2025 Creative Writing MFA Applicants Forum

[KennyK]

12 minutes ago, rapunzel said:

none of the American schools are going to be notifying on Monday, are they? this is going to be the longest weekend 😐

I literally forgot Monday was a holiday 😭😭😭

[Mystic_Sunshine]

14 minutes ago, rapunzel said:

none of the American schools are going to be notifying on Monday, are they? this is going to be the longest weekend 😐

Not all universities are closed monday so there could be news

[nauseated]

Hi guys. Wanted to pop in and share an experience I had today, which I have since dubbed God's practical joke on me.

After the JHU acceptances on draft, I had assumed mine to be a soft rejection, which is most likely what will happen. But still, because universities presumably notify during working hours, which is during the night for me (because timezones), I keep my Wi-Fi on and keep my ringtones up to the full volume while I'm asleep - not because I'm particularly hopeful, but because in the off chance I do get a call, I wouldn't want to miss it. Plus, the call would be from an American phone number, so if an American number called me out of the blue in the middle of the night or early morning, I'd have reasonable reason to be hopeful.

Earlier today (now yesterday, I suppose),  Saturday morning at around 11, I get a call. It's an American phone number. I have never gotten a call from an American number unless it is a family member calling, but that's almost always on Whatsapp.

I stare at the screen for a second. I pick it up. Beat. I say hello. Beat. I feel like I could throw up and shit myself and die, all at once. Beat. Someone speaks from the other end. They say hello. Beat. 

It is a random man asking me how I am. In my native language. I have never heard his voice in my life.

As he keeps mumbling hellos and how are yous, this man with an American number whom I've never heard of or spoken to in my life, my heart sinks again, this really icky acidic deflated feeling - which is insane! I knew at the time it would have been impossible to get a notification, as it would have been anywhere between 8-11 PM in the US. But it still didn't stop my heart from coming out through my throat. What are the odds that I would get a scam call during these days, and it would be a number with a +1 phone code. I can just imagine the universe laughing at me. 

Anyway, once I got over the initial shock and deflation, I laughed about it quite a bit. Sorry for the unnaturally long post - just feels like the sort of incredulous insane thing that would happen to one of us during this crazy heated time, lol. As always, good luck everyone, I hope everyone gets good news soon. If not MFA-related, then something better or redemptive. And if you want to, please send a prayer my way. Love ❤️

[Tinky C. Clown]

2 hours ago, Mystic_Sunshine said:

Not all universities are closed monday so there could be news

yeah i think president’s day should be cancelled this year for two distinct, unrelated reasons….

[rhaenyra]

1 hour ago, nauseated said:

Hi guys. Wanted to pop in and share an experience I had today, which I have since dubbed God's practical joke on me.[...]

Oh my god that's absurd, I'm sorry! The universe always picks the worst moments for that kind of thing 🫣

[Lady Gladys]

 

 

2 hours ago, nauseated said:

 I knew at the time it would have been impossible to get a notification, as it would have been anywhere between 8-11 PM in the US.

I know someone who was accepted to a program this cycle. While the official phone call came at 5-6 pm, one of the professors in the program emailed a follow-up welcome at 10 pm on a Friday night (and then proceeded to engage in an email exchange at that time.) Strange things happen.

[essentialflowers]

are there any other Wyoming hopefuls? my favorite writer went there for their mfa and I've fallen in love with UW, and laramie, based on the stories they told about it when I met them a few years back. the town seems beautiful, the program seems engaging and impactful, and the professors seem kind and talented. it truly is a dream program for me.  

also, read "laramie time" by lydia conklin— they wrote it during grad school!

[prufrock_]

2 hours ago, essentialflowers said:

are there any other Wyoming hopefuls? my favorite writer went there for their mfa and I've fallen in love with UW, and laramie, based on the stories they told about it when I met them a few years back. the town seems beautiful, the program seems engaging and impactful, and the professors seem kind and talented. it truly is a dream program for me.  

also, read "laramie time" by lydia conklin— they wrote it during grad school!

they're the one i find myself day dreaming about the most! Everything about their program seems so wonderful. I especially like that they offer a minor in environmental studies or Native American & Indigenius studies. 

i'll check out "laramie time" by lydia conklin -- been meaning to read something by them. Who is your favorite writer who went there, if you want to share?

[Tinky C. Clown]

does anyone know if alabama rejections have gone out? i got in there and im kinda curious how selective it was 

[Hank Moody]

I haven't gotten the rejection email from them yet, but if you want to know how many applications they received and how many people they accepted, I think you can just ask the MFA director or whoever you got the acceptance call/email from.

[Tinky C. Clown]

20 minutes ago, Hank Moody said:

I haven't gotten the rejection email from them yet, but if you want to know how many applications they received and how many people they accepted, I think you can just ask the MFA director or whoever you got the acceptance call/email from.

i did ask, but he never responded to that email. paranoid that it was a wildly inappropriate question lol

 

but if you haven’t gotten a rejection then it’s safe to say they haven’t gone out. just spooked me that there’s no rejections logged as sometimes that can be a red flag for a program, ya know? thank you and best of luck with the rest of the season!

[Hank Moody]

I see. It's not an inappropriate question, it's pretty standard I think. If you do find out, could you post here as well? I'm also curious how selective Alabama was. And thanks and best of luck with your season too!

[DJ Lambchop]

I’m curious— what’s everybody reading lately?
 

Today I am reading Pan by Michael Clune. It comes out in July. I’m only 30 pages in and I absolutely love it. It’s the kind of prose that makes you laugh out loud whether it’s funny or not. 

[everything bagel lover]

12 hours ago, essentialflowers said:

are there any other Wyoming hopefuls? my favorite writer went there for their mfa and I've fallen in love with UW, and laramie, based on the stories they told about it when I met them a few years back. the town seems beautiful, the program seems engaging and impactful, and the professors seem kind and talented. it truly is a dream program for me.  

also, read "laramie time" by lydia conklin— they wrote it during grad school!

I too am a Wyoming hopeful for fiction! Their program seems amazing! 

[rhaenyra]

Can rejections come in waves? I saw a bunch on the draft spreadsheet yesterday for UCSD fiction but haven't received an email.

Edited Sunday at 05:58 PM by rhaenyra

[prufrock_]

45 minutes ago, rhaenyra said:

Can rejections come in waves? I saw a bunch on the draft spreadsheet yesterday for UCSD fiction but haven't received an email.

It's possible they are coming in waves, but it looks like last year all reported rejections came on the same day, which was a day or two after acceptances went out. Did your UCSD portal update? 

[rhaenyra]

5 minutes ago, prufrock_ said:

It's possible they are coming in waves, but it looks like last year all reported rejections came on the same day, which was a day or two after acceptances went out. Did your UCSD portal update? 

Portal just says "In Review." I guess I'll give it a few days. Thank you!

[Catpaw]

47 minutes ago, rhaenyra said:

Can rejections come in waves? I saw a bunch on the draft spreadsheet yesterday for UCSD fiction but haven't received an email.

Rejections can (and sometimes do) come in waves for some schools. It seems to be something in how the system is set up for certain schools, but I don't really have any insight as to why it happens—just that it does sometimes. WashU has sent their rejections in waves in the past, for example. A bit annoying for us, but what can you do...

[misssalem]

20 hours ago, nauseated said:

Hi guys. Wanted to pop in and share an experience I had today, which I have since dubbed God's practical joke on me.

After the JHU acceptances on draft, I had assumed mine to be a soft rejection, which is most likely what will happen. But still, because universities presumably notify during working hours, which is during the night for me (because timezones), I keep my Wi-Fi on and keep my ringtones up to the full volume while I'm asleep - not because I'm particularly hopeful, but because in the off chance I do get a call, I wouldn't want to miss it. Plus, the call would be from an American phone number, so if an American number called me out of the blue in the middle of the night or early morning, I'd have reasonable reason to be hopeful.

Earlier today (now yesterday, I suppose),  Saturday morning at around 11, I get a call. It's an American phone number. I have never gotten a call from an American number unless it is a family member calling, but that's almost always on Whatsapp.

I stare at the screen for a second. I pick it up. Beat. I say hello. Beat. I feel like I could throw up and shit myself and die, all at once. Beat. Someone speaks from the other end. They say hello. Beat. 

It is a random man asking me how I am. In my native language. I have never heard his voice in my life.

As he keeps mumbling hellos and how are yous, this man with an American number whom I've never heard of or spoken to in my life, my heart sinks again, this really icky acidic deflated feeling - which is insane! I knew at the time it would have been impossible to get a notification, as it would have been anywhere between 8-11 PM in the US. But it still didn't stop my heart from coming out through my throat. What are the odds that I would get a scam call during these days, and it would be a number with a +1 phone code. I can just imagine the universe laughing at me. 

Anyway, once I got over the initial shock and deflation, I laughed about it quite a bit. Sorry for the unnaturally long post - just feels like the sort of incredulous insane thing that would happen to one of us during this crazy heated time, lol. As always, good luck everyone, I hope everyone gets good news soon. If not MFA-related, then something better or redemptive. And if you want to, please send a prayer my way. Love ❤️

✨️ Manifesting a real acceptance call for you from an American number ✨️

[curfew]

Has anyone else's writing changed or supercharged itself amidst decision season? I used to be a rather modest writer, words-per-day wise, which I know is not the ultimate barometer of someone's writing ability, or industriousness, but since February started I've been writing almost nonstop, and have felt [ironically] freer than ever in my style. Naturally, the looming fear of what I'm writing being horseslop is still palpable, but I don't feel as stymied by it as I used to, even just thirty days ago.

As well, I've been reading like mad. @DJ Lambchop, I've just finished War and the Iliad by Simone Weil & Rachel Bespaloff, and would heavily recommend if you're a fan of Homer and want to read essays on his epics. I also have dipped my toes in Katherine Mansfield's and Lu Hsun's stories, which are two fantastic writers of countries I'm embarrassingly unfamiliar with, when it comes to their literature. I think they're fantastic. Buckets of luck to everyone this week--

[Chex]

54 minutes ago, curfew said:

Has anyone else's writing changed or supercharged itself amidst decision season? I used to be a rather modest writer, words-per-day wise, which I know is not the ultimate barometer of someone's writing ability, or industriousness, but since February started I've been writing almost nonstop, and have felt [ironically] freer than ever in my style. Naturally, the looming fear of what I'm writing being horseslop is still palpable, but I don't feel as stymied by it as I used to, even just thirty days ago.

As well, I've been reading like mad. @DJ Lambchop, I've just finished War and the Iliad by Simone Weil & Rachel Bespaloff, and would heavily recommend if you're a fan of Homer and want to read essays on his epics. I also have dipped my toes in Katherine Mansfield's and Lu Hsun's stories, which are two fantastic writers of countries I'm embarrassingly unfamiliar with, when it comes to their literature. I think they're fantastic. Buckets of luck to everyone this week--

Totally get it. I've been feeling looser/freer/more confident in my approach to writing lately. The stress of the waiting season caught up with me not long ago, and after rolling around in the aches, something cracked open in me. I find myself calmer, less afraid, and more focused on the things I want to read and write. Neither approval nor disapproval means that much anymore, and I just want to roll up my sleeves and write the things I want to write. This is the part I can control. This is the part that means the most to me, and nothing happens without the writing. I feel better prepared to face the notifications coming soon because the MFA is not my ultimate goal. My goal is to write, and subsequently, to be read. 

I think it's great that you're writing a lot. There's nothing better than these periods of complete absorption/immersion in your own writing. They're precious. Doesn't matter if I'm writing horseslop, it is MY horseslop, and it can be improved upon. 

[exvat]

8 hours ago, curfew said:

Has anyone else's writing changed or supercharged itself amidst decision season?

After submitting 3/4 of my apps, I ended up writing like six poems that could have easily been in my work samples 🙄😂 Ah well, at least I can pester Wendy Lesser with them, as is according to Q1 tradition.

[ksiezniczka.monisia]

Everybody ready for this week of torture?

[zaira]

17 minutes ago, ksiezniczka.monisia said:

Everybody ready for this week of torture?

Yep. Most of the schools on my list should report this week. Just looking to rip the bandaid off at this point. Ready to be done! 

[everything bagel lover]

16 minutes ago, ksiezniczka.monisia said:

Everybody ready for this week of torture?

Lets gooooooo! Every week I'm like this is the week and then it isn't but at some point it will be and I think maybe this is the week lol I'm feeling 2% less neurotic now that I've gotten my first notification, so hopefully I can catch up on all the work I've been slacking on checking the spreadsheet and forum every second of my workday lol 

Also an update on Naropa funding if anyone cares: they're reading applications starting today for the 3 funded fellowships and should have decisions by March 1st which makes it only feel like half of an acceptance which is scary but I'm ready for whatever comes down the pipes and thank you everyone for all your positivity and support ❤️ I hope we all get good news this week ❤️