earn a masters degree

I’m more than halfway through my MFA year and it’s going well. I don’t know if I’ll get a published book out of it, but I will have completed one of my other goals on this list, “write a nonfiction book”. My MFA thesis is a memoir about my time in college. I hope to have it published, of course, but I’m completely cynical about what it takes to break into the publishing world, and I’m not hopeful.

Last semester (January-June 2009) I did a lot of critical reading and writing and worked on my creative thesis. In June I learned about publishing and teaching. This semester (July-December 2009) I’m continuing work on my manuscript and fulfilling an internship with Etruscan Press.

If all goes well, I’ll be graduating with a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing in January 2010. Wish me luck!

After that, it’s on to a Ph.D. program, though I don’t think I’ll be studying writing. Or, I may teach English and writing for a while and pay off my loans (see my “get out of debt” goal) and go back to school for a Ph.D. when I have a better idea of what I want to study. I’m leaning toward psychology, but I don’t know what kind other than just generally.

I finished the requirements for a Master of Arts in Creative Writing in January and was somehow talked into another year of school to earn a Master of Fine Arts (the terminal degree in my field). So, I have another year and should be finished in January 2010 if all goes as planned. I’ll be keeping this thing open until I earn the MFA because I don’t want to create another “to do” list item and… well, it IS still a Masters… isn’t it?

I had a dream in which I was talking to my friends, who asked me what I’d be doing after that. I said I wanted to earn a Ph.D. in psychology. I woke up unable to decide if that was a goal-setting dream or a nightmare.

...in theory. I’m earning an MA in creative writing. I could be earning an MFA, but that would take an extra year and so I’d graduate in January 2010 instead of next January. Also, I’m behind (as usual) on my thesis, so I may have to take an extra semester anyway.

Went to the third residency in June. It was good. Got some things about what “pp” means (it means multiple pages, as I thought, not “paragraphs”—I don’t know who thought THAT up).

I’m tired of my subject matter. Where before I was obsessed, now I’m just disgusted. I want to be done with it. I have three (out of 30) sections left to write before I finish the first draft, and then I’ll be printing out the whole thing to start editing and adding. I need a storyline. I meed to make the sections flow. Right now, they’re independent pieces that are loosely related because they have recurring characters, but that’s all.

I have personal problems that are hindering my ability to write (the most important of which is that I no longer have a place to live and I’m apartment searching again). I’m tired and no one at work seems to remember (even when I remind them) that I work only 40 hours for a reason… and that I’m also a student and need to do school stuff, too. I’m not a slacker, I just know my limits.

I could use words of encouragement.

In less than a month, I’ll be attending the third residency (out of four) for my Master’s program at Wilkes University. Then I’ll have one semester to pump out something publishable (I’m getting a Masters in Creative Writing and my thesis is a non-fiction/poetry conglomeration). THEN I’ll have one more residency to “argue” and present it to my advisor and other professors to graduate.

But for now, let’s just focus on the residency in June. I’ve gotta get my act together and write a LOT more of my first draft by then so I’ll have something to work with next semester.

Wish me luck!

All right, so I just finished the first of three semesters to earn my Master or Arts in Creative Writing. The way my program works is that I attend residencies in June and January and then take classes during the semester. So, my overall schedule looks like this:

June 2007 residency: DONE
Autumn 2007 semester: DONE

January 2008 residency: soon
Spring 2008 semester: next semester
June 2008 residency: next June
Autumn 2008 semester: next Autumn
January 2009 residency: capstone

Then I’ll be off to Ph.D. school. Woo! After the next residency, I’ll be more than halfway done with my Masters. Sheesh; time flies. :) At least this goal is right on schedule.

Okay, well, I’m well into the first of three semesters of my Masters program at Wilkes. I’ve completed the first of three credits for this semester and am taking Writing Creative Nonfiction and Writing Poetry as my semester-long classes. I’m looking forward to this program, but I’m a bit behind already since I haven’t had decent computer access for a while. Gar. I canNOT mess this up. Also, I’m still waiting for my loan to come through. If it doesn’t, I’m going to be kicked out of school. Not good at all, since I don’t yet have a job.

I was not offered an assistantship, but that’s okay because it means I’ve moved to New York City, which is what I really wanted to do in the first place… aside from the money thing, anyway.

I’ll be attending Wilkes University’s Master of Arts Creative Writing program. I’ve interviewed for a graduate assistantship, which (if I’m offered a position) will pay for all but the last three credits of my Master’s degree. If I get the assistantship, I’ll be moving to somewhere near the university; if not, I’ll be moving to New York City and communicating with the program mostly via email/phone. It’s a low-residency program, so I’ll be on campus FOR SURE two weeks per year and can live where ever I want (provided it has a computer and internet access) the rest of the time. YAY. Congratulations to me!

and have already been rejected from one of them. It always hurts to be rejected, even if it’s something as (technically) impersonal as getting into (or NOT getting into) school… But don’t they know that my future LITERALLY hangs in the balance? It’s not like I can’t do something else if I’m rejected from ALL the places to which I applied, but I don’t know WHAT to do… I’ve been in school my whole life and I don’t want to leave now, before I’m ready.

Okay, so I’ve narrowed down my grad school search and application process to seven schools. Two in San Francisco, two in New York City, and the rest scattered across the country. I need to finish my applications by this Saturday (30 December 2006) and have them out in the mail by the following Monday (1 January 2007).

That gives me one grace-period day but means I have to complete two applications per day. Plus, I have to figure out where to get the money for application fees. Boooo. I received money from my gracious parents for Christmas, but I reeeeeally don’t want to have to use that on grad schools of all things. Gah. I should be updating again in the near future… once my applications are finished and in the mail.

Registered for and bought a crash course book about the GRE. It’s this Friday, April 21.

FOUR hours long… the test, that is… must get my boyfriend to drive me since I don’t have a car.

If I do shittily I can retake it next semester, but hopefully I’ll do okay since I don’t want to pay over $100 AGAIN for the “priveledge” of taking the test!

Wish me luck!