With National Novel Writing Month just around the corner, those of us who are readying to participate in the 50k word endeavor are probably sweating bullets. If you’re like me—a full-time college student juggling a heck-ton of work and just trying to keep your mental health intact—trying to get those 1,667 words a day between, well, everything else, is the hardest thing to do in that month. But what if I told you that you could write that daily word count in an hour?

Write What You Love

Or, write what you are really, really interested in. Don’t stick with a story that you continue half-heartedly. As M. Kirin talks about in their vlogs, writing is supposed to be fun, not a chore. They encourage their viewers to figure out what they love and incorporate those things into the story. This has been something that hits home for me over and over, and sometimesI still struggle with it. A good way for me to figure out what exactly I would love to write about is by asking myself, what is it that I get excited to read about? What is, as Sarah B. from Smart Bitches, your reading catnip? If you have that figured out, then you definitely have an idea about what you love to write about.

You Have to Have the Blueprints

Once you have an idea of what you’d love to write, you have to do the dreaded pre-work. The world-building, the plotting, the character development, more plotting. Rachel Aaron, writer of 2,000 to 10,000: How to Write Faster, Write Better, and Write More of What You Love, described how she went from having a good day of two-thousand words in six hours, to days with ten thousand words in the same amount of time. One of the factors she first realized was that she hadn’t done any manner of planning. By doing this, she avoided both writer’s block and a grueling overhaul of the story. If you’re more like Rachel (or me), you may already be doing a bit of this. Even if you’re a pantser, there is a lot you can learn from just planning. Even sketching out a scene right before you write for the day will help tremendously. Take it from someone who learned the hard way about planning, even if it’s just a sketchy map, it’ll still go a long way.

 Actually Write

Yes, you read that correctly. If you have a story idea you love and you have the planning all done, you have to sit down and write it.  A story doesn’t write itself, after all. Sure, ghost writing is a very real thing, but you want to break the 50k goal by the end of November, right? A lot of writers, including myself, bemoan about what little we’ve done for the day. My friends who are taking creative writing courses often complain to me about needing to write. Instead of doing the actual writing, they hop on Facebook or Tumblr. Before they know it, the night is gone, and they’re churning out five thousand words last minute. It’s not fun. 0/10, not recommended. Set aside some time, find a non-distracting workplace, and write.

So, with all of these tips in mind, blow that 50k right out of the water! To read more on raising your word count, pick up Rachel Aaron’s 2,000 to 10,000: How to Write Faster, Write Better, and Write More of What You Love off of Amazon.

Applying to MFA programs can be a little like exploring the Wild West, especially if you’re not sure how the process works.

If you’ve decided to apply to Master of Fine Art programs but aren’t sure what to expect or how the process works, you’ve come to the right place. There are low residency schools, programs that run for two or three years—and in some instances, chances for full funding. Many programs are extremely competitive with far more applicants than slots available, so it’s important to do everything in your power to give yourself the chance to shine.

I went through the rigorous MFA application process last year, having applied to 11 schools, and I learned many valuable lessons throughout the journey. I’m here to give you some relief and to help you get organized before you make a mistake or miss your opportunity to get into the program of your dreams.

The first thing to understand is the process itself and how important the timeline is.

The majority of MFA programs have a firm due date for applications. Some schools close applications as early as December 1st, while others run into spring. Overall, you can expect to file most of your application materials between December 1st and February 1st. On the flip-side, you’ll receive most of your decisions from mid-March to early April. If you’re accepted to a program, you’ll receive an acceptance window so that you don’t have to immediately decide.

Now that you know roughly when you need to file your application, it’s time to gather your materials.

Recommendation Letters

The first thing you’ll need is a team in your corner to handle recommendation letters. A handful of programs only require two recommendations, but the majority of them will want three.

• Of your three recommenders, make sure at least one of them is a professor or former teacher you’ve had. If you don’t use at least one of your teachers it will look strange and may raise red flags about your application. Programs want to know what kind of student you are and they can’t gather all the information they need without hearing from your teachers.
• Be mindful to select recommenders who are truly invested in your abilities and future. Don’t pick out individuals solely for name recognition or notoriety—pick the people who are passionate about you succeeding and will write wonderful recommendations.
• Secure your recommendations early. A month’s notice before your first deadline is the ideal amount of time to get your recommenders up to speed and ready to support you.
• Once you’ve finished filing all your applications, please take the opportunity to formally thank your recommender team with thank you cards after they’ve worked so hard to support you.

Curriculum Vitae (CV)

You’ll also need a resume or CV. When I went through my MFA application process last year, most of the programs I applied to wanted either the resume or CV, but a few programs wanted only a CV. If you’re in a position to do one or the other, invest your time and effort into having a stellar CV.

Writing Sample

Unlike many graduate programs, the most important part of every MFA application you file will be your writing sample. Don’t worry about showcasing your diverse skills or being cute with your selection of poems, short stories, screenplay scenes, etc. Give the program your best written pages, and do not exceed the desired page count they ask for.

Bottom line: send your best stuff, and be sure everything is proofread and formatted carefully before submitting.

Ultimately, your writing sample, letters of recommendation (how to ask for a LOR), and statement of purpose (more on that here) essay (each one will be unique to the program you apply to) will be your foundation to achieve program acceptances.

The more acceptances you get, the more potential bargaining power you’ll have. If you get into multiple schools, you may be able to secure additional funding opportunities as schools may compete for your decision. You may also want to consider taking the GRE—especially if you’re applying to traditional programs with TA opportunities—but the majority of programs no longer require it.

Best of luck!

You’ve finally done it. Early mornings and sleepless nights spent staring at a computer screen. You’ve pined, labored, edited, and re-edited every phrase, every comma, until at last you are satisfied there is nothing left to be done. You click “submit” and your masterpiece is released into the ethers. Surely literary greatness or at the very least publication is in your imminent future. Excitedly, weeks or months later, you open your inbox or mailbox (to a chorus of celestial angels) and discover? Yes, my friends, the Dear John letter.

Welcome to the world of literary rejections! Just when you believed writing, editing, and submitting your work was the biggest hurdle, enter Mr. Nasty, the unseen editor believed to be the nemesis to your success. The air is let out of your proverbial balloon and you find yourself swearing (literally or figuratively) that you will never, ever put yourself or that stellar piece of writing out there again.

If you are wondering where the idea for this blog came from, it was my recent experience of being accepted and rejected all in the same week. For those of you who were around in the 1970’s when the opening montage for The Wide World of Sports showed in one frame, a triumphant medal winner, the next, a downhill skier tumbling head over skis with the voiceover, “The agony of defeat.” Yes, it was that kind of week.

Ok, calm down. Rejection is as old as the hills and everyone has experienced it at one point or another. Think elementary school playground, or high school. Then again, maybe not. The literary and creative world guarantees no success but weighs heavily in favor of the artist who, despite repeated rejections, climbs back into the ring, despite the risk of a black eye or humiliation. Rocky Balboa has nothing on E. E. Cummings, Madeleine L’Engle, James Joyce, or the author of Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling, who was rejected 12 times and told “not to quit her day job,”  

But this is YOU and YOUR work. Good point. Perhaps it would be more helpful to learn how other writers respond when rejection letters threaten their confidence.

• Katrina Vandenberg (executive director of Runestone) has this this to say: “So often it’s not the quality of the writing, but a lot of the time it depends on who sees it. It’s all really a numbers game. If you’re getting acceptance more than 10% of the time, you’re not aiming high enough.”
• Elizabeth Gilbert, (author of Eat, Pray, Love) says: I collected only massive piles of rejection notes for years. But I also thought: ‘Hey, someone has to write all those stories: why not me?’ It has never been easy for me to understand why people work so hard to create something beautiful, but then refuse to share it with anyone, for fear of criticism. Wasn’t that the point of the creation – to communicate something to the world? So put it out there.
• J.K. Rowling, (creator of the magical world of Hogwarts) recently posted her rejection letters on Twitter to encourage other writers. She received “so many rejections for her 1999 book Chocolat, that she piled them up and ‘made a sculpture.’”
• Paul Patane, (fellow Runestone student editor) recently posted this on Twitter: “Woke up to a new rejection letter in my inbox. What a way to start a week.” It was his first response/rejection to his new flash piece so he wasn’t taking it too hard. “It was a nice rejection at least. They asked for more from me which means it got some real consideration. Rejection doesn’t really bother me. I accept that I’ll fail more than I succeed when it comes to publishing.”
• Madeline Reding, fellow student, recently received her first rejection email: It wasn’t so bad, since this particular journal was a long shot, anyway. But we’ll see how it goes once I start getting responses from some of the places I’m really hoping about.

So it would be a cop out if I didn’t share my own thoughts on rejection. I would be lying if I said rejections don’t bother me, yet the more I submit and get used to the odds of rolling the literary dice, the less daunted I become at the likelihood of rejection.

I keep a folder in the front of my file cabinet with “successes” and a lovely, floral folder placed in the back with the “sorry but your work isn’t a good fit for our journal.” Perhaps the editors are doing me a favor, believing more revisions are needed before my work meets the light of a day. They become a friend, not foe, and move me closer to my goal: publication.

In order for the third (or thirtieth) submission to be a charm, you have to have done it two (or 29) times before. So write, submit, write, submit. And in the meantime, do something creative with those rejection slips, like wallpapering your bathroom. It will serve as a reminder of just how far you’ve come.

The Runestone Creative Nonfiction editorial board was pleased to be given the task of transcribing and editing the interview with our visiting writer, Joni Tevis. The following are the thoughts and reflections of each member as they took Tevis’ spoken words and turned them into a written project.

Read the full interview here.

Sophia Myerly:

For Joni Tevis, the research process is a creative act in and of itself.

Her process offers many insights and ideas for writers who seek to weave research into their own writing. During the interview, she explained that the act of taking notes in books can be a gift to one’s future self, and she encouraged us to cultivate a reading list that allows us to read broadly and bravely.

Some of Tevis’ more unusual research advice included visiting places that many would call ‘tourist traps,’ which, as her essays show, can lead to some wonderful and strange writing that braids many ideas together. To attain this cohesive structure, however, is a challenge—and Tevis shared one technique that she used for her essay, “What Looks Like Mad Disorder: The Sarah Winchester House.” This structure resembles a wheel, where the main subject is the hub, and the other topics or ideas that link to the main idea are the spokes of the wheel. This approach seems fitting as a way to organize ideas and get them rolling into an essay that transports the reader.

Belle Allan:

So inspired by Tevis’ work ethic in conducting research, I ventured into a place rarely explored: my university library.

This is not to say that students at Hamline do not read, but that the physical books within the library often go untouched. Nowadays, if a student wishes to research a topic, they turn first to our online database: Summon. Many texts can now be found online, and if one wishes to use an actual paper and cardboard book, it can be “summoned” online and picked up at the library’s front desk. In my three years at Hamline, I had never wandered through the stacks to find a real-life book.

Now, with a mission to pull whatever drew me, I weaved around the shelves on Bush Library’s third floor and pulled whatever caught my eye. I ended up with a comical stack of books on topics from social movements to film ethics. I plopped them on an empty desk and realized I had found a new hobby. I had before me a wealth of knowledge that pulled me in a million different directions. I can guarantee that I will be “Tevis-ing” in my library for the entirety of the summer.

Jake Kjos:

Tevis’ use of music in her essays shows not only through the references to Liberace and Buddy Holly, but with the shapes and rhythms that she carefully places her words. Tevis believes writers should mix up their writing routine and try different styles to keep their writing fresh.

This includes putting essays, poems, or stories into new and different shapes to guide both the piece and the reader. Perhaps the thing that characterizes Tevis best is her willingness to go to new places. No matter how exciting she believes a tour of an old house is going to be, getting out into the world provides great writing material and opens up numerous potential subjects for exploration. Some of the best work can come from getting out of your element and seeing how that affects your thought process.

Allie Pikala:

“How do we cultivate a habit of attention and awareness to the world around us?”

When asked about cultivating a writing “spark,” Joni shared a daily exercise she borrows from Lynda Barry’s, Syllabus. It consists of recording five things you saw, five things you heard, five things you did, and a picture from your day. What follows is my mini-version of this exercise with regards to the interview.

Things I saw:
Joni taking time to talk to each person who came up to get their book signed.

Things I heard:
“Why not just write about things you really care about?”
“Bravery over perfection, every time.”
“You’ve got to take care of your body because it carries your brain around.”
“Give yourself permission to write what you need to write about.”

Things I did:
Some stretches, lead by Joni. Listened in awe.

A picture:
When she signed my book, she saw that I’d written my name on the inside cover. Joni Tevis drew a small heart next to it.

Meghan O’Brien:

During our interview with Joni Tevis, she quoted Ron Carlson, saying, “internet play has done more damage to writers than alcoholism ever will.”

I couldn’t agree more. It’s so easy to get sucked into Facebook, Twitter, Netflix, Pinterest, etc.; and no matter how good your intentions are initially, when you’re online you’re not writing.

Pinterest is my downfall. What started out as innocent fun perusing the site for funny e-cards and cute clothes turned into my vice. I now have 16 boards and an endless amount of time wasted.

If you find yourself constantly stuck for time, you should keep track of how often you’re online. Give yourself a small amount of time to look on your designated social media site only after you’ve done your work for the day. I haven’t been able to stick to it yet, but I know it all starts by closing my browser.

Before you close this browser, take a look at Runestone volume 2 and get inspired. Then, send us your work. Our submissions are open until the first of October for volume 3. Guidelines are here.