I belong to an Internet group of writers, some of whom have applied themselves to higher education in the form of an MFA in creative writing, and some, like me, are learning by the seat of their pants. I have always wondered if I was simply floundering in the dark and it would behoove me to go back to school, or whether I could succeed without it.

One of my writing buddies from the list has compared himself to Grandma Moses in his approach to writing. He is publsihed many times over as an essayist and has a memoir due out in the fall of this year. Although I admre him, I still wavered in my thinking.

I am currently taking an online class in creative nonfiction from UCLA’s outreach program, and someone in the class asked our instructor about MFA programs. Here is what Gordon Grice, MFA said:

“The main benefit of an MFA program is that it gives a writer a few years in which he’s allowed to write as his main occupation. You can learn a lot there, but the learning mostly happens because you’re reading a lot of books and forcing yourself to write. Those same techniques will work outside the academy… writing is writing, and a lot of the distinctions academics draw are artificial.

Don’t get me wrong. Being with other writers in a concerted endeavor can be a great and life-changing experience. It may even be a good learning experience. But its success depends more on the teacher, the other students, and the attitude of the writer than it does on the specifics of the plan.”

So, I will continue to learn by the seat of my pants, write and submit, submit, submit.

Signed, Ms Moses.

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Posted in internet writing workshop, MFA, writing practice.