Sunday, July 26, 2009

Residency Day 3

To answer the question: Is an MFA really necessary? YES! And I'm not just saying that to justify the tremendous amount of money an MFA costs. I have learned more the last two days than I have writing by myself throughout the rest of my career. The process of reviewing others' work combined with the support of a community of writer is something you can't find anywhere else. I can't wait for tomorrow!

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Residency Days 1 and 2

I checked in yesterday for my first University of Nebraska MFA residency at Lied Lodge in Nebraska City. It is a quaint town, which is currently being taken over by Wal-mart; the independent grocery and bookstore are the most recent victims. Lied is an eco-friendly cabin that has recycling bins in each room and the best food ever. Apples are their thing here. There is fresh apple pie every night at dinner, an abundance of coffee and plenty of plush pillows.

My fellow writers are incredibly friendly, like-minded individuals. Everyone is a character, and it's difficult not to like everyone, even if you don't particularly like their work. I already feel at home, and I'm determined to write more when I get back home. I already feel more focused than before.

I'm up at workshop tomorrow. Rumor is workshop is helpful but sometimes intense. I'm looking forward to it anyway. I'm too close to my own writing. I need other opinions in order to improve.

The rest of the day will be occupied by faculty readings, workshop, and eating. Amen to that.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Blogging: It's what we do.

I've created this blog for several reasons. First, all the freelancers are doing it. Second, for writing practice. Third, to kill time. Fourth, to catalogue strange Las Vegas happenings.

I'm heading to Nebraska next week to start my MFA program in creative writing. I'm not sure what I'm going to take away from it yet. If anything, it will be impossible for me to say that I didn't give writing a shot, and I can die knowing I followed my dreams or something like that. In any case, I imagine I'll have a lot to report during those ten days.

Meanwhile, I shop for affordable insurance, buy a smaller laptop, and try to calculate how much sleep is too much sleep for the self-employed. I eat cheaply, avoid buying new clothes, dye my hair a more serious shade, and enjoy telling people what I do for a living for the first time.

So far, so good, but I'm still getting paychecks from the school district, and will for another few weeks. I procured a job teaching college composition, and I've yet to determine whether this will prove profitable enough for the money. Additionally, I'm starting to feel some malaise because I have no daily schedule. My guess is this feeling will go away once I have coursework to finish and papers to grade.

Until then, I nap.