O.K. so I got into the MFA writing program I wanted. It's low rez and its fun and it takes about twenty hours a MONTH to do. There's no speeding it up. No getting ahead. No testing out... nuthin. After a whirlwind two-year adventure of testing and classes to get through my Bachelors at COSC, and a summer of really fun Graduate Psych classes, here I am...limbo. I get financial aid so I can't enroll anywhere else. Well, except over seas. I'm thinking of that History of Empirialism degree in England (is anyone doing that?) or even goofing around with the Edinburgh MBA (The last thing I want but hell it's something.) Even testing out of a history or buisiness bachelors degree at EC. Whaddu think? What would you do? This is driving me nuts!!!! (yeah, I know, I'm a baby.)
I think that you should treat your MFA program seriously. For heaven's sake don't try to blow it off. An MFA is often treated as a terminal practitioner's degree and it can get you teaching jobs. But that's going to work best if you've published and have some quality work to show. So put the time into perfecting your writing skills and take full advantage of whatever resources that your program provides you (you won't have them forever).
You are right Oh, I really do treat seriously, I mean I've got the greatest instructors, and I do have a few publicatio credits so I do want the terminal degree. I'm not considering quitting the program, I just want more of a challenge and it's a tad difficult with my manic mind. Hell, isn't that what leads us to the alternative route much of the time. But your advice is correct and I needed to hear it. Midwinter, midsemester blues.
MFA Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing: Fiction It can also refer to that first, lowest of college degrees. But slightly more expletively (damn! Is that a word?). Especially whilst studying for a particularly hard class. M&^%!#$ F(*&!@$@ Associates Degree!
Take the time to do some associated work. Write, write, write, and then -- write more. Travel -- it's research Go to a strip club and observe -- it's research Send out some unsolicited manuscripts write some more... tell some stories -- write some more... And, if you plan to use that MFA to teach -- get some platform experience somewhere ; anywhere you can.
Your writting does not reflect one who is pursuing a MFA in writting. Maybe you should find another major for your graduate degree. This is not meant to be an insult, but an observation. In any event, the best of luck.
Or an MFA in Writing even?... It is creative writing though and I do recall that many of the most respected writers throughout history did not follow generally accepted writing standards when communicating at an informal level. I don't see too much in that informal communication that would indicate that the OP is not a skilled creative writer -- I see a few clues that show he/she is a fine communicator. That post is even written in the vernacular of the forum. It may not display the attention to detail of an artistic creation for publication - he probably didn't even edit his first two rough drafts on this posting. I bet he didn't have anyone edit that post for him before he submitted either. (sarcasm intended, directed toward the follow-up poster) Let's be realistic here -- this is a message board. We all sometimes let things go up that we'd never think of submitting as an academic assignment or a work for publication. plumbdog10 writes "Your writting does not reflect one who is pursuing a MFA in writting." In what way is this constructive? Let me give you an example of constructive * writing only has one "T" in it. Since you duplicated the error, it would appear that this is not a simple typo. Also, since "MFA" begins with a clear vowel sound, it is generally accepted that we have "an" MFA and not "a" MFA. That said, it's kind of you to offer the OP your opinion. * Consider too, what are your qualifications to evaluate writing skills? Is this your opinion as an academic or as a reader? Let's help the OP out a little and offer something concrete here instead of something akin to "you can't writte"... Of course, this assumes that we really want to get into evaluating writing and communication skills at an individual level in this forum.
Thanks coach Well, I had a long and detailed post including a list of my fiction publications and a brilliantly sarcastic reply to the plumberdog person, but the system keeps logging me off, so, anyhow, thanks for sticking up for me. Lets all try to be nice to each other at least, huh?
More "And, if you plan to use that MFA to teach -- get some platform experience somewhere ; anywhere you can." That seems to be the track I'm working at present. I'm tutoring writing at the local community college four hours a week. Mostly helping with MLA and APA stylistic reference issues and basic grammatical errors but it is at least college level teaching work and, and, (eyebrows going up and down) I get to know the english department folks. I want to do a workshop or two but I don't seem to have the confidence; at least not when it comes to teaching writing.
Which program Hey Tom, I did a summer last year at UWA in psych/counseling, then I was accepted at Queens University of Charlotte's low rez MFA in creative writing: fiction program, so I put the masters at UWA on hold until fall 2006. (Dr. Ware is Aware-that was such fun to type-of my deferrment.) Since they are pretty competitive, and it's a terminal degree, I just had to do it. It's a great program, but, like I was saying, it is forcing me to slow down. Probably a good thing. Thanks for asking, Tom. Dan Burrello
Off-Topic (sorry) Hi Dan - I took a peak at your Geocities page and have a question. Could you tell me something about how Jodokkdo differs from Jeet Kune Do and Escrima (two forms I know a bit about). Thanks, Jack
Cool! Wow a martial arts question! That's weird! Well, Jodokkdo was our way of introducing Bruce's philosophy without doing what he specifically asked everyone NOT to do, which was to use the name, Jeet Kune Do. he said, "Creating a name, produces fear". So, even though I have a background with Dave Henthorn in the Paul Vunak side and experiences with the other factions of "JKD", I really didn't want to get into that whole fray. My background was originally old style ATA TKD, Boxing and Kempo. I fought on the (karate) circuit for a few years and did pretty well. So we taught a modified basic curriculum that covered the four or five ranges with the most effective techniques and dumped some of the kata that were neither, muscle memory for later work, or effective for "Real situations". I had the opportunity to work for a year or two each with some wonderful instructors in several arts and the art of Jodokkdo is always a plastic thing. I hope after a few more years, my students will have changed it to the point I won't recognize it. It truly is a living thing. This is a weird post and I have been out of the martial arts for three years now because my back is a piece of crap, left town and started back to school after reading Dr. Bear's great book. Believe me, after 30 or so years, it's nice to NOT be that "karate guy". Anyhow, we wanted to have basic, beginning structure inherent in the classical martial arts, so that we could develop a viable and duplicatable institution, and yet open the advanced study to many arts. It was like the philosophy of JKD without using the name at all. Our philosophical underpinning has more of a taoist/vedanta/zen buddhist lean, but we have everything from Mormons to fundementalist Christians as black belts. Probably my most famous student is Kimber Hill, she developed the Little Dragons curriculum for Century Martial Arts Supply and is doing very well, married to my student and former partner Damon Hill at Modern Martial Arts Academy in Deland Florida. I have also trained a few national and regional champions over the years. Anyhow, thanks for asking. Oh, and about Escrima, I am an instructor in Arnis under Bruce Chiu who teaches Modern Arnis and Escrima. So much of our stick work is from Modern Arnis and drills from several other styles I picked up from various JKD seminars and from one of our Black Belts, Kevin Tucker, who was an student/assistant instructor under Rick Faye in JKD. (another who side of the JKD thingy.) My son still teaches here at UNCA but I'm out, for good, I hope. (Sounds like Al Pacino in GFIII!) Thanks for asking. Dan B Oh, I did work on a really silly movie last year called ... GOLDEN BLADE 3. If you go to their website, www.goldenblade3.com go to the "clips" section and hover your mouse over the left bottom of the blank section until the finger shows up, you can access some pretty cool footage. My main fight scene is in "Courtroom Fight" I'm "Grandadday Wang" (insert bad joke here). There is alos a small stick fighting scene there you may enjoy. They let me do a lot of the choreography so I was pretty happy. The foley and postproduction isn't finished but that's my final hurrah!
Jodokk, I did not intend to insult you. Obviously I did, so I apologize. I simply meant that your first post seemed to indicate that you were not happy with your MFA program. This is sometimes a result of majoring in a subject that really doesn't interest the student. I've known several people who have earned degrees in a subject because it seemed like the smart move to make, only to regret that path later in life. If this does not apply to you, so be it. In any event, good luck.
Thanks Thanks, I appreciate the thoughts. I guess I don't actually enjoy writing but I do it, I can't stop doing it, and folks tend to like it... so it's cheaper than therapy! Dan B
