In 2023, I took the leap and started a master’s program for creative writing, with the intention to get a Master of Fine Arts directly afterwards. As I’m coming to the close of my second semester, I wanted to take a pause and reflect on how it’s going.
Wait, MA and MFA?
Yes, you read that right, I’m looking to get both an MA and an MFA. An MFA is a terminating degree, and has a very specific focus on just the one topic. Odd as it may seem, I’m enjoying the fact that the MA program also involves English and literary theory classes. 2 of my 2 classes so far have focused on English and nor writing specifically, in the field of linguistics and literary theory specifically. And they’ve been tremendously helpful when I’m looking at my own writing.
Writing With a Day Job
The biggest importance to me was a program that I could take fully remotely on my own time, as I have a full time job that I can’t walk away from. As a single person living in a major US city, going from a full time job with benefits to part time with the hopes of publication isn’t possible. An MFA in general, especially as a “genre” writer instead of someone who works with literary fiction seemed even more impossible. But SNHU has MFAs that are online, limited resident, AND are very friendly to fantasy and non-literary fiction writers.
The biggest difficulty has been the time I would normally spend writing right now has been changed to instead be focused on school work. While that’s been painful, it’s also an exercise in planning for the future. The MA and eventual MFA are to allow me to be able to make a life involving writing, with publishing my own stuff and, in theory, teaching and working with other novelists to be/creatives. So it’s worth it.
Ugh We Hate a Plan
In life and in writing, I’m not the kind of person who plans for anything more than a few weeks ahead. If you sat in on my therapy sessions, you’d hear me blame it in part on growing up with suicidal ideation and the fact I didn’t think I’d live to see 21 let alone be in my 30s right now. But, in looking at the next two+ or so years, there are a few big things:
- Finish the MA program (In theory, January of 2025)
- Start and Finish the MFA program (with no break, completion is 2026ish)
- Get an agent/publisher
- Have a novel-length work published
Obviously the MFA is dependent on finishing the MA, and in theory the publishING is dependent on getting an agent/finding a publishER. My smaller goal right now is to share what the journey looks like as I work through the rest of things a little better. Academia as a queer genre writer can often be equally, if not even MORE, intimidating to publishing. If i can help people feel more comfortable with the journey, then I want to.
Macabress Manuscripts 