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Howdy, Campers!

We have a brand new Book Giveaway for your very own autographed copy of a picture book biography (well, a real-life slice of life) of Golda Meir--just published!  Details at the bottom of this post.

Today, we welcome author, teacher, blogger, historian, poet and conference organizer Barbara Krasner into our cozy cabin for a cuppa java.

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Last week, Mary Ann, Carmela, and April responded to an Ask the TeachingAuthors question submitted by Joanna Cooke about the pros and cons of getting an MFA.

Here's my story...

The summer after I graduated from college, I moved to Los Angeles to be an unpaid intern on my favorite TV show, Days of Our Lives.  That summer, I remember watching the Democratic National Convention and the Olympics, eating scads of S'Mores with my awesome roommate, Gretchen, meeting tons of soap stars (both nice and not-so-nice), and attending my first national SCBWI conference in Marina del Rey.  On the last day of my internship, when I'd already shipped my belongings home and signed up for a medical transcription course at the local community college, I was hired to be a lowly writers' assistant.

For four years, I made coffee, fetched lunches, made thousands (millions?) of copies, talked to brain surgeons, answered questions from fans and actors and writers alike.  I also negotiated a four-day, ten hour/day work week so that I'd have a full day each week to actually write.  I was hired to ghost write a Nancy Drew mystery and had the opportunity to work with the fabulous Olga Litowinsky.  I sold a children's biography.  And I slowly began to realize that I was never going to get a shot at writing for the show.

Ultimately, I decided that I'd given my soap writing dream a good go.  I didn't have to live in Los Angeles to write children's books.  It was time to go home.

In Maryland, I took a variety of part-time jobs.  I wrote some articles and two more Nancy Drew novels.  But the hard truth was, I was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of a top-tier college; yet I was in my late twenties, living with my parents, and working as a secretary (a job for which I was overqualified on paper but utterly underqualified in practice).  While I was a published writer, I did not feel comfortable calling myself "a writer" -- or much else, for that matter. 

Then one day I saw an ad in the monthly SCBWI bulletin for the low-residency MFA program at Vermont College.  The program was in its infancy then.  I'd never heard of it.  But when I saw the list of faculty, I knew that I must apply.  I was desperate for a jump start, direction, affirmation, anything!

Now, I fully realize what children's book writers typically earn in terms of salary.  I was quite clear that it was unlikely that I'd ever recoup the money spent on my graduate education. I told myself it would be a spiritual investment.

I could not have imagined how truly magical my experience would be.  During my second residency, I received an email (there was no cell phone reception, and only one pay phone on the whole floor) stating that Days desperately needed a writers' assistant, and would I come back ASAP?  I said only if I'd have a shot at writing, and they said fine.  I found an apartment, flew home from Vermont, packed my things, and a week later I was back at work in L.A.

The day that Marion Dane Bauer called to tell me that my novel had won the Houghton Mifflin Award was the same day that I learned I would get a scriptwriting contract on Days.

The year that Houghton Mifflin accepted my novel for publication was the year my now-husband and I started dating, and the year it was published, we got engaged.

To say that Vermont College changed my life would be like saying having kids changed my life.  I truly was a different person when I graduated.

Not to say that it was all perfect and wonderful.  Juggling the program with a full-time job was often exhausting.  I had one difficult semester where I did not really "click" with my advisor.  I had to take a semester off because my job did not allow four weeks of vacation in the same year.  I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer during my last semester -- had surgery, radiation, moved back to Maryland, and yes, still graduated! 

Some unexpected benefits: When my daughter comes home from school gushing over a book by Phyllis Root or Carolyn Crimi or Susan Fletcher, I get to say, 'I know her!'  And nearly a decade later, I am still in touch almost daily with my classmates. 

I also remember the MFA being touted as a "terminal degree" that would allow one to teach at the college level.  Being a total introvert, I didn't think I would ever pursue this course, but ta-da, here I am.  And now, yes, I can definitely say I've earned back my monetary investment.

Nowadays, there are other MFA programs as well as options for great instruction -- McDaniel College's online certificate program (highly recommended), UCLA Extension, and Mediabistro.com courses, for example.  But to this day, I crave the monthly deadline pressure and the immediate feedback of a large, knowledgeable, supportive writing community.

For anyone looking for a fresh start, a jump start, or a new beginning, the MFA could be for you.

L'Shana Tova -- Happy New Year! -- Jeanne Marie

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Howdy, Campers!

Happy Poetry Friday!  Today's poem is about making a decision and so is your poetry writing prompt, below.

So we've been discussing going for an MFA.  Mary Ann posted that it was the best two years of her life. Carmela posted that one of the biggest pros was that it definitely made her a better writer and forced her to make writing a priority.

So...should I go for an MFA or shouldn't I?

It's complicated.

When I was seriously looking into applying to one of the low-residency MFA programs, our only child was a sophomore in college.

I was worried, mostly because I'm a sloooow reader and didn't know if I could keep up with the evil and overwhelming reading assignments I'd heard about.  And worried because I finally had the quiet time I'd craved for years.   Was I crazy?  Was I rushing to fill up the space before I'd even wallowed in it for a bit? 

Was I was just raising my hand, signing up, because I had no other plan?  Did I need to sit in the hallway surrounded by closed doors a little longer and wait to see which one opened on its own?

I decided to go for it.  (Well, 89% of me did.)  Now it was just a matter of deciding where I would apply.  I asked lots of MFA grads.  I got lots of advice.

Meanwhile, it was a gentle, blossoming time in our lives.  My son, who had been nearly absent from the family, hanging out with a girlfriend since he was 14,  was suddenly single and actually calling and texting us. 

We were making up for lost time.  It was delicious.  It was thirst-quenching.  My mother roots were taking in all the rain they could soak up for as long as it lasted.

Even when my husband could not come with me because of work demands, I would use our frequent flyer miles to fly up to Berkeley now and then, if only to sit in on one of my son's cognitive science classes, share a pizza with him and his friends at the Cheeseboard Collective, and fly home.

I knew that if I added an MFA program, this extra layer, to my life, it would be, well, an extra layer.  How would I balance my aging mother who lives alone, my aging uncle in a senior residence who needs my attention more and more, my writing career, my political activism, and, oh yes, family and marriage?

My stomach hurt thinking about it.

Here's what turned me around.  My friend Julie.  She knows me.  This is what she said:

Oh, April.  Don't do it now.  Not now when you finally have such a warm connection with your boy.  You'll have time later, Dear.  Do it when he's in medical school, when he's in residency, when he's married.  Do it then.  Enjoy him now.

Hmmm.  MFA.  Family.   MFA.  Family.

For some, it's not this simple.  It's not either-or.  But for me, it suddenly it was that simple.

Two years later, I have my golden boy, my best friend husband, my teaching gig, several new manuscripts and no regrets.

Okay, look—it's not all tied up in a bow.  I've had lots of rejections. I have self-doubt.  but I have the morning glories in my garden and space to breathe.

Writing Workout: Decisions, Decisions.

There are thirty inspiring ideas about how to make a decision on this blog post.  Choose one as a jumping off point for your poem.

(Of course, you'll have to decide which of the thirty to use, won't you?)

I chose this one:
Imagine having made the decision. If you get a feeling of relief, that’s the way to go, even if it’s coupled with sadness. -Emma Gilding

MAKING A DECISION
MAKING THE BED
by April Halprin Wayland

Pull off the sheets
slip pillows out
pile in machine
then shut the door
hear it click shut
pour in the soap
hit button hard
watch the sheets whirl

sheets swirl in soap
just like my thoughts
round they go round

now they are warm
now they are dry
now they are clean

spread them out wide
pull them on tight
now I lie down
how do I feel?
Fresh. Clean. Relieved.
poem © 2012 April Halprin Wayland. All rights reserved

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A big THANK YOU to all the readers who entered our latest giveaway contest--see the end of this post to find out who our winner is. And stay tuned for more fun giveaways in the coming weeks.

As Mary Ann posted on Monday, this week we're answering an Ask the TeachingAuthors question submitted by Joanna Cooke. Before I share my comments on the topic, I want to remind readers that if you have a question you'd like us to address, either about writing for children/young adults or about the teaching of writing, you can use the link in our sidebar to submit your own Ask the TeachingAuthors question. Please keep in mind, though, that our posting schedule is usually set several months in advance, so we may not be able to address your question right away.

Now, back to our current question: Joanna asked us to share some of the pros/cons of getting an MFA. Mary Ann has already discussed one of the biggest advantages: your growth as a writer. I'd been freelance writing for years before entering the Vermont College MFA program. Like Mary Ann, I'd also attended conferences and taken workshops related specifically to both fiction writing and writing for children and teens. (Unlike Mary Ann, I was already active in the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, and had served as publicity chairperson for the Illinois chapter for a number of years. That's how I met Esther Hershenhorn!) Yet I didn't understand just how much I had to learn until I started at Vermont College. I'd enrolled with the intention of polishing a young adult novel I'd already written. After getting my first adviser's feedback on the manuscript, I realized that I wasn't skilled enough as a writer to tackle the major revisions the novel needed. I chose to work on several other projects instead, and eventually wrote a draft of the middle-grade novel that was later published by Candlewick Press, Rosa, Sola. 

So, for me, the number one "pro" of going through the MFA program was learning to be a better writer. When I look back on those two years, I'm still amazed at how much my fiction writing improved in that time, and also at how I learned to read so much more critically. However, another important advantage for me was a HUGE increase in my writing productivity. I wrote more in those two years than in any similar period before or since. In addition to starting and finishing a draft of my novel, I wrote several polished short stories and about five picture book manuscripts--all on top of the program-required critical essays and thesis writing, and teaching part-time. The monthly deadlines, and knowing my adviser was waiting to read and critique what I'd produced, really helped me stay on task.

One of the biggest "cons" of going to graduate school, at least for me, was the cost. It is a significant investment, and not an easy one for me to make. Interestingly, that turned out to also be a "pro" for me--I was determined to get the most for my money! As a result, the expense made it easier for me to say "no" to distractions and other demands on my time, thus raising the priority of fiction writing in my life. That, too, contributed to my productivity.

I could say plenty more about considerations when deciding on pursuing an MFA, but I'll leave that for April and Jeanne Marie who will also be blogging on the topic. Meanwhile, I want to remind readers that we have links to information about MFA programs in our sidebar, under the heading "Graduate Programs in Writing for Children and Young Adults." As Mary Ann mentioned, when we started at Vermont College, it was the only school that offered a graduate program devoted to writing for children and young adults. That's no longer the case. If you know of any programs we missed in the sidebar, please let us know and I'll add links to them as well.

And now, time to announce the winner of an autographed copy of And the Crowd Goes Wild! A Global Gathering of Sports Poems, edited by Heidi Roemer and Carol-Ann Hoyte. Our winner is:


Congratulations, Karen! (Please respond to the email I sent you so we can get the book in the mail right away.)

If you didn't win, I hope you'll consider buying a copy of  And the Crowd Goes Wild! A Global Gathering of Sports Poems. As I mentioned in my interview post, a portion of the proceeds from both the paperback and e-book editions will be donated to Right to Play, an international organization that uses sports and games to educate and empower children facing adversity. The book is now available for purchase directly from the publisher, FriesenPress. If you're a librarian or bookseller, you can also order the book through Ingram. For more ordering information, see the official And the Crowd Goes Wild! A Global Gathering of Sports Poems website

And stay tuned for more fun book giveaways here in the coming weeks!

Happy writing!
Carmela

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   It's Ask a Teaching Author time again.  This week's question is from Joanna Moore who wants to know our thoughts on MFA writing programs.

    I have an MFA in Writing for Children from Vermont College. Bottom line, my time in the Vermont MFA program was the best two years of my life.  At that point, I had been writing for thirty-something years, but I knew something was missing from my work. How did I know that? I knew because my rejection letters all said the same thing..."you write really well but..."  But what?  Nobody would tell me.  My MFA program did.

   I had been searching for that missing "something" a long time.  I went to every writer's conference I could find (although for some reason, the Society of Children's Book Writer's and Illustrators--SCBWI---never showed up on my radar.)  I read "how-to" books, lots of them.  I still stumbled around in the wilderness, looking for answers.  Through a series of incredible events, I found myself at Vermont College in the first MFA program dedicated exclusively to children's writing.

    Did I find my answers?  Yes.  Is an MFA like Willie Wonka's Golden Ticket?  No.  Having an MFA does not guarantee you a book contract, an agent (I still don't have one) or a Newbery medal.
What you are guaranteed is this;  if you keep an open mind and take advantage of every learning opportunity, you will be a better writer and teacher.

   I can only speak about my experience as a graduate of the Vermont College Summer Class of 2000.  I don't know if the Vermont program has changed, or anything at all about other programs. Taking that into consideration, the one-on-one intensive mentoring at VC was invaluable to me. As a low residency program, nearly all of my work was done through monthly mail packets. (At the time, e-mail was not as widespread as it is now, and most of my faculty mentors did not even have email accounts.)

     I turned in a set number of pages of "new work"-- a goal agreed on between my mentors and I during the on-campus sessions -- and a certain number of pages of revised work.  The packets were returned with copious notes and suggestions for revision.  I have worked with any number of editors over the years, and while my editors are all geniuses (really!), none of them has given me the attention and focus of my Vermont mentors.  There is a good reason for this.  As a student, I shared my mentor with no more than four or five other students.  An editor has any number of ongoing projects, even though you always hope that yours is the most important. My four Vermont mentors--all successful and renowned  children's authors--spoiled me with their extremely thorough critiques.

    MFA programs are not for everyone.  I am blessed that there was a time in my life when I had the time, money and energy necessary.  I went into the program with a specific goal; I had the idea for Yankee Girl, but not the slightest idea of how to write it.  I wanted to do justice to my idea, whether it was ever published or not. I knew almost nothing about plot, setting and characterization. Two years and four mentors later, I knew a lot more.

   I'm still learning.

   Don't forget that the deadline for entering the giveaway for the poetry anthology is 11 pm CST, Tuesday (as in tomorrow!)

    Posted by Mary Ann Rodman

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In her recent post, "Read Your Brains Out" (part of our Children's Book Week series), Mary Ann Rodman shared some references for recommended reading. As a follow-up, we've added links from this blog to online recommended reading lists--see the sidebar section labeled "Children's/YA Reading Lists." Now you have no excuse for not "reading your brains out." (And if you have suggestions for other

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