Guest Post over at The Book Lantern: A Writer’s Education

Posted on April 25, 2011 by Phoebe 619No Commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.phoebenorth.com%2F2011%2F04%2F25%2Fguest-post-over-at-the-book-lantern-a-writers-education%2FGuest+Post+over+at+The+Book+Lantern%3A+A+Writer%27s+Education2011-04-25+15%3A56%3A00Phoebehttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.phoebenorth.com%2F%3Fp%3D619

Up at the Book Lantern blog, I have a guest post that answers the immortal question, “Should I get an MFA?”

There were good things about my time spent in my MFA program. I had a fairly relaxed schedule, wrote quite a bit, and made many good friends there. My professors were caring and dedicated and always well-intentioned. And I had the opportunity to take other classes at the University, including critical coursework in young adult literature and science fiction.

But I can’t deny the conflict I felt as I became increasingly dedicated to both YA and genre, as I spent my  summers trying to learn how to write speculative fiction even as I was told that I wouldn’t be able to take fiction workshops unless I refrained from embracing these speculative elements in my workshopped writing.

I should probably note here that I’m talking fairly broadly about MFA programs here; I know that there are a small number of programs focused specifically on writing for children (Hollins is one) and at least one writing program (an MPW, if I recall correctly, at a school whose name has escaped me) focused on commercial writing including genre writing. But from everything I know about MFAs, these are the exceptions, rather than the rule, and so it feels fair to give writers interested in writing YA a head’s up that this may not be the path they’re looking for.