need to break the seal. 

i feel the same way (like i'm going to mess it up) but i'm sure it isn't true for either of us! can i ask how you feel you misstepped while applying? i will have to look at the links on draft, so thanks for mentioning that

[writernity]

22 minutes ago, electricstardust said:

hi all! i've been lurking on here, and i've been wanting to ask (and hopefully it's not too off topic!): does anyone have any tips for submitting their work to mags/contests? or has anyone here found success submitting their work? i submitted poems to a bunch of places last year and didn't get many yeses so i stopped, but this process has made me want to try to get my work out there! appreciate any thoughts

As others have said, rejections are part of the process-- even the most accomplished authors get a slew of rejections! If you've had any yeses, that's a big accomplishment! I know a lot of writers who have "rejection bingo" sheets or the like where they get themselves a treat once they reach a certain number of rejections 🤣 some compete with friends to see who can get the most rejections in a quarter! The more rejections you get, that means the more you're sending out, the more people are reading your work, and the closer you are to finding the right home for a piece. A rejection doesn't mean your work isn't good-- it might just not be fitting for that particular mag, or just got unlucky in a cycle with too many similar pieces in submission, or it just didn't appeal to the subjective taste of the editors/slush readers. You just have to keep going and make rejections something to celebrate instead of treating them as a punishment.

If you (and anyone else like @Scribe) haven't been using them already, check out the Submissions Grinder by diabolical plots and Chill Subs (and Duotrope, but that needs a paid subscription, for short stories/poems the others are just as good but in searching for book agents and publishers duotrope is best). Those are sites that allow you to search and filter publications and contests to find the right places to submit, and they have user submitted stats so you can see average response times! (Chill Subs is newer and doesn't have much stats yet, but their filtering system is more robust than Submission Grinder)

If you don't know much about how to format submissions or what to write in your letters, there's tons of advice (that may vary by genre) and examples freely available online. Most publications will mention any formatting guidelines on their submission pages, follow what they say and you'll be golden!

[electricstardust]

18 minutes ago, jadedoptimist said:

@electricstardust I have no advice, just solidarity (I am almost entirely unpublished and struggle with putting myself out there) and a suggestion that recently there was a post on Draft you might consult with a ton of lit mags in the comments. Also, congrats on your acceptances! You're doing great!

oh great, i'll go look for that post! but it's good to know i'm not the only one kinda struggling with this. maybe we can all push each other to just go ahead and submit?? and thank you so much:) congrats on your WLs!!! i'm expecting a Vandy R very soon hehe

[Scribe]

8 minutes ago, electricstardust said:

i feel the same way (like i'm going to mess it up) but i'm sure it isn't true for either of us! can i ask how you feel you misstepped while applying? i will have to look at the links on draft, so thanks for mentioning that

i think it's largely content related (typos, mentioning things i shouldn't in the supplemental statements, etc) but there's also navigating the applications. there were times things weren't uploading, other times i uploaded things in the wrong place or with an inappropriate file name. even now, i have trouble accessing the portal for UNM. and of course there's getting my recommenders sorted. i just see myself thinking i've submitted to the right place or in the right way and it actually being a waste of time. 

[BarryDairy]

51 minutes ago, electricstardust said:

hi all! i've been lurking on here, and i've been wanting to ask (and hopefully it's not too off topic!): does anyone have any tips for submitting their work to mags/contests? or has anyone here found success submitting their work? i submitted poems to a bunch of places last year and didn't get many yeses so i stopped, but this process has made me want to try to get my work out there! appreciate any thoughts

Hey! I've had a bit of success submitting and get commissions from mags and anthologies often enough and also have been a fiction and poetry magazine editor for a few years now. 

The biggest tip when it comes to submitting is to analyze the markets=magazines/journals/publications. Go beyond simply reading a couple back issues but learn the editorial lean of the magazine. I like using a spreadsheet with the magazines I want to publish with and gather this data: editors, readership, specific genres they publish a lot (queer diaspora horror), forms/structures, and submission windows. When it comes to getting a yes from an editor, aim for an emotional connection.

Really learning the mags I want to publish in and working on my ability to convey the desired emotions of the piece in a way that the reader can feel is how I started getting more acceptances.

And idk I found way more success with targeted submitting over blanket submitting. When I used to make sure I always had 20 pieces out on submission at a time, I did not have any luck (but I did get my name out there). Then I slowed down and spent more time reading the magazines out there and picking the ones that I truly wanted to publish in and work with the editors. I started getting more personalized rejections and slowly those became acceptances. I still get rejected but it's like 2 out of 5 ttimes. That being said, when I first started submitting it felt less like I was trying to get a yes through skill and more through just sheer luck.

I love helping other writers with figuring out the publishing landscape, so if you have other questions, let me know or DM me (if Gradcafe allows that).

[ssuunn]

Seconding @BarryDairy, I've had more success being intentional about where I'm submitting rather than just applying across the board. The rejections haven't affected me much, since it's just for publication and not an MFA program.

I'm not particularly that experienced in getting published; since my first ever submission when I was a college freshman, I've submitted poems to 38 different publications and I have a 23.33% acceptance rate, (omitting 8 that are currently pending, that percentage will definitely go down).

I don't really have any advice since I'm not that active, but I try to look for pubs that are small/community-oriented, perhaps newer to the scene and don't post issues too frequently/or that focus on a limited number of authors per issue. Mostly, now that I have met some people online through these pubs over instagram, I look to where their writing is getting published and seeing if it would be a good fit for my work.

Edited February 19 by ssuunn

[lychees]

36 minutes ago, writernity said:

As others have said, rejections are part of the process-- even the most accomplished authors get a slew of rejections! If you've had any yeses, that's a big accomplishment! I know a lot of writers who have "rejection bingo" sheets or the like where they get themselves a treat once they reach a certain number of rejections 🤣 some compete with friends to see who can get the most rejections in a quarter! The more rejections you get, that means the more you're sending out, the more people are reading your work, and the closer you are to finding the right home for a piece. A rejection doesn't mean your work isn't good-- it might just not be fitting for that particular mag, or just got unlucky in a cycle with too many similar pieces in submission, or it just didn't appeal to the subjective taste of the editors/slush readers. You just have to keep going and make rejections something to celebrate instead of treating them as a punishment.

If you (and anyone else like @Scribe) haven't been using them already, check out the Submissions Grinder by diabolical plots and Chill Subs (and Duotrope, but that needs a paid subscription, for short stories/poems the others are just as good but in searching for book agents and publishers duotrope is best). Those are sites that allow you to search and filter publications and contests to find the right places to submit, and they have user submitted stats so you can see average response times! (Chill Subs is newer and doesn't have much stats yet, but their filtering system is more robust than Submission Grinder)

If you don't know much about how to format submissions or what to write in your letters, there's tons of advice (that may vary by genre) and examples freely available online. Most publications will mention any formatting guidelines on their submission pages, follow what they say and you'll be golden!

I currently read for (arguably) one of the most prestigious literary journals in the United States, so if it helps to provide some perspective on how rejection goes, especially for the bigger journals out there — so much of what is accepted or not is simply dependent on luck and subjectivity, particularly how the individual reader feels about your piece. Some pieces call to certain people more, and some pieces call to certain people less. Submitting to larger literary journals is absolutely a gamble, which means that rejections are rarely ever personal. The sheer amount of submissions also affects this — dozens of pieces I have shared with the higher-up editors enthusiastically, that are written by phenomenally skilled writers, have been rejected as well because there's a page limit for every journal. All this to say that rejections are inevitable, which means they are never an indication as to your skill or talent — only an indication to always try again. 

[Rixor]

Just wanted to drop some input on the 'submitting to mags' thing. I only have one publication so far, but I have a long list of rejections (some 'higher tier' ones) so I feel somewhat experienced. I use two lists: Erika Krouse's and Poortere's, because I don't want to pay for Duotrope at this point in time.

When I started out submitting, I would submit to very tiny journals (bad mistake, some are scams, most of them die in a month or so and then you lose 'first publication' rights) with giant, earnest, heartfelt, editorializing query letters (worse mistake!! embarassing looking back!). 

The query letters that my professor taught us to write are very, very basic. The letter that earned me my first publication was something like:

Dear [Editor Name],

Thank you for considering STORYNAME, my XXXX-word GENRE piece, in MAGAZINENAME. I am SHORT ONE SENTENCE BIO. 

Thank you for your time and consideration,

NAME

Most journals require like, $3 to submit, so unfortunately it can be inaccessible to 'put yourself out there.' Contests are even more inaccessible--like, $20 per submission is standard--so I don't submit to them. Pairing stories with mag vibes/themes (like, if you have a poem about queer identity and orange trees, submitting it to a queer Floridian journal) seems to garner the most success. If you can read and research the publication, even better, but I realize that can also be a big barrier to entry for people low on funds. Personally, I do an in-between thing between targeted and blanket submitting... I try to read whatever stories are free, research the editors, and submit if the vibe/themes match. It's a little unfortunate, but I just don't have the funds right now to subscribe to so many mags. 

Also, one professor of mine showed us her submittable page and it was a long list of rejections. Knowing that established, skilled, experienced writers still get denied all the time makes me feel a lot better about my own rejections. It's just a part of the game.

Good luck all of you!

[electricstardust]

1 hour ago, pananoprodigy said:

My best advice (and I'm still learning!) is to just submit, submit, submit. Make it a habit of getting on Submittable every day and submitting to 5+ places. Once you're used to it you can do it really fast. When you're submitting that much the rejections will start to roll in which will feel demoralizing at first, but eventually you get to a place where a) you're submitting so much that you don't even always remember submitting to the place that rejected you and b) the rejections almost start to feel validating because it's evidence of how many places you've submitted. Or maybe that's just me lol. 

i'm definitely trying to get to this point😅but this is such a good mindset to have, thanks!!

50 minutes ago, BarryDairy said:

Hey! I've had a bit of success submitting and get commissions from mags and anthologies often enough and also have been a fiction and poetry magazine editor for a few years now. 

The biggest tip when it comes to submitting is to analyze the markets=magazines/journals/publications. Go beyond simply reading a couple back issues but learn the editorial lean of the magazine. I like using a spreadsheet with the magazines I want to publish with and gather this data: editors, readership, specific genres they publish a lot (queer diaspora horror), forms/structures, and submission windows. When it comes to getting a yes from an editor, aim for an emotional connection.

Really learning the mags I want to publish in and working on my ability to convey the desired emotions of the piece in a way that the reader can feel is how I started getting more acceptances.

And idk I found way more success with targeted submitting over blanket submitting. When I used to make sure I always had 20 pieces out on submission at a time, I did not have any luck (but I did get my name out there). Then I slowed down and spent more time reading the magazines out there and picking the ones that I truly wanted to publish in and work with the editors. I started getting more personalized rejections and slowly those became acceptances. I still get rejected but it's like 2 out of 5 ttimes. That being said, when I first started submitting it felt less like I was trying to get a yes through skill and more through just sheer luck.

I love helping other writers with figuring out the publishing landscape, so if you have other questions, let me know or DM me (if Gradcafe allows that).

and a spreadsheet is such a good idea! idk why i haven't thought of it. i've just been haphazardly making lists of places I want to apply to in my notes app lol. thank you sm for all of your advice! i think i applied too broadly without putting enough thought in last time