Master Class Signups

Hello All,

It has just occurred to me that the residency signup process will result in the same 15 students being the active students in the two workshops. To remedy this, the first 30 to sign up will have a slot in one of the two. Please email me and let me know which of the two you would prefer to participate in actively, and I'll take care of the rest.

August Residency Schedule Now Available

The August residency schedule is now available on the MFA web page. Please peruse it and note that we are handling the student/faculty meetings differently this time. Rather than provide you with appointments for those meetings, we are going to leave it to you to communicate with your mentors in advance of the residency and find out whether they are available to meet at the residency. If so, you will be able to schedule your own meeting times with your mentors during one of the meal times or during one of several free time periods. Please do not schedule meetings with mentors during other scheduled events!

Tomorrow I will be sending out final confirmations to students and mentors; those messages will begin your process of communication with mentors regarding the residency.

NEW STUDENTS: Meeting with your mentors at the residency is HIGHLY recommended. It's a great way to establish a relationship and to begin the conversation about your upcoming semester in a more personal way than merely communicating online or by phone. Not all of your mentors will be available at the residency, but you should try to meet with those who are available.

Time to Sign up for Residency Workshops!

Please visit this link and make your selections no later than 5:00 pm on Wednesday, July 13 for the residency workshops:

http://www.wcsu.edu/writing/mfa/workshops.asp

Each workshop is capped, so make your selections early to ensure that you get the workshops you want. The two master classes (Lopate and Moody) have caps of 15 active participants; everyone else will audit those workshops.

If you do not register by Wednesday the 13th, you will be assigned to open seats in the workshops by the coordinator.

Agent/Editor Request Deadline

Given the high level of response to the agent/editor availability, I will be closing down requests for meetings on Wednesday, June 29. If you want a meeting, please get your request in ASAP!

Registration Complete

I've worked with Graduate Studies to get everyone registered, with a few exceptions. We were not able to register three of you due to outstanding balances with the university or due to incomplete communication from you regarding your courses; in the former case, contact the Cashier's Office, and in the latter case, please get in touch with me ASAP.

New students either will receive a bill in the mail or a hand-delivered bill at the residency. If you are a returning student, check your registration online. If you think you should be registered differently (or find that you are not, in fact, registered at all, please contact me ASAP).

Agents and Editors at August Residency

Agents Cristina Concepcion (Don Congdon) and Gina Panettieri (Talcot Notch) and editors Mark Doten (Soho Press) and David Hartwell (Tor Books) will join us at the August residency. Their panel will speak with you about the current state of publishing, followed by the usual individual meetings with students.

If you are interested in meeting with one of the agents or editors, please let me know as soon as possible by email to clementsb@wcsu.edu. Priority goes to 1) 2010-11 graduates, 2) Fall 2011 thesis students, 3) Spring 2012 thesis students. If there are any slots available thereafter, they may be assigned to other graduates and current students on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Please email me ASAP to indicate your interest in a meeting and whether you have a prefered agent or editor to meet, then send me a one-page proposal letter and a sample of no longer than 10 pages by noon on July 11. If I have not received your proposal by July 11, your slot will be assigned to someone else.

Please note than I cannot guarantee everyone will get their first choice of agent/editor meeting, so I suggest ranking them.

Residency Hotel Info, Part II

We've gotten emails from several folks who have seen (or been quoted) lower rates for the Maron Hotel. That rate was most likely for a standard room, not a suite. All the rooms in the WestConn block are suites or king suites. The regular price for suites/king suites is quite a bit higher. You are certainly free to book a less expensive room if you'd like.

So.....if you'd like a suite for a discounted price, ask for one of the WestConn rooms.......if not, just ask for (or search on) a standard room. Don't forget, you always have the option to split a suite with a fellow student, which would bring your total stay down from $89 per night to $44.50 per night.

Residency Start and End Times

The residency officially begins with New Student Orientation at 4:00 on July 30. That evening at 7:30 there will be a coffee/dessert for everyone (rather than the usual opening BBQ). I hope to see all new students at 4:00 and everyone at 7:30. My hope is that some of the local mentors and some recent graduates will come out for the coffee as well.

The residency officially ends at 9 pm on August 5. That evening's reading will be Visiting Writer Rick Moody (author of The Ice Storm and Garden State, among other fine titles). August 6 is a travel day only, so if you are able to find a flight that you can make after 9 pm on the 5th, feel free.

I hope to finalize and post the schedule by Friday. Workshop signups should begin by the end of next week.

Remember to "Like" WCSU MFA!

I'm not sure if everyone knows but there is a Facebook page called WCSU MFA in Creative & Professional Writing.

I find that since I'm on Facebook managing my personal and professional pages multiple times during the day, I tend to post any links or information about writing, publishing opportunities, etc. on my book's FB page, Press Pause Moments, and/or on the WCSU MFA page. It's fast, easy, and convenient.

The combination of the blog and FB page means lots of good information can be shared that's valuable and timely. If you haven't yet done so, you may want to "Like" the MFA page on Facebook. You are also more than welcome to "Like" my Facebook page for Press Pause Moments as I post a lot of good info for writers on there.

If your genres of study include corporate communications, PR, marketing communications etc. I also invite you to "Like" my business page for Anne W Associates.

An Exclusive Club

My apologies to some long-time members of this blog. I'm afraid I had to delete some memberships, since the blog is limited to 100 authors and we need those slots for new students. I've also limited everyone to a single profile/membership. If you're one of the folks who got cut, I'll be happy to post information on your behalf should the desire arise.

bc

Must be a blog member to post

I see that the incoming students have not yet been extended invitations to join the blog. I will send out invitations to all of you today. In order to post, or comment, on the blog, you must accept the email invitation.

Residency Hotel Information

Here's the info on several hotels/motels in the area. The following are quotes for group rates, for a block of 10 to 15 rooms. Unfortunately, I will not be able to coordinate reservations for room blocks as I have in years past, so you would need to talk amongst yourselves and determine if you can get together 10 or 15 people who would like to be in the group. Then, if you email me the names, I'll be happy to call that particular hotel with your names and thereby secure the quoted rate.

You would need to get this info to me no later than July 8th.

Here are the names of the hotels and the group rates quoted to me:

Super 8 Motel
3 Lake Ave Ext
Danbury CT 06811
866 599 8674
203 743 0064
$50 per nite (excluding taxes)

Ethan Allen Hotel
21 Lake Ave Ext
Danbury CT 06811
888 449 8043
203 744 1776
$79 per nite (excluding taxes)

Maron Hotel & Suites (where we stayed in January 2011)
42 Lake Ave Ext
Danbury CT 06811
866 257 5990
203 791 2200
$89 per nite (excluding taxes)

See you soon!

Entry-Level Agent Position in CT

Associate Literary Agent


This is an entry-level position. We're seeking someone with a strong background in writing, editing and/or sales. Previous industry experience (interning at an agency or publishing house, or working as an assistant) is a plus, but not necessary.


This position requires excellent organizational skills, a creative and innovative mind and a high degree of motivation.


For more information on this position, please contact Gina Panettieri at gpanettieri@talcottnotch.net.

Longer, Longing, and Longer Longing

Hello all--I hope you're all not dying in the current heat!  I just wanted to leave a note to let you all know that my short, 3-sentence prose poem, "Longer, Longing, and Longer Longing," will be published in the upcoming issue of Borderlands: Texas Poetry Review.

Many, many thanks to Judy Jensen, the guest judge, whose feedback and attention truly changed my poem for the better.  And, of course, my sincerest gratitude to Joe Ahearn, my fabulous mentor, without whom I would not have gotten this poem published!  Also, thanks to Carolyn for a studious peer review :]


Edit: It's awful that it took so long for me to realize that I should've reproduced the poem for you all to read.  Here it is--enjoy!

Longer, Longing, and Longer Longing

           The longer I wait, the longer she stays away, the longer we drink, the longer we sleep in drowning. The longer we hold silence, the longer I kiss other woman, the longer she sits in chairs without rockers rocking. The longer the wait we wait, the further we drift into breaking seams of longing.

For Job Seekers

Check out the AWP Job List--there are currently MANY writing, editing, and publishing jobs listed there. I was going to post a couple of them here, but there are so many you should just check out the whole list. Actually, you should check the list regularly; it's a great resource.