New Blog: Day-by-Day Organization

Exciting news: I've started a new blog project! It's called Day-by-Day Organization and the web address is http://daybydayorganization.wordpress.com.

I'll still be keeping up with this blog, which will as always be my home for all things reading, reading, Write On! For Literacy, and creativity related. But lately I've been reading a variety of organization blogs -- some of my favorites include i Heart Organization and I'm an Organizing Junkie, and I also love general-interest happy blogs like my friend Lauren Cook's The Sunny Girl. These blogs add a dose of sunshine to my day and inspire me to tackle those stress-festering projects in my own life that I've been putting off.

I've posted on here before about the importance of being organized -- how it can help clear away stress and de-clutter your mind so your creative subconscious can shine. I always feel happier, more calm and less stressed when my space is neat and free of clutter. I once read that the average person wastes 40 minutes a day — 40 minutes every day! — looking for things they have misplaced. I don’t know about you, but I for one don’t want to waste my time that way!

But up till now, my organization has tended to look like this: a day-long cleaning phase where I’ll get my apartment straightened up pretty well, but two days later it will start to look cluttered again, and the hectic pace of daily life will sweep away any progress I attempted to make. It’s been difficult for me to find the time or money to get organized in a meaningful and permanent way.

Well, I want to change that! Now is the time. I know I will be a happier writer, teacher, and overall person if I get my space organized once and for all. I'm creating Day-by-Day Organization to chronicle my journey!

Being a grad student means I don’t have much spare time — or spare money. It would be impossible to try to organize my entire apartment in one day. Just thinking about it is overwhelming. That’s why I’m planning to focus on little, inexpensive changes, one day at a time. Day by day, I am going to organize my life. I hope that my progress might inspire you, too! I'm also planning to share quick and healthy recipes, happiness-boosting reflections, and any resources I find that help me make the most of daily life.

If you have a couple minutes to spare, please check out my new blog and let me know what you think! You can even subscribe by entering your email address in the sidebar on the right-hand side, right under the photo of me. Hope you like it!

Guest Post by Brian Jenkins

Thoughts on Getting an MFA Degree in Creative Writing

by Brian Jenkins

Should aspiring writers go for a Master's in Fine Arts degree in creative writing? It depends who you ask. Gail Hochman, a New York agent at Brandt & Hochman, stated in an article in The Atlantic, "We look favorably on anyone who has an MFA, simply because it shows they're serious about their writing." She also said, "but perhaps more important than which program the student attended is which writers that student studied with."

MFA programs in creative writing provide young writers with the distinct opportunity to connect with more accomplished writers. They receive advice from experts on craft, technique, and other important aspects of writing and also get feedback on their works-in-progress. Students typically read authors of classic literature and become aware of their styles so they can try to integrate these into their own writing.

Some programs also provide opportunities to meet agents, editors, and publishers. Many graduates from highly regarded MFA programs get their work published soon after obtaining their degrees.

According to the same article in The Atlantic, Ethan Canin, a University of Iowa faculty member and an alum of its Writers' Workshop, believes that a student's competitiveness can be "humiliating and degrading" but also sobering in useful ways. However, many professors and program directors report that their programs are places where writers can find some sanctuary from judgement. They feel as though writing students are surrounded by supporters and mentors. Chuck Wachtel, program director at New York University, said, "I see it as not so much teaching students as helping them learn."

Many of the writers who are teaching at top programs teach infrequently. They typically teach only one class every year and a half. This is because many schools believe published works do more to enhance the program's image than the amount of time instructors teach classes.

Getting Accepted to an MFA Program

Most program directors report that a short writing sample is the primary factor in determining who gets admitted into the program. Typically, the four vital elements program directors look for in candidates are talent, teachability, ambition, and collegiality.


Full-Residency Programs

In full-residency programs, students get immediate feedback on their writing and feel like part of a community of writers. These programs usually take two to three years to complete.

Low-Residency Programs

In these programs, writers don't need to spend a lot of time on-campus. Low residency programs are appealing to people who have full-time careers. Many programs emphasize close, directed reading of books every semester. Students correspond with a faculty advisor online, and in some programs they also correspond with other students. They usually attend 7 to 10 day residency periods in the summer and winter. The residency periods place an emphasis on workshops and provide contact with faculty members. Low-residency programs can usually be completed in four semesters.

Writers interested in getting an MFA degree can check out the Poets & Writers website to review low- and full-residency MFA creative writing programs in the United States and in other English-speaking countries.

MFA Program Workshops

It's vital to find out how a program's workshops are operated. Regarding less effective workshops, Michael Cunningham, Brooklyn College's director and a Pulitzer Prize winner, stated, "you typically show up with work in hand, and people tell you what's wrong with it." He also thinks that another problem is the consensus nature of the workshop process, which may lead young writers to validate work that seems similar to other generally acclaimed work.

If you're considering enrolling in an MFA degree program in creative writing, it's important to get familiar with the faculty members' work to see if they'll be suitable mentors for you.


Brian Jenkins writes feature articles primarily on career topics for BrainTrack.com, where he has contributed content to the website's guide to career planning.

Rejection Letters: Bringing Writers Together

Let's say you've recently started sending your writing out to editors, hoping to get published. Instead, you receive a dreaded thin envelope in the mail containing ...
... a rejection letter.

Don't despair! Rejection letters are a part of every writer's life. Yes, even now-famous writers like Meg Cabot, Stephen King, and J.K. Rowling collected dozens, even hundreds, of rejection letters before finally getting their big breaks.

Still, sometimes it's hard not to feel a bit discouraged when your masterpiece is turned down. Here's a great site that will help cheer you up, with lots of wonderful writerly insights, quotes, and funny cartoons.

http://www.inkygirl.com/

And remember, when those inevitable rejection letters find their way into your mailbox -- you're in good company!