The MFA--Creative Writing Experience: Getting Here and Being Here

Map Types Lesson Plan

2010-10-11T17:58:00.001-07:00

2010-03-29T22:06:00.000-07:00

2009-12-22T22:50:00.000-08:00

I've begun designing the theme and course website for my Composition class in the winter. Here is a preview of the course banner. I'm going to take the class in a little bit of a new direction, focusing more on gender, race, and how it is important for us to study the rhetoric of identity construction.

This is going to be a very exciting term. I can't wait to start choosing the reading assignments and crafting the unit essays based on Susan Meyers' new curriculum suggestions. I think most of all I am going to really try shaping my students into fine critical thinkers. Those who choose to sit quietly will certainly have a tough time.

More to come.

John

Thesis revisions

2009-12-20T20:04:00.000-08:00

I've officially begun the revision process for my thesis. The prep work for this endeavor took quite a while. I had to track down all of the original drafts of my work. This includes all of the hand-written copies scribbled on notebook paper, napkins, the back of old electricity bills, as well as scouring my computer's files for other versions, typed drafts, etc. It's interesting to see how some of the pieces of developed.

I compiled a list of all the drafts, and came up with a rough "table of contents" containing 33 poems. (This number was derived from a number higher than 50 poems....but some were cut/unfinished/unreadable, etc.)

I typed and printed a list of the poems with which I am going to work, and have no begun making changes and trying them out. I'm even posting some to Facebook to gather feedback from people in the outside world. So far....mostly unsuccessful. This is not because people don't offer good suggestions, but because I'm a relative nobody, and no one is interested in reading the work of nobody.

...Which reminds me, I thought I would post a poem here just for kicks. Think of it as a treat.......a treat for all of my non-readers. This is such a mind-trip, talking about my general unpopularity to...well, a group of readers that may or may not exist.

Either way, enjoy!

The Skipping Stone

Jonathan A. Peacock

George said living life is like hearing

the scraping of a stone bounding across

a lake, that between each hop is

uncertainty of what’s coming, or what

isn’t, that in those leaps we’re

falling, and at the end we’re sinking

beneath the ripples and we watch them

scuttle to the shore to make tiny

tidal waves where that stone was picked,

that this was why people scrape

their heels along the floor, that they

search for a way to hang on, that

one day they’d walk right through

that floor, worn soles and all, and tread

the dirt, and those who’re left to listen would

be lucky to hear anything at all: That

those heels take the place of the stone and

plunk and plunk and plunk and gone.

-John

2009-12-18T20:28:00.000-08:00

My good friend, Patrick came to visit me this past week. I took him to see Multnomah Falls along with Columbia River here in Oregon, as well as the Oregon coast. It was my first trip to the falls. Here are a few experimental panoramic shots of the sites.

grading woes

2009-12-09T20:43:00.000-08:00

I want to address something right now, and the few readers that I have that are interested and who disagree are welcome to do so...

This didn't seem like something appropriate to post to Facebook, so Blogger it is. I submitted my class grades for WR241 (into to poetry writing) yesterday. The grades were about what I expected: a nice spread, maybe 6 As, 13Bs, 4 Cs, 2 Ds, and 1 F.

Then the complaint emails roll in. "How could I possibly receive a C+???" and "It's POETRY WRITING! How could I get a B?"

I made it very clear early in the term that I don't really grade the quality of the poetry. I grade the students' understanding of fundamental poetry elements. I grade their revision choices. I grade their participation, most importantly.

The students who complained about their grades are the students who never talked in class. They never volunteered to read. Never opened their mouth during workshop. Never gave even one suggestion or comment the entire term. And this, after I placed much emphasis on the importance of participation in a creative writing class.

I just don't understand. Well, I do understand, but I don't understand how I could have been clearer! A creative writing class, a workshop environment, whatever you want to call it, simply cannot function without class participation. If you refuse to talk, and sit idly in your seat, seeming uninterested, not engaged, you will not get an A.

Will I have to explain this to every student who did not receive an A in my class? God, I hope not.

Venting complete.

Comment.

Love.

John out.

the last week and healthcare debate continue

2009-12-07T10:01:00.000-08:00

I've been feeling a little under the weather the past few days. This is not a new development. I've felt this sickness coming on for a while. I feel fortunate, however, since most of the work for the term is completed and I can wallow happily in my sickness with a box of Oreos and The Price is Right.

I spent most of the weekend grading poetry portfolios. For a while I was concerned over grade inflation, not just in my own class, but in the higher education machine in general. I had my mind set to ease after engaging discussions with colleagues. I don't believe grade inflation exists as much as I believe the role and function of the grade changes from undergraduate work to graduate work. I know this to be true after seeing the grades of my undergraduate poetry students, realizing that creative writers can, in fact, land themselves outside/below/sub-"A" range.

A good friend of mine said on Friday, "in the field of creative writing, at least when you're an undergrad, it's important to be a good student first, and a good writer second. Because if you're a bad writer but you listen and try to learn, you can actually improve."

I think that's true. Then I wonder what type of student I was when I was an undergraduate. I generated mostly A quality work. Sometimes I would stagger by with a B, especially if I was uninterested in the course material, found it irrelevant to my field of study, or if I was unlucky enough to be in the presence of a professor who simply didn't agree with my polarized perspectives. Then I remembered, with my experiences over the past year keenly in mind, that I was not too different from my students I'm teaching now.

Very odd. This isn't much of a revelation. It's merely an observation. I think I was aware of this fact for a while, but either didn't want to admit it, or the pattern seemed to obvious for me to care.

Anyway, this term is winding down nicely. The house is decorated for Christmas. The tree is up and lit. And I have the sniffles/coughs/body aches. Evvvvvvvverything is falling into place.

I'll leave you with this clip from Countdown, since I'm always a fan of seeing Limbaugh grilled over things he obviously doesn't understand. I'm particularly drawn to Limbaugh's definition of the word "sheep." The healthcare absurdity, as I will call it from this day forth, rolls on...

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Good day, all. Thanks for reading.

John

a long overdue update

2009-12-06T13:34:00.000-08:00

Once again, I want to apologize for my absence and lack of posting for the last few months. Being in an MFA program consumes a large portion of my time.

After talking with some of my colleagues over the past few weeks, mainly Travis Margoni and Jeff Breitenfeldt, I've come to learn about a number of interesting web tools and platforms. I will be experimenting with these tools (Google Wave, Moodle, among others) during the upcoming winter term. I'll be sure to blog my findings.

In the meantime, please be sure to follow me on twitter (peacocjo) and facebook, (facebook.com/theangrybeaver)

If you're interested in a very interesting radio show on KBVR, out of Corvallis, please visit Travis' blog for podcasts (http://couriernewculture.blogspot.com/) or listen live at www.kbvr.com

Stay tuned.

John

Back to it

2009-06-02T23:23:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone. I want to apologize for my lack of posting. I battled an illness for a few weeks, and have recently recovered enough to begin extra work again.

Point of thought: avoid excessive absences while in graduate school...particularly in the last term of an academic year. Incompletes, missing assignments, make-up work...all very bad, especially when you already feel like shit for abandoning your post to begin with.

With that having been said, I'll be making the 3000 mile journey back to Florida for summer vacation starting June 19th. I'll be sure to post a link to some interesting photographs.

In the meantime, catching up on some writing, constructing a (mostly) functional CV...that was depressing...and putting my critical thinking-cap on for some serious graduate-level literature (ooo..."seminar style") papers.

yay.

Good night all.

John

please check this out!

2009-04-16T18:10:00.000-07:00

This video was featured on Countdown with Keith Olbermann this evening. It is from my hometown (Pensacola), and shows that a portion of the nation still sees the light with reason and logic.

Kudos to this man!

By the way...the background info for this story is this: "tea parties" were held around the country on Wednesday to protest "taxation," and other things that redneck republicans don't even understand. One of these "parties" was held in Pensacola, and this man...a stout progressivist and Democrat...stood in the middle of the crowd of Republicans and confused the HELL out of them.

Notice how all of the people in the crowd cheer for him until the very end, when they realize that they've been fooled.

racism

2009-04-13T23:15:00.000-07:00

A while back, a colleague of mine asked me if things in the South really were as bad as people think. I responded that in order to answer that question, one had to experience the day-to-day life and make a judgment for themselves.

This newspaper article demonstrates that, yes, things really can be as bad as everyone thinks.

If this lady is LUCKY, the news and the story of her racist ass will stay confined to the deep south...but not if I have anything to say about it. She's a TEACHER, for crying out loud!

Anyway, I put up with stuff like this everyday of my life. In Oregon it rains, it's cold, there's dead trees and the occasional scent of rotten moss and fertilizer around every corner, but compared to Pensacola, FL...it's a bloody fucking paradise.

John out.

some stuff

2009-04-02T17:49:00.000-07:00

I saw this story on the website of my hometown's newspaper. I thought it was absolutely hilarious, so I thought I would share with everyone. (be sure to check out the video on the right side of the screen for full enjoyment)

http://www.pnj.com/article/20090402/NEWS01/90402015

That will probably only be up for a few days, so get it while the gettin's good.

Also, "Transfer Cases" is now published and available at www.decompmagazine.com. Just look for my name. (there is a typo that I've email them about....a stray question mark. See if you can find it!)

Jedi edit: The stray question mark has been fixed.

John out.

published

2009-02-18T22:13:00.001-08:00

A newer poem of mine, "Transfer Cases," has been accepted for publication in DeComp Magazine....an online literary magazine.

I'm quite pleased with this development. I'm told it will appear in the April edition. I'll provide a link when it becomes available.

My first major poetry publication during my residency at OSU....

2009-02-16T21:36:00.000-08:00

I'm just really not satisfied with ANY of the work I've been producing lately. Very frustrating.

Many Fireflies Do Not Produce Light

I.

Fireflies raged in sets
of incandescence
beside the Rushdie book,
and I counted syllables
with my molars, left to right.

II.

I'm interested in watching
people in the natural state.
Were they nude? I believe so.
They did what happy people
don't do--the technical interest
of circling the lamp shade.

III.

They were thirty percent
of the known world, before
the continents divorced, long
before the dust collected
on the shelf, in the atmosphere.
They were tiny prisms dancing
amidst ambient sunbeams.

research topics

2009-02-12T23:23:00.000-08:00

I started brainstorming in this area after generating a list of research topics that absolutely annoy me, either because they are quite over-done, or just plain boring. I plan on passing this list along to my 121 students as we move into their researched argument.

stem cell research
torture
music/movie piracy
lowering the drinking age
raising the drinking age
abortion
the war in Iraq
steroids in baseball (or any sport for that matter)
anything to do with Barry Bonds
ASPCA or PETA

The list goes on and on. Equally interesting, however, are a few suggestions I've heard my students talk about. I find all of these ideas, plus several more, to be intriguing:

the effect of technology on interpersonal communication (love this one!)
real estate law
tenant/landlord relationships
environmental law
the effect of The Academy on the movie industry
potential negative effects of AP classes in high school
the effect of the Vietnam War on pop/rock music
pursuing a manned mission to Mars
the positive health benefits of owning a pet

The list goes on. I found these to be some of my favorites.

I'm having my students each write a two-page rationale for their topics. Each will explain why they believe further research and understanding for their topic is important, as well as document what they hope to learn, what they already know, and specifically how they plan to use the information they find.

This is by far my favorite assignment.

John out.

google maps

2009-02-06T21:18:00.000-08:00

This may be one of the saddest and most interesting things I've read/seen in a long time.

Fascinating what Google is able to do...and yet...the deer...

http://www.buzzfeed.com/lindseyweber/google-maps-ran-over-a-baby-deer-ru

THIS IS A MUST SEE!

2009-01-21T23:21:00.000-08:00

This is a MUST SEE!

This is easily the most sickening thing I've seen in many many years. This man's testimony should blow the lid off of the Bush Admin's scandalous use of wiretapping.

Watch the whole thing.

2009-01-19T12:53:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of images from the construction of my first alternative processes project. I really love this class!

Hey Mac users, shutup!

2009-01-18T22:13:00.000-08:00

I thought about this after observing the prices of mac books and mac desktops, and then comparing THAT baffling experience with the memory of one of my office mate's mac's swallowing her thesis manuscript (well, really imploding in on itself and regurgitating all of that pretentious mac-jargon and environmentally friendly computer components...but that's quite beside the point).

The 10 reasons that Apple must think is imperative for making the change from a PC to a MAC can be found on their website. Of course if you have the time to read through all of them you realize that these 10 features or reasons have been standard with the PC a long, long, long time. Some of the reasons are just plain myths that Apple invented. Probably because they ran out of fabricated facts.
So take the journey through the 10 commandments of a mac-enthusiast and enjoy their naive attitude towards personal computing.

1. The Mac... It just works

This is maybe the ultimate reason a mac owner will give you to explain why it's superior to a PC. The mac owner will tell you that all people that own macs are really satisfied with their computers and would never switch back. This is ofcourse not true. If you read our Real stories you will find all kinds of interesting stories about owning a mac.
The mac owner will also tell you that with a system from Apple you will never have to think about drivers, upgrades or anything. A mac is perfection itself when delivered. Atleast according to their standard. Many mac:s can't even be upgraded. So what you buy is what you get. Expect your system to be outdated within 1-2 years.
Apple also states: "Only with a Mac do you get an operating system built by the same people who built the computer it runs on.". Actually Apple's Mac OS X (the operating system) is not based on their own technology, but by the technology of freeBSD. Apple's own capabilities in form of creating an operating system have been demonstrated in previous versions of Mac OS. It took an operating system based on someone else's technology to get a Mac multitasking and not behaving like an oversized pocket calculator from 1985.

2. It doesn't crash (Bah!)

Yes it does! And it does it alot. The difference between a pc based on Windows crashing and a Mac is that on the pc the crash is in 99% of the cases caused by badly coded third party software, when the Mac just has a faulty operating system. Why else would Apple themselves run their india website on Linux RedHat?
There is another fun part about crashes on the mac, it's almost always impossible to trace the source of the crash. When your mac crashes you simply reinstall the system. Sounds like a fun thing to do on your spare time, well buy a Mac then!

3. Simply the best in digital music (*side note from me at the bottom)

This point is actually based on Apple's iPod. I must admit, the iPod is not an ugly creation. I'll give Apple credit for that. But as always, they exaggerate the benefits of their product. Apple was far from first with creating a portable mp3-player with a built in harddrive but on the other side they do offer the most expensive solution.
The iPod is about 40-60% more expensive than technologically equal products. Keep in mind also that it offers no recording option and no belt clip. Two very crucial benefits a portable mp3-player should have.

4. The missing link in digital photography

It's amazing! Apple has invented a program called iPhotos that will revolutionize the way we look at digital photos. Hear what they have to say: "Simply drag your mouse, and iPhoto magically grows or shrinks your photo thumbnails. So you can view individual shots in detail or see hundreds of photos on the screen at once...".
Maybe mac users are new to digital photos on the computer but on the pc we have a huge variety of freeware that does the job of iPhoto and more, to choose from. So when Apple says that they are "the missing link in digital photography" maybe what they meant was that iPhoto is the missing link of the Mac.
Windows users reached that stage of evolution ages ago.

5. Your own digital entertainment center

It seems that Apple thinks that they've revolutionized computing by developing mediocre software for viewing digital photos, editing video, burning CDs and DVDs and listening to music. Well they haven't!

6. Goes everywhere you go

You better sit down for this one, hold on to your seat and embrace yourself for some cutting edge news from Apple... they've invented the laptop, eureka! Not only that, they think they've made it superior to other laptops. Let's look at why and also try to answer their questions:

* Can your PC laptop go coast to coast with just one battery?
— Ofcourse. And if it only needs the performance of the Mac it could probably go around the world.
* Can you put the system to sleep just by closing the lid?
— Oh my god, a Mac can do that? Well, so can a PC!
* Does it wake up instantly?
—Duh!
* Can your PC laptop automatically switch between Ethernet,
dial-up and wireless connections on the fly?
—Without a doubt!
* Without a restart? (** again, special note from me at the bottom)
Is this a joke? This really proves that Apple has no clue on what their competitors are doing. If they never have used a PC running Windows it makes their tests and objective sayings about the Mac really credible. Oh, by the way, I was being sarcastic.

7. It's built for the internet

Apple makes a huge point about the ease of configuring an internet connection on a mac. All new Windows versions come with just as easy to use guides for connecting to the internet with modem, lan or anything else. They also brag about such obvious tools of communication like email, favorites and contacts. Yes Apple, this is really new and hot stuff, you are indeed innovative. Or maybe not.
The worst part might be that they lie about their under average video-plugin Quicktime. This might be one of the worst programs ever to install. Actually if some students at a university needed an example of a really poorly written program, this would be a perfect opportunity for Quicktime to step into the limelight.

8. Office is Office, and then some

Yes, the mac comes with Office and this is why you should make the switch from a pc to a mac:

"The transition to a Mac is easy in part because you’ll continue using the same applications you already know"

Ask yourself this: Why would I switch when It's the exactly same on the mac? -Beats me. Apple does speak of some mysterious features in this sentence:

"And thanks to exclusive features, the Mac versions improve on their Windows counterparts"

As you might expect they mention nothing on what these features are. Well they're probably just wonderfully, perfectly and amazingly non-existent!

(*** again, special note)

9. Works effortlessly with PCs

Apple thought for a long time that they'd be best off constructing their own method for network-communication. Everyone that has struggled with the glorious AppleTalk knows that they didn't do a great job. Now they have realized that it's better to use an already working technology that someone else created instead of poorly reinventing the wheel.

"Networking on a Mac is built on the same technologies used by PCs."

They also reveal amazing means of medias you can use on your mac:

..."you can also swap files via data CD, floppies or Zip disks."

10. It's beautiful

Apple emphasises that all their products are masterpieces of design. Their problem is that their focus on design hinders them from creating ergonomic and practical machines. If you have ever used the small round iMac mouse you have probably too suffered from aches in arm and hand.

"...ergonomic products that are the toast of the design world..."

It wasn't I who brought up the word toast into the debate. On the other hand it was I who drew the paralell to machines looking like plain household machines. Who wants a computer that look like a remnant from the 70's like the one on my right. You could probably achieve the same state of hallucination if staring long enough on this iMac, that you could by inhaling large amounts of heavy drugs.

So what have we learned from these 10 points that Apple provides for the potential buyer. We have learned that Apple likes to tell their future customers that the mac is built on technology they probably already are using on their PCs. They also lure the extremely naive buyers with words like internet, word-processing and cd-burning.

Please do not be fooled. You have nothing to gain by switching to a Mac. Apple has proved it on their own, with a little help from us.

*Also on this note, mac, despite hating PC and PC users, couldn't stand that idea of preventing PC users from purchasing the ipod, and therefore made itunes entirely accessible via the Windows operating system. With itunes and a fairly decent sound card, PCs actually surpass Macs in audio-capacity, flexibility, and performance. Thanks Mac! (No need for reason #3 I suppose)

**My PC laptop can have sex with your mom without restarting.

***Interestingly enough, all other mac devices (IE iphone, ipod touch, and the soon to be released LARGE ipod touch) do NOT have Office capabilities. In fact, the don't even have a comparable word processing program. (The ipod touch actually has a notepad device that looks like a sheet of yellow lined note-paper. No formatting, no fonts. Congrats Mac, you've pushed your PDA users back to the office tool equivalent of an uneducated construction worker taking job-site inventory!)

**** Another thing, mac. Those commercials! (Hello I'm a Mac!) Fuck off.

No, seriously, fuck off!

"Let's see, there are two types of people in this world: People who use Macs and people who use PCs. As a PR guy, I shouldn't be too concerned with people who already use Macs, because they're idiots anyway, and will continue to use my over-priced, wrongly advertised pieces of shit for as long as (revenue from the ipod) can keep our factories open!"

"No, we should REALLY try to recruit PC users. Bring them to our side! How can we do this?? Easy! Make fun of them, call them silly for using PCs, and claim them to be technologically deficient for NOT using our products!"

"Yes, yes that will do the trick! Soon, PC users will feel so bad about themselves, they'll be banging on our poly-flex-super-duper-environmentally-friendly Mac Store glass doors to spend $3000 on a new Mac!"

Or not.

Hey Mac,

I just ripped a full-length DVD screener, burned the movie to disc while editing photos, downloading music, and listening to a highly complex song by the Doobie Brothers.

Can your $3000 Mac do that??

My $1000 PC can.

Dear Mac,

Fuck off.

John

(parts of the preceding text..most..were borrowed from macs-suck.com. I didn't really cite properly, but neither did he...so I found it mostly ok. Kudos, though, to the author of that website.)

2009-01-01T22:05:00.000-08:00

By the way, in case it wasn't obvious, I do NOT believe my IQ is really 155.

That was all an act.

My supposed IQ...

2008-12-28T22:38:00.000-08:00

Free-IQTest.net - Free IQ Test

hmm.

There were a shitton of ads that followed the test, so I don't really recommend taking the test unless you have a high level of tolerance for shameless advertising.

Still....that's, uhh...fairly strange. Am I really that smart?

eek.

Christmas

2008-12-25T21:59:00.001-08:00

I'd forgot just how utterly lonely it can be in Oregon without much company. I've spent the last ten days missing the companionship of my new friends and (yes) my work. I never thought I would miss it. I suppose over the past four months I've dedicated every free minute to my job and my creative work, I never stopped to remind myself what it was like to be bored.

The trip home to Florida was...interesting. A few delays (one very long mechanical delay in the frozen tundra that is Denver....whomever decided it was a good idea to build an airport on a moderately graded hill should be dragged out into the street and shot).

The rest of the comical ordeals of traveling can be read here.

Home was interesting. Snow flurries the first night, followed by a week of mid-70s and rain. Gotta love Florida.

I arrived in Oregon just in time for an unusual snowstorm that began on Wednesday and dumped several inches of the white goop between then and Friday.

We had fun. I'm sure EVERYONE else in this program said something along the lines of "snow?? pfffft. Fuck snow! Show is God's post-burrito dinner diarrhea!"

Well maybe so. But remember, I'm from Florida. I get exited when the dew on the ground turns to frost...so fuck off.

Christmas was fabulous. Midnight mass last night. (Haven't been to church in a long long long time...I must admit I occasionally enjoy the pomp and circumstance). Joyous morning, with a larger-than-necessary breakfast, some presents, reading, music, and the movie A Christmas Story. (which led to a fabulous Christmas dinner at a Chinese restaurant.)

A little less than two weeks until the start of the new term.

I hope everyone enjoyed their break.

John

happy birthday, Jeff Buckley

2008-11-17T20:50:00.001-08:00

To honor the birth of the fabulous Jeff Buckley...the singer who made the most beautiful version of the most beautiful song ever written...

enjoy.

a little change for a change, would be nice

2008-11-10T23:35:00.000-08:00

I've written 5 new pieces in the last 2 days....totaling over a hundred new lines of verse, and they're all crap. I mean utter crap. Possibly good by some people's standards...but still absolute crap.

With the exception of one. It should, I suppose, be the sixth. I jotted it down during a sudden stroke of inspiration in class today. Five lines long...less than thirty syllables, and still the best piece I've composed in months.

Months!

What the hell is wrong with me?

I have less than a month until I get to return home for a week. I miss my old friends, and my family. They usually cry now, when I talk to them on the phone.

The voice isn't always the same.

Think of it this way: If you had a chance of a lifetime, and you knew it would take giving up most of everything and everyone that you love, would you still do it?

I think I would. If I had to do it all over again, I think I would have done it all the same.

Well....pretty much everything all the same. I probably would have told that nasty manager at McDonald's that she could kiss my road-weary ass, I'm bringing my exhausted cat inside, with her carrier whether she likes it or not.

But that, my friends, is something different entirely.

Well...I liked it enough, might as well share it. Too short to workshop anyway.

Iconoclasm

God drew my image
in a reflecting pool--
with lovers on casting
lines, so many locusts
hovering 'round.

Goodnight world.

John out.

2008-11-03T21:39:00.000-08:00

the week of oct 27th to 31st

2008-11-02T21:58:00.000-08:00

It's Sunday night and I just spent the last 3 hours burying myself in stacks of student papers, outlines, annotated bibliographies, and quick writes. Paper after paper after paper. What's worse, I haven't written a new poem in over 9 days. This!...from the proclaimed "poem machine," most affectionately assigned to my persona by Karen.

I mean my gosh! What does it take to force myself to remember to stay creative amidst the never-ending list of chores and responsibilities. I would need a week of "under a rock" time just to catch up from right now!

The feeling is certainly mutual. I see it in the faces of all my colleagues and fellow TAs. No one is excluded. There is a certain joy sucked out of the day when I see people stressed, down, and out...but I just remind myself that we're all dealing with it--finding the rhythm of graduate school, like finding the pot 'o gold at the end of a rainbow...

Speaking of rainbows, and to draw an interesting connection...it finally started feeling more like the expected Oregon fall/winter this weekend. Rain, cold, rain, repeat.

Bought a bright orange, corduroy papasan chair cushion to complete my home office this afternoon.

It's everything I ever wanted....and I always want a lot...so, I mean....wow...you can only imagine.

Election Day party at my house Tuesday. Ballot counting, blue states, bean dip, and beer!

OK, maybe not bean dip...but it helped the alliteration effect.

John out.

there's this....

2008-10-29T21:41:00.000-07:00

A bit of an odd week this week. I don't mean to make light of the preceding events. I just....

Workshop.

The class as a collective body. I don't mean the quality of the class, or the quality of work, or content, or anything like that.

My grandfather passed away last week.
Eric's brother passed away last Friday.
Kim's father passed away today.

We're all in the same class.

There are only 7 total poets in the class.

I found it odd. Worth noting. Not worth making light of.

It was...is...just a mathematical certainty that a common denominator can often be reached........in the most peculiar of ways.

My thoughts and concerns with the aforementioned individuals and their families.

John out.

some comments on a large northwestern town...and other things

2008-10-21T23:16:00.000-07:00

I spent the last few days trying to convince myself that living in Seattle would in some way be a bad idea. I was not successful. It's not often that you become so connected with a place that you vow to make it home, especially after a two day visit. I think, though, it's equally less frequent to find fault with such an assumption.

Many times I think it's best for us to stop rationalizing "safe" moves and do what feels right. That sounds far too ambitious and trite in many ways, but it really involves getting back to the basics of living. Again, trite and nauseously ambitions.....just like a poet to do so....and then make up words to describe it.

That having been said, I spent the weekend in Seattle. (very anti-climactic at this point...apologies). I loved it. So many things to see. So many interesting people and places. The city was booming, and I felt a great deal of satisfaction to know such a place still exists in this country.

My conclusion...I want to live there when I'm finished with this 2 year program; and so, after some deliberation, I have decided that is just what I will do.

As a slight turn, I have tried to avoid allowing the political season to leak into my creative work, but I just can't help it. So many important things are going on, I almost can't keep it off of my mind. I've composed a few pieces (all of which will likely never see the light of day) that are (dangerously) tinged with political agenda, commentary on social strife, hypocrisy, violence, and many other things.

I find this style of work to be therapeutic in a strange way, but also not indicative of my style of work, and therefore potentially confusing to those who may be familiar with it. For that reason I have decided not to share it, but rather share the passion and eloquence of my hero, Keith Olbermann, who speaks volumes on the political issues in this country in a way that I could never dream. I am, in many ways, envious of his dedication to the cause.

I hope I can assist in spreading his passion, particularly now, when it matters most.

There were several clips to choose from. This one I found to be particularly moving. Enjoy.

One voice for the sentiments of millions....myself included.

John out.

a poetry reading and simplicity

2008-10-08T15:29:00.000-07:00

I learned a little about my self last week, and then coming into this week. How surprising. But consider this....how many ways there are to live and learn in a graduate program. Also, consider the many things that can (and will) go wrong. My solution...very simply really:

Keep it simple.

I forgot that I adopted this philosophy some years ago when I felt overwhelmed by my various chores and tasks. Simplify! It's fantastic! The reason I have felt so overwhelmed is because I've tried to fit so many different, unrelated things into my days, they all get jumbled. Things are unavoidably forgotten, priorities are skewed, and chaos ensues!

By reminding myself of what really matters, I leave extra time for myself. There is time to relax at home. To watch a movie. To have a nice dinner, or take a walk. These are many of the simple but great things we often take for granted.

With that nonsense having been said, I must comment on the poetry reading in which I participated in Philomath on Saturday. I've performed before large crowds before. I've given speeches, played music, sang, and even gave small lectures before--but I've never stood by myself on a stage and read my poetry to others.

The experience was enlightening. Imagine yourself and your craft. Now imagine yourself and your craft together in a room with people who have the same craft, and who are quite good at it! Good enough to be recognized for it, even! Now imagine that your entire perspective on the situation changes the moment you get to the podium to read because, for whatever reason, all the things that seemed to matter before....the battle of stressed syllables, the format on the page, the connotation and value of a word....none of it matters anymore.

None of it matters because when work is read aloud, we really are left with the most fundamental value of words....how they sound. We can stare at a page of Verse all day long if we want. We could mark the stresses, and make seemingly endless assumptions about the meaning of the poem. But when you hear the words spoken, it changes everything. It reminds you why people write. It isn't to obtain an appreciation of poetic form, or to trick the reader. The purpose is to move people in a way that conversation and reading cannot. It's a way of thinking.

This all sounds so lofty and idealistic in retrospect. But I know, at least for a few moments, I was reminded of why I want to write. If what I say, or how I frame my work, or introduce it, reaches even one person, I've done my job.

Did I do that? I'm not sure. The real problem with poetry readings is that, in general, the feedback you receive from the audience is instantaneous, and reflects only the most immediate reactions--which, in many ways, is the most important reaction of all. But in other, more accurate ways, the fear of performance and rhetorical success trumps all of that, and all I can concentrate on was whether or not I said the names of the event organizers correctly, or if I stumbled in any traumatic way.

I can tell this will always be the case. I can't escape the way I feel about my work. I can only hope that my words will do their job, and reach someone, in some vague way.

Did I think it went alright? Sure, I do. I was still standing at the end. And even now, I have the most odd urge to do it again...like a craving, like natural desire (oh yes, I'm going there) to speak, and let my words do, as many would say, what I have come here to learn to make them do.

Cheers,

John

Why I'm a little quiet

2008-09-30T21:54:00.001-07:00

I wanted to take the opportunity to let loose with a more personal entry for a change. I feel a little guilty for talking so much about myself, since I really wanted this blog to focus on the MFA experience--but since that experience most certainly involves myself, I thought it would be alright.

Many, many things have been going on for the last month. This doesn't even encompass the time prior to, during, and slightly after we moved to Oregon (which was an all in all stressful experience, to say the least), but it's really the things that have happened just recently that are of note.

I came to Corvallis with a label. A title. I'm a graduate student in Oregon State University's MFA program. I write poetry. That's why I'm here, and that's what got me here. It is true, I enjoy rhetoric, critical theory, gender theory, and many other things--but my passion is in poetry.

With that having been said, I've looked back on the last four weeks and realized that I have spent a great deal of my time focusing on teaching, focusing on improving my social life in a new town where I don't know anyone (and for the record I think I've done fairly well for being the "new guy," mostly because there are so many other "new guys," and "new girls," to help with the shock). It's been rough. And that's not a loaded statement! It really has been hard trying to acclimate myself, and remain in the good graces of the people I've met, AND teach myself...yes...how to teach.

I've been fortunate enough to meet some very cool people since I've been here. Each is unique and important in their own special way. I suppose I made friends fairly easily when I was in high school, but I lost site of how important friends were in college. I think I got it backward, since I don't talk to most of the people I went to high school with, and I only had four or five very close friends in college, all of which I still talk to, despite being 3,000 miles from them.

In a way, I feel like I'm still trying to get over the slight social ignorance I developed as an undergrad. I always fell into the crowd that I would best fit into...but now, things are different. All of these people are different...and they're all great!

Sometimes people will look at me while I'm "out" at a bar, or restaurant when I'm just hanging out with friends and wonder why I'm so quiet. The truth is I've always been fairly quiet when I have nothing to say--and I've always been loud and vocal when I do have something to say. Just because I don't speak doesn't mean I'm uncomfortable, or that I don't like the people I'm around. I simply value the art of listening.

Think about it! Every time we listen we learn something new (if not always, then a lot of the time). My silence could be an indicator that I don't fully understand the conversation, or that I simply don't have a personal investment in the discussion.

I've found a great number of writers are like this. A good friend of mine from Florida wrote thunderous novellas and non-fiction pieces on war, religion, rape, murder, and many other intriguing topics. His writings were loud and boisterous. They insisted on being heard!

When I met him for the first time, I complimented him on the style of his work. He replied coyly, "Thank you," and shyly looked to the floor.

What a discovery! ...a writer who composes loud texts and displays them silently!

I suppose what I'm getting at is that I've learned a great deal about myself and where my values lie. I've made some great friends, and I would like them to better understand who I am. (if such a thing is even possible)

I always preferred talking with the pen, anyway.

Unless a pint is involved. In this case, the rules change.

Good News!

2008-09-26T00:23:00.000-07:00

Exciting news today...for me anyway!

There is a fabulous MFA blog also located on blogger.com. It's called The MFA Handbook, very popular blog source for MFA prospects and students. It's managed be the wonderful Tom Kealey, MFA instructor in fiction from Stanford University.

To make a short story even shorter, I've been asked to become a regular contributor to this nationally recognized blog. That having been said, you can check out my thoughts on both this blog and the MFA Handbook. I promise this blog will be updated regularly, and with fresh material, differnent from the other. (So both are worth checking out!)

I like to look at it as....the MFA Handbook blog is a global perspective, informative from a pragmatic perspective--while this blog serves as a more personal, experiential account of my journey.

That, and I may tend to include more trivial entertaining posts in this blog.

Anyway, please check the other one out also (link below, and soon to be added to both this page, as well as my facebook and myspace accounts), but not to read my crappy muses! Oh no! I'm just a CSPAN channel stick on mute, or just as unimportant. (I kid of course) But, there are numerous valuable articles and discussions on the MFA Handbook, many of which I used when applying to programs...where it felt like there was no one to turn to, and no one around me seemed to have any answers, it did!

The link is...

http://creative-writing-mfa-handbook.blogspot.com/

Fabulous.

Ah yes, and Oregon State did upset USC this evening, in what I am calling the greatest underdog victory in the history of college sports. I'm not exaggerating. Many of the news casters are saying the same thing, and given the state of media these days....it must, I mean MUST be true! (part of that statement is true, part is sarcasm. Guess which is which.)

Cheers,

John

Some interesting thoughts from Mr. McCaffery

2008-09-24T22:57:00.000-07:00

Below is an interesting article written by the fantastic RJ McCaffery. (If you've ever browsed through the Cortland Review online, or perhaps read extensively about the defense of internet publication, you've likely heard of him). This particular article is in defense to the MFA program. There is a sense of urgency...almost alarmingly honest reflection of the common opinions regarding the fine arts degrees.

I particularly enjoyed the next-to-last paragraph...solutions to workshop issues. Ask yourself, what SHOULD an MFA produce, artist-wise? There is certainly something to be said about thinking coldly about one's own work.

Perhaps a critical appreciation and understanding of one's own craft? Food for thought, anyway. Enjoy!
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Lately, primarily amongst web-poets, I've seen the Masters of Fine Arts degree in Poetry and the programs it arises from, rapped on the pedagogic knuckles. "M.F.A. poets" (those who've attended an M.F.A. program are inevitably amused by that sweeping categorization alone) have no souls, they write about "nothing", perhaps having been granted skills to say "something" but remaining crippled by immaturity and self-centeredness. M.F.A. poets, I am told, are natural sycophants, toadies to the will of their professorial masters, shallow copiers of a bankrupt tradition of personal narrative, confession, and meaningless lyric babble. The overarching tyranny of the workshop is often cited as one of the strong-armed evils of such programs; it cruelly stomps out "real creativity" with a fervor greater than any professional language agency which may have haunted the nightmares of George Orwell.

Perhaps these allegations are true for the vast majority of M.F.A. graduates and programs. Having only met a few hundred M.F.A. graduates and read the works of some several hundred more, I'm at a loss to accurately report on the quality of the "average" M.F.A. student's poetry; indeed, I've only begun to scratch total works connected with such programs, given that over a thousand newly minted M.F.A.'s in Poetry /Writing are cracked out of the mold each year.

The following is a defense of the M.F.A. program and the graduates thereof, the issues addressed in no particular order of importance:

Critics of the M.F.A. program often cite the lack of these programs to produce, in the span of two or three years, poets of the first caliber, but the idea that poets should stroll out of the graduation line, walk back to their apartments and, that afternoon, pen the 40 or so quality poems that would sufficiently impress an editor to immediately publish a volume is surely misplaced.

While reasoning by analogy is a particular poetic vice, let's indulge it and consider other Fine Arts programs and other Master's programs. Do we expect music programs to immediately produce "first rate" musicians? Is it reasonable to assume that each graduate of, say, the Berkley School of Music in Boston, will spring into the spotlight of their discipline? Become instant virtuosi? Or that a painter, returning home from her graduation ceremony find their answering machine filled with gallery offers? No.

A more just expectation is that graduates will be "reasonably competent" in their field; that they will have mastered basic principles well enough (in theory at least) to instruct fledgling musicians, that they will have a certain technical aptitude in practicing those theories, and so forth. I am thinking of a level of proficiency that correlates with several years of intensive study.

The most important skill a program in Fine Arts instruction can impart is the ability to think critically about one's own work; to observe, analyze, advance practically applicable artistic theories based on deduced principles, to evaluate how those applied principals function in their own work.

In my own M.F.A. experience, at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York, I was encouraged by my professors to take a "cold eye" to my work- to relinquish personal biases and attempt to place myself in the perspective of an impartial reader. This perhaps is the key to writing well- for it allows the writing to be seen by the author as it is seen by the reader- thus the author has more control in refining and shaping the work with a mind to affective qualities.

How does this process affect the "wonder" of poetry- the "divine spark" of the muse? Hmm. One of the accusations against the M.F.A. program is that it "drains" the passion of poetry by it's scrutiny of the actual words used in a poem (as if critical analysis of any phenomena or work diminished its emotional impact). This accusation of "dulling" poetry is also often applied to discussions of revision. "Those M.F.A poets always revise, but it strips the poetry of passion, dulls the poems." is a complaint I've heard more than once, of course, there were no concrete examples attached to this argument. . Again, if you'll indulge reasoning by analogy, this is rather like saying the initial fragments and melodies that sprang into the brain of Beethoven were "dulled" by his arduous reworking of them into their final forms. The vast majority of great poems were not written in one draft; one of the most influential poems of the 20th century, "The Waste Land", by T.S. Eliot, was significantly rewritten by another poet, Ezra Pound, who culled Eliot's initial thousand odd lines by more than half. The one exception that comes to mind is Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"- but we should remember that this poem was written in 1923, when Frost was at the height of his powers, and none of his subsequent poems remained in the same form as their first drafts. Granted that the initial spark, the impulse to write a particular poem, is something mysterious and transitory, perhaps not worth inquiring into due to its mercurial nature; however- once the poem is begun, a process, whether conscious or not, begins to guide our creation. We select certain words due to their aptness, or sonic correlation to other words in the poem, or for their conformity to a pattern in which we may be laboring, etc. Even in the moment of creation, our faculties are critical. The revision process -- the critical inquiry, again and again, into the poem -- may be grueling, or joyous, depending on the writer, but it does not "diminish" the poem by itself. This is not to say that unwise choices in revision can't wreck a poem, for they surely can, but rather to assert that the inquiry itself does no damage, for a poem is not (no matter how much we may feel so) a flesh and blood thing. It will not bleed or squeal if we consider changing "spindle" to "bobbin" in line four and having rejected "bobbin", replace "spindle".

In addition to failing to churn out "major" poets, to "dulling" poetry via process, I also have heard M.F.A. programs accused of producing poets who "have not a lot to say", poets "who write about nothing". Again, I have to say I haven't done an extensive statistical analysis of what percentages of M.F.A. graduate poets write about "nothing" v. those who write about "something". I'd speculate that many of these complaints have their roots in the proliferation of the "New York" school of poetry (Ashbery, Ghram,) or neo-Surrealism, or Symbolism, none of which are native to the M.F.A. programs, or at least not more than, say, Abstract Expressionism can be "blamed" on having arisen from those pesky art schools.

Personally, I can say that I have read a number of affecting, well-written, conscientious poems from M.F.A. graduates- many of whom have not, as yet, penetrated the professional publishing establishment - the web of contests, influence, and skewed grants. While I don't find some M.F.A. graduate's work worth reading on a aesthetic level- I will say that I most often fail to value these poems because of their adherence to particular poetic theories or paradigms (say, narcissistic and irrelevant dilly-dallying over issues of "self", as an example) I will say that adherence to these theories is, by and large, chosen by the poets. Meaning that via their fidelity to their writing style these poets are demonstrating a technical competency, an artistic will and intelligence, in composing their individual poems. This argues more to a conscious choice being made by skilled writers than to an imperfect memorization by rote of a "style" (which one assumes would result in sloppily realized poems that diverge from the principles they operate on - an inconsistency that often is critiqued in M.F.A. programs as a poem "failing to fulfill its expectations" or "sending conflicting (stylistic) messages".)

There is also the possibility that young poets (shockingly) may have different interests and concerns than the established critics of their day- that while focusing on matters of grammar, or description, or experimenting with imagery, the poems might fall otherwise into one of many conventional tropes. For example, poems which lack specificity- and unknown, genderless, nameless "I" addresses some personal, unknowable message to an equally unspecific "you". But the overarching structure of a poem is also an element of composition, subject to analysis, revision and change. I introduce this to suggest that many writers must master the nuts and bolts of their medium before they can draw up effective blueprints for complete vehicles. When teaching beginning writers, I attempt to make them aware of the basic building blocks of their medium; words. I drill them on how they use verbs, nouns, adverbs and advance to more complex issues of sentence structure. I do not begin by questioning the mode the poems are written in or their affective power, or their place in the tradition of poetry- such can overwhelm the beginning writer.

The extended learning process touches on the idea of maturity and development- again, it's a misconception to expect that M.F.A. programs exist to churn out "finished" artists, when they are structured to enable their graduates to become "finished" artists/poets/whatnots via the application of their education. Often it takes awhile to mobilize what you've learned to the point where it positively affects your writing. Emergence of writers sometime after their M.F.A. is earned is often seen as evidence that "good poets survive M.F.A. programs", as if the M.F.A. program was something to experience negatively, akin to locking musicians up in a bowling alley and expecting them to write symphonies on their release. Thankfully, ours is not such a simply dichotomous world.

This misconception of the Pavlovian nature of M.F.A. programs in poetry is another charge; M.F.A. programs, via the workshop, "train" their participants to write in a certain style or manner. This is a fear of poetry boot camp- as though an M.F.A. program was a gigantic cookie cutter whose shape could be read by tracing the sensibilities and interests of the instructors:

Poet/Professor A favors poetry of the ecstatic voice.
Poet/Professor B believes a poem should begin and end outside the "I."
Poet/Professor C finds fantastic metaphors somewhat "showy"

Therefore all poets graduating form this program will favor ecstatic poetry that begins and ends outside the "I" and eschews fantastic metaphors? Hardly.

Some poets will, of course, adopt the style and mode of their teachers- and not all in the spirit of blind obedience and conformity. These poets, working in a vein that their teachers favor, will no doubt have their work easily segued via their teachers' professional contacts into the publication media of that particular style or mode. Would it surprise anyone for an promising apprentice Postmodern painter to have her work hung next to other Postmodern painters in a predominantly Postmodern gallery? Still, other (most) poets from the program will end up writing in a style that is not completely in the vein of their teachers. Regardless of what may be "evidenced" by publication rates of these various groups, it is important to note that all students, regardless of their style, are given the opportunity, via the workshop's structure, to develop the critical skills which lead to writing well.

This leads us to consider workshopping. Workshops are a composite of the student's conduct, submissions and attitudes, and the professor's style and knowledge. I have been in workshops which I've found extremely useful and inspiring; only to have these same workshops thought useless and stifling by my fellow students. Conversely, I've been put off by workshops my peers have found invaluable. I've taught students who wished to purse our poetic relationship well after the class, and also have had students (obviously talented and established) abandon courses after two meetings. What I'm trying to suggest is that, on some level the workshop is a completely subjective experience; often the true value of a workshop becomes apparent only after much time has passed. Sometimes, even if only a few lessons are gleaned from a particular class, they prove to be the most valuable in the long run. I remember David Rivard informing a workshop that he was not there "to play the Poetry Doctor"; instead he wanted to teach us to develop and use our own analytical skills to diagnose and treat our work- which for me has become the central tenant of teaching the writing of poetry.

There are poets who write to please the dominant personalities of a particular workshop- there are poets who resubmit the same poem to different workshops in the hopes of finding validation, that one critic who says "I love your stuff, for me it's perfect, etc.". - some poets even play with workshops, submitting fragments their friends have written, nonsense verse, etc. None of these behaviors, as cloying as they may seem to an older hand, invalidates the workshop, for, provided that at least some variance in assessment exists, the poet is offered the opportunity to participate the critical evaluation of her own work, as I've outlined above. For example- someone loves your poem, someone else dislikes the form, another likes the form, yet despairs of the content. Consensus is not important- what is important, for the growth of the poet as a critical being, is that the issue of form is discussed, pro and cons are presented, and, like it or not, the poet, usually bound by the "gag rule" of not interfering with the discussion of the poem on hand, will begin to evaluate the issues, the variances - the poet will accept and reject premises and statements.

The weakest form of this evaluation will be narcissistic. The poet rejects criticism that seems unfavorable while accepting criticism that praises the work; even so, the poet will begin to view discrete structures within the poem as praiseworthy (use of sound, form, dramatic utterance, etc.) The strongest form of evaluation for a workshop participant is a balanced one that considers seriously the pros and cons of each criticism presented. It does not matter that any particular poem is changed as a result of the workshop, that the class "plays Poetry Doctor" and "cures" the poem of whatever, in the collective opinion, ails it. Instead the value of such review is that the poet deepens her awareness of her own writing process- that future poems will benefit (either in composition or revision) from the enhanced sensibility of the poet.

Criticism of other's poems is also, in most workshops, mandatory. Again, there are strong and weak critics in every workshop. Strong critics, those that do their best to fairly and unflinchingly evaluate poems will, inevitably, hone critical skills useful (consciously or unconsciously) to their own endeavors. Weak critics, who unfairly point out what poems do not do (every poem does not do something; extended poems are not compressed, nor are compressed poems extended) are at least, perversely, analyzing the poems successfully, if not offering useful strategies for revision. The worst critics are those who say nothing, or unreservedly praise or damn poems, for here there is no attention to the particular elements within a poem, no demonstration of how to manipulate particular parts of poems to affect the whole. At the very least, we might hope that some of their fellow students or professor's remarks are retained for future use, by these writers- however, in closing I must note that none of this is possible without the contribution of reader's responses, which the workshop certainly guarantees.

Ultimately of course, it is the future that concerns both professors and students, and the best structured (and it seems to me, also the worst structured) programs do allow the community of reaction that is necessary to begin constructing the patterns of reflection and study that give poets a better chance to write well. Unfortunately, art in general and poetry in particular are not democratic; some individuals (you can argue talent or training or the gods shape them so) are simply better painters or writers or singers than others. It may well be that you cannot train someone to have the initial spark (perhaps it is best so) and that the good poems are those that speak deeply out of the poet's personal sensibility- but it is quite foolish to suggest that individuals who feel this spark, who feel as though they must write, who are happiest in the moment of creation and work that suspends time (transcends personal time?), and who endeavor always to improve themselves as persons as they improve their art, would not benefit from a program that teaches them to remove their assumed blinders and view their creations critically or, if you prefer, sympathetically from the eyes of their audience.

-RJ McCaffery

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a new experience at a poetry reading

2008-09-15T14:08:00.000-07:00

On Sunday I traveled with a few of my fellow MFA candidates to a poetry reading in a tiny town called Stayton. It's a small burg perhaps thirty miles to the northeast of Oregon State University. This reading was of particular importance, as Karen Holmberg, the director of our tiny program at OSU, was one of the featured readers. She read from an older book entitled The Perseids, but more from a manuscript of work yet to be published.

I felt intrigued to finally have the opportunity to hear Karen read. I has some preliminary experience with her work in the months leading up to my arrival in Corvallis, but that experience was only second hand--mostly from internet posting, periodical reviews, etc. Being so far away, her book was not readily available in stores or libraries. I suppose that is one of the many downfalls of regional notoriety. There are so many fantastic authors whose work may never be fully enjoyed on a wide scale due to the constraints of both cultural and social boundaries. This is not at all to say Karen's work, or any other regional author's work for that matter, is not worthy of such success, as it certainly is. I suppose I take issue most with the idea that some works, no matter how good, may never be fully enjoyed in the region of the country where I come from. It takes a real miracle to transcend the distance.

...Or perhaps it may only take one individual, being aware of the issue and taking note.

Check out these links for the featured readers:

Donald Wolff--http://www.eou.edu/~dwolff/SoonEnoughPressRelease.html
(I'm not too familiar with his work, but he has a very definite and interesting style. If you are a fan of a sort of Gothic Modernism, he is fabulous)

and of course, Karen Holmberg-- http://oregonstate.edu/dept/humanities/Newsletter/Fall%202007/Holmberg.htm
(This link will lead you to a informative release on her novella in verse, from which she read extensively at the reading.)

An Initial Introduction

2008-09-12T22:39:00.000-07:00

My name is John, and this blog will serve as a tiny window into my world, wherein I plan to publish only the most important details that make up my everyday experiences. Notably, however, the true intention of this blog is to chronicle the coming years of my life in sort of a quasi-autobiographical manner. Only the important things will matter, and you (my audience) will hear about them.

I am 22 years old (currently), and recently graduated from the University of West Florida in Pensacola with a Bachelor's Degree in English. I currently live in Corvallis, Oregon--a small town approximately one hour south of Portland with my beautiful fiance and two cats. My reason for being so far from home is quite the topic for discussion, and therefore this blog will be dedicated to it. I enrolled at Oregon State University as a graduate student, pursuing an MFA in creative writing, poetry. Part of this blog will display some of the experiences I have while chasing this degree, along with news updates concerning events, readings, festivals, etc. There is a reason for this...

During the application process (the many days I spent waiting for acceptance/response letters from the schools to which I applied), I relied heavily on the blogs of other applicants to give myself a place in the world. It was helpful knowing that other people were feeling the same pressures and anxieties as I. In a way, albeit sadistic, it was satisfying and relieving to know that others were suffering along with me. Those blogs served as educational tools and coping mechanisms.

Concurrently, many soon-to-be graduates from institutions around the nation will be deciding upon programs that interest them and applying to those programs. It is my hope that this blog can assist in the learning process, if not as an institution-specific account of my own personal experience as an MFA candidate, but as a general experiential account of the entire process from start to finish.

Of course, this blog will also contain many of my personal experiences that may or may not relate directly to my educational and professional pursuit, but I like to look at the big picture...and really, they ARE one and the same.

Comments are welcome. I encourage questions, although I should note that by no means do I have all of the answers. I can, however, assist in many of the provisional or technical queries pertaining to the application process, programs, what to look for, etc. I want this blog to serve as both an educational tool and a means of entertainment.

I encourage you to check back frequently. Good luck to all of the 2008 MFA applicants.