MFA Confidential Blog

Well, the school year is finally over and with it comes the end of my tenure here at MFA Confidential. I want to thank Writer’s Digest for giving me this wonderful opportunity … Read more

Today begins my last week of classes for the spring semester. This time next year, if all goes as planned (which it rarely does) I will be submitting my thesis and graduating … Read more

One of the best parts of receiving an MFA is the steady feedback you get about your work from both teachers and classmates. This feedback is often invaluable in the rewrite process, … Read more

Everybody’s got that one friend who keeps the group apprised of all things cool and culturally relevant. My close friend, Theresa, is that person for me. Theresa was the first person I … Read more

In my previous posts, I’ve talked about rejection letters and how they make writers feel. But what I’m learning in my class this semester is that the best way to feel better … Read more

Some people in my grad program submit their work to magazines and contests often, some sporadically, and some not at all. I’ll freely admit that I fall into the first category. I … Read more

I can’t believe it, but it’s already time to register for fall classes. And I can’t believe it even more that after this summer, I won’t have anymore classes to register for. … Read more

Does writer’s block exist? I tell my students, when they don’t want to do a creative writing assignment and use writer’s block as an excuse, that you can always write something. That … Read more

I think it was in high school British Lit class, when I was learning about the Romantic poets—Keats and Shelley and Byron and that whole crew, that I began to develop my … Read more

MFA programs are art programs. They exist to help students learn to create the strongest stories and the most beautiful writing they possibly can. But do they also have a responsibility to … Read more

It’s Storyweek at Columbia, a weeklong festival that celebrates writing and the literary life in various venues across the city. There are readings by authors like Joyce Carol Oates, Aleksandar Hemon, Gerard … Read more

It’s a miracle: I’m not only on time to class tonight,  but I’ve actually arrived with ten minutes to spare!  I was so excited about this I thought I’d stop by the … Read more

As a teacher and a writer, I’ve got something to say. I don’t write this as a complaint, but rather, because I am getting so sick and tired of the constant maligning … Read more

Our visiting writer at Columbia this semester is the wonderful British novelist Gerard Woodward, and as part of my coursework I’m doing a one-on-one manuscript consultation with him. I’ve been hearing great … Read more

Can books about writing actually teach you anything about writing? This was a question that came up last week over drinks with my friend Eliza. There are so many how-to books out … Read more

Every writer knows the feeling of rejection: the email with the subject line: “Re: Your submission to XXX Review..” I always brace myself before opening it, expecting the worst: sort of the … Read more

In my advanced fiction class last semester, my professor warned us of a new phenomenon that has resulted from the explosion of MFA programs across the country: the “Workshop Story.” This is … Read more

Last week, when the snowstorm forced school closings for two days and I was allowed two whole days of freedom to write, I thought to myself, Ah! So this is what it … Read more

A secret unbeknownst to school children is that teachers look forward to snow days just as much as their students do, and today in my department office, we watched with glee as … Read more

Columbia’s Story Workshop Method avoids direct critique and instead we are asked to look at what’s working in a piece. I’ve found this method to be hugely beneficial for both my own … Read more

Well, this week is back to school at Columbia, although I don’t personally have class until Thursday. I’m definitely ready to go back, to catch up with people I haven’t seen over … Read more

In my last post, I weighed the benefits of writing longhand vs. on the computer. And while the internet can be very distracting when you’re trying to lose yourself in the story … Read more

An informal poll: how many of you write longhand? I’m not talking about your jotting, your journaling, or your observation-making here, but about your actual drafting of a story. Conversely, how many, … Read more

I am about four weeks into our six-week semester break, and I have to admit that I wish I was going back sooner. Now granted, I will probably remind myself of this … Read more

Recently, NewSouth Books announced it would be publishing a revised version of Mark Twain’s classic novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, replacing all 219 uses of “the n-word” with “slave,” as well … Read more