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What should be on a "Personal MFA in Creative Writing" reading list?

thepalephantom — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 11:05:26 -0800

What titles should be on a "Personal MFA in Creative Writing Fiction" reading list? You don't have the money/time/inclination to actually attend a MFA program for creative writing, instead you just want a reading list to plow through on your own time. What titles should be on that reading list? Non-fiction, fiction, memoir, etc.

Pardon my (art form) ignorance

SweetTeaAndABiscuit — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 15:55:36 -0800

Is there a proper term for this type of mixed media art project? I'm wondering if there is a term for an art project that I'm envisioning. It would combine both photographs and creative writing like an essay, and possibly even other art forms such as collage or sketchs. Both (or all) components would be equally important, i.e. not exactly an essay with illustrations, and not a photographic display with captions.

Is there an encompassing term for a project such as this? Do you know the names of any artists who are creating such a project or know where any examples of something like this could be viewed (or the web or otherwise).

Any and all information would be greatly appreciated!

How does one get into the business of writing stories for video games?

metalheart — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:26:19 -0800

Tell me what I need to do, or which bums I need to kiss, to write a storyline for a video game. I love to write, and I am actually pretty good at it. (Yes, more than just my mother, friends and pets have given me reason to believe this, so no worries there.) I also happen to be interested in usability issues and video games, and so I find video game writing fun. The challenge of making an interactive tale somehow sensibly structured and usable for the player is enjoyable to me. I like having to think about what players might do that isn't intended (i.e., them trying to "cheat" the game or find holes in the story). It would be great to write somehow in the gaming industry, even though I know most things are highly competitive and may have poor payment for the amount of work one does. I don't care, honestly.

The thing is, I don't really see a clash for good writing in this field, not always, so I'm unsure of how to get into it. I play a lot of games, and I'll go out on a limb here and say that it seems like only a handful of companies and titles really give much thought to stories and plot lines (e.g., Portal, Bioshock, Braid). There's such a focus on gameplay and visuals at the moment that the writing is unfortunately overlooked sometimes; I think what often happens is the developers write the stories. (It shows.) So, is there even a way to get into this?

I'm specifically interested in stories in first person shooter games, as well as in adventure puzzle games, like the Myst or The Longest Journey series. RPGs can be nice, but the big titles are fairly formulaic ("Our town needs you! Please go collect these items to save the day and go on to the next quest!"), so I'm not sure how much real, creative work would be in that. I love the creativity found in many indie games, so that's a possible outlet, but I'm concerned about just jumping into that culture, as indie games sometimes have a tendency to never be finished. I think I'd rather be involved with an established company, but I can be talked out of that if given enough reason.

So yes, just out of personal interest, I'm curious what the hive mind knows about professional game writing and how one might go about getting involved, particularly on a freelance or contractual basis. I'll take a guess that ass kissing and elbow rubbing comes in somewhere and that it would help to have previous experience of varying kinds. Any information would be greatly appreciated!

I'm not asking you to do my research for me buuuuut....

The Whelk — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 10:51:40 -0800

Emergency Research Materials Needed: Due to not being an adult about things I now have to write a quick story set during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. And I have to finish it by Sunday. Yes, I've already read Wikipedia. I've got some knowledge of Indian/British politics and daily life of the time period, but I'd like more. Cause of the time limit, I'm leaning more towards shorter or more digestible accounts of the period. What are some good websites focused on the 1850s in India? What articles should I read? Where do I even find them?

Anything about daily life or habits would be greatly appreciated

IWW-alikes

Mummy of a Lady Named Jemutesonekh — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 21:25:19 -0800

What are some analogues to the Iowa Writers' Workshop outside the US -- creative writing programs that have the reputation of attracting the best of the best in their respective countries or regions? (N.B.: I ask purely out of curiosity.)

Anonymous Writing Group

dchrssyr — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 12:17:53 -0800

How do I create an anonymous online creative writing group? I want to limit membership to around 5 people. Specific qualifications inside: Asking my first mefi question for my partner. She wants to form an anonymous online writing group. Specific requirements include:

1. must be anonymous and not accessible to non participants.
2. limit of 5 participants to ensure that giving meaningful feedback and submitting writing are balanced in terms of commitment and time spent.
3. some way of screening the quality of writing before accepting participants to ensure even matches in terms of talent.
4. I'm mostly interested in non fiction essay writing along the lines of David Sedaris and fiction along the lines of Jonathan Franzen. I'm not interested in reading a bunch of sci-fi (not that I have anything against sci-fi, I like it but I'm not interested in writing it or critiquing it.)

How do I ensure the above? Is there a service already available online that does this well and anonymously? If I were to create something, what other caveats or rules do you guys think would be helpful?

Some ideas I have include using a blogger/wordpress/livejournal service with each participant setting theirs to private with invitations for only the participants. But the problem is figuring out how to recruit and screen participants? Craigslist? How do I screen out or otherwise avoid creepy people?

Thanks!

Can you recommend any good books on writing poetry?

laumry — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 03:30:49 -0800

Can you recommend any good books on writing poetry? Hello all. I'm doing a creative writing class at the moment, and am about to start the poetry module. Can anyone recommend any books on writing poetry? NB - I am much less interested in books on appreciating, or criticising, poetry.

FWIW, I found John Gardner's "The Art Of Fiction" excellent help for my module in literary fiction, so if there is an analogous book for poetry, I'd love to hear about it.

Thanks!

Real British voices?

laumry — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:52:17 -0800

Can anyone point me to a British equivalent of Studs Terkel's work? I am doing a course in creative writing in the UK at the moment. I find it very hard to develop unique, credible voices for different characters.

I strongly feel that I would benefit from reading monologues from the mouths of different real British people. I may well also benefit from hearing such monologues. I was wondering if anyone could point me to such a resource. Something like the stuff Studs Terkel did in "Working", but for British people.

Can anyone help? I would vastly prefer interviews with real British people, rather than examples of literary/fictional mastery of voice. I would also prefer these Brits to be talking in as close to a monologue as possible - an unobtrusive, or non-existent, interviewer. Finally, I also would like the source to cover a varied range of Brits (e.g. a wide diversity of race, class, sex, age, location, etc) as possible.

Need suggestions for OCR software

Guy_Inamonkeysuit — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 08:50:08 -0800

Any good free (or really inexpensive) OCR software out there? I looked through the archives here but couldn't find any info that was quite right for my needs. I have a typewritten manuscript of 300+ pages that I want to suck into Word via OCR. I'm running Windows XP on a Thinkpad. I have a Canon scanner that supposedly has OCR software but it simply sucks, and I want something better. But, you know, free -- or almost free. Googling OCR hasn't helped me much and I'd like some real-world advice from the Green.

Thanks in advance!

And really, I had nothing to do with the whole Bigfoot thing. Swearta god.

Creative Writing Musts in Aix & Paris?

annabellee — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 08:35:54 -0800

Help me create a literary tour of both Aix-en-Provence and Paris. I'm looking for a slew of places, activities, pastimes, even readings with which to enrich a group of teenage creative writing students this summer.

From the touristy (we'll certainly have coffee and write in our journals at Les Deux Magots) to the lesser known, I welcome all suggestions. Even quiet or provocative spaces for writing would be splendid.

I know Aix's literary draws are fewer, but I'm looking for good recommendations for both cities.

Hilfe, I weiß not in welcher language ich soll write!

The Toad — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 06:14:56 -0800

Creative writing in your second language: good or bad idea? English is my second language, German my first. I've been writing academic texts in English for years. I almost exclusively read English literature/poetry/nonfiction, I also spend a lot of time on predominantly U.S. websites (like this one); not because I don't like German, but because there's more/better English stuff around.

Here's my problem: at the moment, I'm beginning to enjoy creative writing quite a lot, and would like to work on this hobby/talent. But whenever I try writing in my native language, I find it very hard to express myself. By contrast, when writing in English, I get into the "flow" state quite easily. It just feels much more natural and less restrained or controlled.
However, I'm very reluctant about (e.g.) doing "creative writing" exercises in English. There are several reasons:

1. In retrospect, I'm very unsure about the language I use, word choices etc., and find it hard to assess whether it is any good. I find this much easier when I write in German (which is probably a reason why I don't enjoy writing in German so much: instant self-criticism spoils the fun).
2. I have the vague feeling that doing creative writing is about tapping into primordial emotions etc., and that this just isn't possible when you're using a "foreign" language. Which is to say, my subconscious probably doesn't speak English, and by writing English, I'm losing all contact to it (which makes writing easier but not as good). Vague and strange theory, I know.
3. I don't want to spoil or forget my German writing skills. I would love to be able to experience the feeling I have when writing English in my German writing.
4. Going "bilingual" in this context seems awfully confusing and difficult. I would prefer to have one (creative) writing language, although I have no problem with bilingual academic writing.

Have you experienced similar problems? Should I go with what feels better now, or try working on my German? Might it, contrary to what I'm suggesting above, even be of advantage to write in your second language rather than your first, or to go bilingual (examples of writers welcome)? Any tips on how to make writing in my native tongue as fluent and fun as my English writing?

College-level "book reports" -- are they possible?

printchick — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 18:14:03 -0800

I'm teaching a feature writing class, and I'd like to require my students to read a nonfiction book by the end of the semester -- ala Tracy Kidder or John McPhee. I'd like them to do some sort of "book report" or presentation to the class at the end of the semester on the book they chose -- how do I make this assignment not lame? I guess I could just simply ask them to summarize the book, talk about whether they liked it, maybe have them copy some passages and share with the class about particular writing techniques they picked up from reading the book. But that seems pretty broad. I don't want to get too dorky on them and make them put together a television commercial or something about the book -- too junior high. How can I make this both a substantial and fun assignment that will also benefit other students? I'd like the presentations to be about 10-15 minutes each. I'm picturing these going like a mini book-club, but the difference is only one person has read the book.

Help me be a creative feature writing teacher!

printchick — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 19:27:55 -0800

I'm teaching a college-level feature writing class this spring, and while I've taught the class before, I'm looking for new ideas for in-class writing exercises and short assignments. I've done stuff before like show a movie scene and have them write a descriptive paragraph about it, interview each other about a stupid/embarrassing thing that happened during their childhood and write a little story about it, bring in cookies and have them come up with descriptive phrases and then use those phrases in a "radio commercial" for the cookies, etc.

So I'm looking for more stuff like that -- not necessarily "creative writing" exercises, more like exercises that help them write real stuff (like feature stories) creatively.

Thanks!

What resources would you recommend to someone who wants to write?

melissa — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 18:35:03 -0800

What would you recommend to someone who wants to increase their confidence in their writing abilities? (books/websites/other resources) Years ago, I decided that one of the things I wanted to do before I died was to write a book. The problem with that is that I now have to write a book before I die.

I feel like I need to learn more about how to write before I actually start to write. I hope that learning the mechanics of how to plan out my writing will increase the confidence I have in my actual ability to write.

The Googling I've already done has led me to many different sites of varying quality and conflicting opinions. I know there is no one answer for everyone, but I would love some help in separating the ideas that work really well from the ones that don't.

I know there are many great writers here on Mefi (I read you here every day!). What helped you gain confidence in your skills so you could get down to the business of writing?

New York Creative Writing/Critical Theory PHD

0bvious — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 05:48:51 -0800

New York Creative Writing/Critical Theory PHD: I am currently undertaking an MA in Creative Writing and Critical Theory in London, and plan to go on to PHD after I finish. I would ideally like to go to an East coast USA/New York university to do this (for several reasons). I'd like some help with finding a good list of possible institutions... I am interested in Narrative form, from a Creative/Critical theory perspective. I also want the ability to utilise other areas of any university I take a PHD in to broaden the scope of my thesis, thus:

- I am interested in the Evolutionary origins and purpose of narrative (a university established in Evolutionary Psychology perhaps).

- I am also interested in the neuro-psychology of narrative form, (i.e. Which came first: the narrative or the human mind? How does each relate to/influence the other?)

- My studies will necessarily follow a semiological/semiotics path...

A New York based university with departments and/or specialists in these fields and a firm PHD basis in Creative and Critical Theory is what I am looking for.

Does such an institution exist?

creative writing exercises

invitapriore — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 20:00:53 -0800

Give me some exercises for creative writing. Exercises have always helped me in all disciplines to develop my skills while maintaining focus because of the limitations given. I'd like some good exercises for creative writing, specifically ones that impose challenging constraints, as problem-solving seems to be the most productive way of learning for me.

Thanks for your help, and if you have something that doesn't quite fit the criteria but that you think is great anyway, feel free to post it.

Grad school recommendations: whom to ask?

Anonymous — Wed, 16 May 2007 09:09:40 -0800

If I've been out of college for twelve years, from whom do I get recommendations for graduate school? For a variety of reasons, I'm unhappy with my "chosen" career (i.e. one that I fell into a decade ago, and from which I have yet to extricate myself), and I've decided to apply to graduate programs in creative writing. All of these programs require several recommendations, preferably from professors or others who know me in an "academic" context.

I understand that my writing samples will (depending on whom I choose to believe) be 80 - 90% of the schools' decision to accept or reject my application, but I'd prefer not to handicap myself by giving up on that 10 - 20%.

The difficulty here is that I completed my undergraduate degree twelve years ago, and I doubt that any of my college professors will remember enough about me to write compelling recommendations.

I have, as I see it, only one other option-- I'm currently taking a workshop at a non-academic community writing center, and could probably get that instructor to write a recommendation.

But from whom should I get the others? Former bosses / coworkers? Friends? Family? Random internet strangers? None of the literature I've found on the subject of applying to creative writing programs seems to address this.

And before this gets called out in MetaTalk as "OMG why is this anonymous?!?!?!," it's because I know for a fact that several of my current coworkers read metafilter (and may or may not be aware of my screen name here) and I'd prefer that my workplace not know that I am unhappy in my career and considering graduate school in an unrelated field.

826Indonesia?

mdonley — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 20:34:25 -0800

What activities can I suggest during a workshop on designing awesome creative writing assignments for overworked ESL teachers to use in class? (In Indonesia?) (With learners across many levels?) (For little/no money?) (Without Powerpoint?) Backstory: we work with a pretty prescriptive, grammar-focused, exam-based curriculum. "Writing" is worth just 10% of a student's mark, and I'd like to make that 10% something they look forward to doing well, not something they have to somehow scramble to achieve. Creative writing - really, anything fictional at all - is currently not on the agenda; the Powers That Be have decided that it's more important for students to write about the, um, more boring aspects of reality. We all want to change this.

The goal of this workshop, then, is to help teachers widen students' literary experience into the realms of what they actually enjoy reading about in the comic books or watching on the soap operas so popular here - drama, romance, fantasy, science fiction: writing from the point of view of a shark, or a sandwich, or a jealous lover, or an alien queen.

Our students range from absolute beginners to "upper-intermediate"/"advanced" levels, but few of our students are older than, say, 25, and many are also enrolled full-time in universities and high schools, and many are enrolled by their parents because their English scores at school aren't so great, so we don't have the most enthusiastic groups of students sometimes, especially among teens.

We don't have internet access for students in any meaningful way at school, but nearly all of our students have access to the internet at home or in internet cafes.

The workshop will last about an hour, so we won't have much time.

Any ideas about making this workshop effective? I'm looking for both effective workshop strategies, and ideas relevant to the topic: creative writing in an ESL context.

Thanks!

How can I pay for Oxford's Mst. in creative writing?

scarylarry — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 19:31:20 -0800

Is there any way for me to fund Oxford's Mst. course in creative writing? Or will I need to suck it up and decline their offer? I'm an American, and I've been accepted in Oxford's Mst. course in creative writing (outlined here). The total annual fee is 4,890 GBP. Estimated additional living expenses are 9,250 GBP per year. It's a two year programme.

For a variety of reasons, this is my top-choice graduate-level course in creative writing; as they're not especially relevent to this question, I'll leave them aside. Suffice it to say that I'd be thrilled to accept their offer if I can.

My problem is that I don't see how I can possibly fund my study. I only have a few thousand dollars in savings, and that isn't likely to change any time soon.

I am happy to take out substantial loans, and to send out as many applications as possible for grants or scholarships. The programme website, linked above, lists a few bursaries and grants, but I am only eligible for one of them, and it's a very small offer.

I am a bit apprehensive about contacting the programme head directly, but I plan to do that tomorrow. Apart from pleading my case to Oxford, and maybe requesting a year's deferral, are there any other venues open to me to apply for loans/grants? The programme's webpage links to prospects.ac.uk, which I'm scouring. Anything else out there?

Thank you very much!

Online creative writing collaboration tools?

planetthoughtful — Tue, 06 Jun 2006 01:09:54 -0800

A friend and I want to embark on a collaborative creative writing project, and we're looking for online tools to make the management of bouncing ideas and story elements etc off each other easier. Basically we're hoping to find tools that will help us develop our project when it's convenient to each of us, instead of when it's convenient to both. For that reason, tools such as Instant Messaging or collaborative / meeting applications where you communicate in real time aren't ideal. Currently we're looking at creating a private Google Group and using that to flow ideas and development back and forth, but I have begun to wonder if there are better tools out there for these kinds of projects? So, I'm curious to know what the MeFites would suggest?

What's the ultimate (fake) book synopsis?

RokkitNite — Fri, 07 Apr 2006 06:51:24 -0800

What faked-up synopsis of my book is most likely to win me kudos and myriad sexual adventures? Okay, I'm just coming to the end of redrafting a novel for my agent, and I have a problem: when I get asked what I do, and I say, 'I'm a writer,' the usual response is 'Wow - that sounds really cool. What's your book about?'
The problem is, it's not highbrow literary fiction or a slickly-paced crime thriller, it's a Fantasy novel full of weird creatures and elaborate contraptions and other stuff that I (and doubtless many kids) think is 'neat'. Not the kind of stuff likely to play well with sophistimacated types of either sex.
After countless experiences of watching eyes glaze over, I've decided to do the only sensible thing - lie through my teeth.
I need help cooking up the 'ultimate' novel synopsis, a book so perfect that it will have women falling at my feet like wheat in a hurricane while men look on with grudging admiration. What's the faked-up story I should tell people I'm writing?

Phd with creative dissertation vs. MFA

Destroid — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 13:16:07 -0800

I'm wondering if anyone knows much about Phds with creative dissertations versus MFAs. I want to eventually teach college-level creative writing. I know that publishing is important to success in this field and that MFAs don't guarantee you a job, but what's the difference, careerwise, between the two degrees?

I also know sometimes, if one is qualified enough or whatever, that jumping directly into a Phd program is possible. Is it advisable to do MFA, then Phd, with a C.D.? Or just go into the Phd or just do the MFA and publish, publish, publish?

Are there no jobs for the talentless anymore?

SinisterPurpose — Tue, 08 Nov 2005 09:39:54 -0800

Does anyone know any good rules of thumb for writing resumes? I did what they told me. I went to college and got a BA in Creative Writing. Now I have trouble getting even the McJobs, because I'm over-qualified. I'm in a desperate way here. Oh yeah and I'm a real estate agent to boot. So what aspects do I highlight and how do I highlight them so they deserve a second look from the people over at human resources?

Do British magazines and newspapers use the same query letter system as the U.S. for story proposals?

inksyndicate — Tue, 25 May 2004 13:34:58 -0800

Do British magazines and newspapers use the same query letter system we use in the United States for story proposals? If not, how do you get a British editor to pay attention?