103 POETS & WRITERS^Montpelier is the least-populated
state capital in the country; as of the
2010 census, 7,855 people live there.
However, the daytime population
swells to about 21,000 because of the
number of jobs within the city limits.
The program also offers courses,
workshops, and talks on different
aspects of the publishing industry
such as starting a small press,
running your own literary magazine,
directing a literary arts nonprofit,
publishing law, freelancing, editing,
ghostwriting, and connecting with
literary agents and agencies.special section MFA PROGRAMSHow else did you make ends meet while you were in the program? The fel-
lowship helped significantly. However, I still had to make choices that were
cost-effective. I chose to live in the on-campus dorms. I had entered VCFA as
a freelance contributor for several websites, including the Michigan Quarterly
Review blog. I continued to do those paid gigs while I went to school. I did receive
some financial support from my parents, which released quite a bit of pressure
I would have otherwise had to deal with during my time at school. How would
you describe the community of the program? Ages of students ranged from
early twenties to early fifties, which made for fascinating intergenerational
friendships and discussions. Montpelier is a very small town, and we are the only
program living on campus the entire year—VCFA doesn’t have an undergraduate
program—so it all could feel very insular sometimes. Your cohort is the group
of people you hang out with all the time. Luckily for us, we liked one another,
which was not always true for the cohorts before us. We were respectful of
each other’s work in class and genuinely enjoyed one another’s company—well,
most of the time. As in any group of people, there will be cliques. There will be
the gregarious, there will be the quiet and reserved. There, undoubtedly, will
be drama, and there was. Alas, MFA programs do not exist in a vacuum. What
was the greatest benefit of attending your MFA program? There will always be
people who say that an MFA program is unnecessary. That you can read and
write as much as you can and learn from the writers you read. That may be
true. But for me, these two years at VCFA reinforced the fact that writers and
book lovers are my people. I became friends with amazing writers who will one
day have books published and contribute to the literary world. I stood in the
same room with successful and established literary citizens who I otherwise
may never have had the chance to meet. The MFA program gave me two years
to live and breathe stories, which is exactly what I had come here to do. That
being said, the MFA program only gives as much as you put into it. I fully believe
that it is our duty as artists to seek out inspiration. The classroom is only the
seed for conversations and discovery. I chose to look at this program not only
as a place to learn, but also as a place to make connections, to have time to
write and read, to go to events, to be fully immersed in the community, to suck
the marrow out of my limited time on this campus. How did your MFA pro-
gram prepare you for post-MFA life? This program especially makes it clear in
the write-up that the curriculum involves educating students on how to sus-
tain themselves as artists long after they graduate. They did this by holding
professional development courses that covered topics such as how to submit
to literary journals, how to write an artist statement/teaching philosophy for
applications, how creative writers can thrive in advertising, how to prepare for
job interviews, how writers of color can find creative support, etc. My profes-
sors have looked over my cover letters, have served as references for job ap-
plications, and have even told me about jobs to which they think I should apply.
I feel fully supported by many of the current and previous faculty members of
my program as I make my way into the world. Any advice for writers who are
applying to MFA programs? First and foremost, plan ahead. Ask at least a month
ahead of time for letters of recommendation from professional contacts who
can speak to your writing skills, your passion for the literary community, your
work ethic, and your dedication to your work. Talk to alums of the program if
you can. While no two students are exactly the same, a good review makes all
the difference, and a bad review can raise some red flags. Definitely apply for
fellowships and scholarships. Writing one more cover letter is worthwhile if it
means receiving significant financial aid.Other programs at VCFA
International MFA in Creative Writing and
Literary Translation (low-residency),
MFA in Writing for Children and Young
Adults (low-residency),
and MFA in Writing (low-residency).Other programs in Vermont
Bennington College (low-residency) and
Goddard College in Plainfield
(low-residency).