Delurk, you slackers!
Okay, it's National Delurking Week, which is my latest excuse for begging people to leave comments. If you lurk here, drop a comment. I'm curious how many people are actually reading me (some days, honestly, I don't blog because I sense I am talking to myself).
Update: A day later, and only ONE delurker? Come on...
posted by TerminalMFA @ 7:29 AM
10 comments
10 Comments:
First to comment? My, the lurkers are sleepy, aren't they?
I'm here because I've also got the Terminal Degree (in creative writing, not film), but jumped ship from the academic life because of the low pay. I'm back at the university, in a supporting role, and hope to once again teach someday.
Yay, a reader I didn't even know I had. I'm checking out your site, Glen, and enjoying the read. Thanks for delurking.
I've often considered the mfa in creative writing, because i love film writing but not exclusively. and there are so few film/screenwriting-related mfa jobs (though i feel that i've found a really good one, and i'm going to hang on for dear life).
:) Happy Delurking week :)
I comment all the time, but I'll throw in a comment here, too.
Hi! I don't think I've commented for a while, but I am still reading. Sorry not to delurk before this!
New Kid -- now I feel bad because I haven't delurked over at your site! Totally lazy of me, but I am a regular reader over there...
Hi to the "other" terminal out there! :)
I should delurk more often, if that's what it takes to get more readers (oh, what a sad, sad writer I am)!
The issue with creative writing MFAs is that there are so many programs now that there's lots of graduates with the degree, but creative writing programs still won't hire you until you've got a good record of publishing. I can understand that, but it's a bit different in other disciplines (i.e., an economics assistant professor can be hired on the basis of the terminal degree alone, and is then expected to publish to achieve tenure).
I have to remind myself that I knew this going into the MFA program. A mentor told me that there's three ways to get a creative writing professor position, in order of difficult to easier: (1) have a terminal degree with some publishing credentials, (2) have a bachelor's or master's with better publishing credentials, (3) have no degree but excellent publishing credentials. Because when it comes down to attracting new students to a program, a recognizable name is much more important than if you've got the training to actually be able to teach. (Which is the other hoary cliche in creative writing: that it can't actually be taught. In a world of the blind leading the blind, no one wants to hire an unknown blind man.)
Woah. Logorrhea in your comments. Must have touched my own pushbutton on the issue.
Glen,
I've heard the 'publication' issue for MFAs as well, and I assume you're right that economics drive the issue. It is interesting that, while every school would love to hire 'stars', it's not like they're expecting asst profs in other areas to have already published significantly.
My thinking is that it has to do with the lak of esteem PhDs have for MFAs and creative writers in general (this is not just speculation; friends and relatives have confirmed this for me).
So -- to really impress them enough to hire a creative writer, you have to have pubs, and good ones.
it was true for me, really. i didn't get the good job i have now until i had had an indie feature made from one of my scripts. it changed me profile considerably (i think -- i don't know this for sure, of course, but i was on the job market both before and after, and the jobs didn't come until after).
logorrhea on my comments is something i would like more often, so '--orrhea' away...
This is pretty bad - I read your post the day you posted it, meant to delurk, forgot, etc etc etc.
But now I am back and delurking! Hi!
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