So apparently I'm going to grad school

[Infra-Man]

Sorry to toot my own horn, but I just contacted someone from The New School's writing program after getting an email about that grad school app.

They said they want me in The New School's MFA program and that my writing portfolio was rockin' like Dokken.

One for six so far, baby!

[Calvin Government]

Congrats and good luck!

[heystacy]

Sorry to toot my own horn, but I just contacted someone from The New School's writing program after getting an email about that grad school app.

They said they want me in The New School's MFA program and that my writing portfolio was rockin' like Dokken.

One for six so far, baby!

Beyond impressive. Simply amazing! I knew you were going to succeed! :cool:

[Infra-Man]

Thanks, Calvin and HeyStacy.

Now my only worry is not being well read enough. I'm worried about getting into whatever program and being "That guy who hasn't read x-thing."

[heystacy]

Thanks, Calvin and HeyStacy.

Now my only worry is not being well read enough. I'm worried about getting into whatever program and being "That guy who hasn't read x-thing."

Dude. Smile and let people know you will work it out. :wink: :cool:

You're welcome. :smile:

[beetlebum]

http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/ee134/Babylon903/Congratulations.gif

Don't be sorry, this is awesome!

I'm so happy and proud of you.

Technically, I am at the age where I should be in grad school now, but I chose to wait a couple years after high school ended before I decided to start attending college.

I'm glad that you've chosen what may be the right path for you, and who knows, maybe grad school will lead to a full time job that can actually pay you. ;) :tongue:

[hugs]

[Infra-Man]

Thanks, Beeb.

To be fair, if things go well and I get to write for a living, I think they pay writers of obscure literary fiction in Zimbabwe dollars.

[The Beast Of Yucca Flats]

Go, Infra!

[Tien Long]

Ha, as one grad student who's going to grad school in NYC to another, I wish you congratulations for getting into the MFA program, Infra-Man. New School is in the NYU area right? Though gentrified, the area is still very hip, artistic, and a little crazy. Man, I miss watching the breakers and the skaters sharing space with the political nuts at Union Square and Sunday night jazz sessions in Washington Square Park. If you want to get your comic fix, there are two great stores in the area, Forbidden Planet on 13th St. and Broadway (a block away from the Strand Bookstore) and St. Mark's Comics on St. Mark's Place. Highly recommend both of them. Be warned however. Whenever you're walking the street, prepared to be assaulted by a bunch of Children's International/Green Peace volunteers asking for a moment of your time. Just look down and go on your way.

As for some graduate school advice, well, there will be times when you questions yourself and ask why are you doing this. There will be times when you will think that you made the wrong decision. I tell you this because I'm in a particularly bad funk myself :frown: . HOWEVER, know that what you're doing has a purpose and has meaning and that no matter how depressing things get, they'll get better.

Good luck man. If you ever want to get some Chipotle there, hey give me a call :biggrin: .

[Sally Sensational]

Ah, grad school! You only thought college was the best years of your life - for feeling like your brain's on fire and you've never been so empowered and creative (most of the time), nothing beats grad school.

God, I miss it.

[FalconX2000]

Sorry to toot my own horn, but I just contacted someone from The New School's writing program after getting an email about that grad school app.

They said they want me in The New School's MFA program and that my writing portfolio was rockin' like Dokken.

One for six so far, baby!

Don't bother lying. You're not sorry in the least.:biggrin:

[a. non]

http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/7696/congratscao2fdhn.gif

[Dark Galaxy]

<------------So Jealous!

I would love to go to grad school.

Congratulations!

[willtupper]

Famous students of the New School (this is off the top of my head, sorry if any are mistaken):

Jack Kerouac
Ani Difranco
Mike Doughty (solo musician / former frontman of the band Soul Coughing)
Infra-Man :)

There was a poetry teacher there, years ago, this guy called Sekou Sundiata who Ani and Mike Doughty both credit for teaching them pretty much everything they know about lyric and verse. I got to interview him, back in 2000 or 2001, before his band opened for Ani's, here in Detroit. It was among the 3 most amazing hours of my life.

He passed a couple years ago, but the memory is often with me. You're heading to a literary hall of heroes, Infra-Man. And I wish you well :).

[Infra-Man]

Don't bother lying. You're not sorry in the least.:biggrin:

You're right, I'm not :biggrin:

So as a second toot, the person I spoke to jotted some notes down about what the committee said about my work. The standout comment was "Finally, a writer who made something up."

Apparently a majority of applicants wrote very close, very autobiographical stuff, so the selection team appreciated the wacky conceits of the pieces I turned in.

Ha, as one grad student who's going to grad school in NYC to another, I wish you congratulations for getting into the MFA program, Infra-Man. New School is in the NYU area right? Though gentrified, the area is still very hip, artistic, and a little crazy. Man, I miss watching the breakers and the skaters sharing space with the political nuts at Union Square and Sunday night jazz sessions in Washington Square Park. If you want to get your comic fix, there are two great stores in the area, Forbidden Planet on 13th St. and Broadway (a block away from the Strand Bookstore) and St. Mark's Comics on St. Mark's Place. Highly recommend both of them. Be warned however. Whenever you're walking the street, prepared to be assaulted by a bunch of Children's International/Green Peace volunteers asking for a moment of your time. Just look down and go on your way.

As for some graduate school advice, well, there will be times when you questions yourself and ask why are you doing this. There will be times when you will think that you made the wrong decision. I tell you this because I'm in a particularly bad funk myself :frown: . HOWEVER, know that what you're doing has a purpose and has meaning and that no matter how depressing things get, they'll get better.

Good luck man. If you ever want to get some Chipotle there, hey give me a call :biggrin: .

Yeah, New School is around The Village, which works great for me if I stay in this apartment (take the L straight in, hoof it the rest of the way). I like Forbidden Planet and St. Mark's Comics, but I usually do my shopping at Midtown for the discount or Jim Hanley's for the selection. On the note of things St. Mar's related, we should storm the hidden room at Crif Dogs.

Famous students of the New School (this is off the top of my head, sorry if any are mistaken):

Jack Kerouac
Ani Difranco
Mike Doughty (solo musician / former frontman of the band Soul Coughing)
Infra-Man :)

There was a poetry teacher there, years ago, this guy called Sekou Sundiata who Ani and Mike Doughty both credit for teaching them pretty much everything they know about lyric and verse. I got to interview him, back in 2000 or 2001, before his band opened for Ani's, here in Detroit. It was among the 3 most amazing hours of my life.

He passed a couple years ago, but the memory is often with me. You're heading to a literary hall of heroes, Infra-Man. And I wish you well :).

New School was one of my top choices, particularly since people like Jonathan Ames, David Gates, and Philip Lopate all teach there; it's got a nice class size (more people, sure, but that means more interaction and more notes); and it's cheaper than Columbia.

Gotta see about Austin, though. It's a long shot getting in there (probably more than 1,000 applicants this year and they only accept 10-12), but it's a sweet ride if it happens--big fellowship, tuition waived, money in the summer.

[4PointOh]

You're right, I'm not :biggrin:

So as a second toot, the person I spoke to jotted some notes down about what the committee said about my work. The standout comment was "Finally, a writer who made something up."

Apparently a majority of applicants wrote very close, very autobiographical stuff, so the selection team appreciated the wacky conceits of the pieces I turned in.



Yeah, New School is around The Village, which works great for me if I stay in this apartment (take the L straight in, hoof it the rest of the way). I like Forbidden Planet and St. Mark's Comics, but I usually do my shopping at Midtown for the discount or Jim Hanley's for the selection. On the note of things St. Mar's related, we should storm the hidden room at Crif Dogs.



New School was one of my top choices, particularly since people like Jonathan Ames, David Gates, and Philip Lopate all teach there; it's got a nice class size (more people, sure, but that means more interaction and more notes); and it's cheaper than Columbia.

Gotta see about Austin, though. It's a long shot getting in there (probably more than 1,000 applicants this year and they only accept 10-12), but it's a sweet ride if it happens--big fellowship, tuition waived, money in the summer.

Congratulations!

I graduated from Brooklyn College's MFA program when Michael Cunningham was the program head. Amy Hempel runs the program now and James Franco (from Spider-Man) is currently enrolled there.

[Infra-Man]

Congratulations!

I graduated from Brooklyn College's MFA program when Michael Cunningham was the program head. Amy Hempel runs the program now and James Franco (from Spider-Man) is currently enrolled there.

Thanks.

I applied to Brooklyn College's program, too, mostly because of the Cunningham and Hempel connections. Should find out about it in the next two or three weeks. I think The Atlantic recently rated Brooklyn College's MFA program as one of the ones to watch for/on the rise.

What was your experience like at Brooklyn College?

[4PointOh]

Thanks.

I applied to Brooklyn College's program, too, mostly because of the Cunningham and Hempel connections. Should find out about it in the next two or three weeks. I think The Atlantic recently rated Brooklyn College's MFA program as one of the ones to watch for/on the rise.

What was your experience like at Brooklyn College?

Michael Cunningham was instrumental in helping me take my writing to the next level. He was incredibly supportive of and excited about my writing.

I also met some great friends in the program.

But there were...unforeseen challenges in being one of only two African-American men in the program.

Other than that, I think I mostly got what I needed from the program.

[Infra-Man]

The program at Brooklyn College is pretty intimate, yeah? Small class size, lots of one-on-one interaction, yeah? And being the only African American in the program, what was that like?

[Bradley]

Congratulations on the acceptance-- if you do wind up going there, try to take a class with Lopate, even though he doesn't really "make stuff up." The guy's probably the smartest and most talented scholar/ practitioner of creative nonfiction alive today.

You mentioned Austin... is that the Michener center? My deskmate from my PhD days got his MFA there, and you're right-- it's a sweet deal. Good luck with that.

[4PointOh]

The program at Brooklyn College is pretty intimate, yeah? Small class size, lots of one-on-one interaction, yeah? And being the only African American in the program, what was that like?

The year I was accepted to the program (2006), they only took 13 students out of 400 applicants. Lots of one-on-one attention. Also, they have a novel workshop dedicated to students who are working on their novels (as opposed to students submitting short stories).

If you should choose Brooklyn, please take a course with Ernesto Mestre-Reed. You won't regret it.

I had the distinction of being the first Brooklyn College undergrad ever accepted in the Brooklyn College MFA program (believe it or not), which was pretty cool. But it was difficult being one of the few African-American students in the workshops because the criticisms I received sometimes sounded like this:

"Why do you have to write about 'black issues'? Why can't you just write?"

"You're in danger of being labeled a 'black writer.'"

"I can't see how this [urban stories written from the perspective of an African-American) is viable subject matter for fiction."

These same students, however, had no such inquiries/comments when my homegirl of Jewish descent wrote stories steeped in Jewish culture. And of course, no one batted an eye at stories written about "American" (read: white) culture that omitted characters of color.

So, the program was really unhelpful in that sense. Me and some of the other students of color formed our own little sub-group so that we could get some useful feedback from one another that judged the writing on its merits and not on its cultural point of view.

And of course, Michael Cunningham was very, very interested in what I was writing, so he always provided fantastic critical feedback.

[Pink Bat Maxine]

"Why do you have to write about 'black issues'? Why can't you just write?"

"You're in danger of being labeled a 'black writer.'"

Yeah, any work I do is doomed to ghettoization, I'm afraid. Lucky I'm 'but an amateur.'

[4PointOh]

Yeah, any work I do is doomed to ghettoization, I'm afraid. Lucky I'm 'but an amateur.'

See, but with me, I very quickly determined that I was no longer interesting in writing for "The Majority Gaze," and I immediately sought people who could critique my work on its merits (or lack thereof) rather than on its cultural perspective. I wasn't the least bit interested in the view that I was writing from "a ghetto"--although, that accusation was QUITE enlightening.

[Pink Bat Maxine]

See, but with me, I very quickly determined that I was no longer interesting in writing for "The Majority Gaze," and I immediately sought people who could critique my work on its merits (or lack thereof) rather than on its cultural perspective. I wasn't the least bit interested in the view that I was writing from "a ghetto"--although, that accusation was QUITE enlightening.

Ohhhh, I hear you.

Any point of view too outside the mainstream's gonna be critiqued as being from the ghetto. All one can do is produce his or her best work, and trust that thier audience will find them.

At least, that's what I do.

[Charles RB]

They said they want me in The New School's MFA program and that my writing portfolio was rockin' like Dokken.

You da man, man! :cool:

[Infra-Man]

Just got my rejection letter from Columbia today, which works out since there is no way I'd be able to afford Columbia (though apparently they have great connections into publishing).

Still one for six, at least.