Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Looking back on month two of my MFA

I think it's helpful for me to think back over the last month after I send in each submission, so here goes...

Things I did well
+Didn't put too much pressure on myself to figure out my story completely
+Allowed myself to think (and blog) about it first before hitting the page
+Did my interdis project throughout the whole month instead of cramming

Things I'd like to improve
-I waited to do my readings until the last minute. I think I was feeling burnt out of close reading, and I also wanted to wait to hear from my advisor because I thought her comments would help me focus my annotations on aspects that would be more helpful to my work. That might have been true, but it also meant a lot of last minute reading and writing.

-I'm finding it difficult to reread each work in full. I always reread the section or story I'm writing about in my paper, but I don't reread the whole thing. Other MFAer, is that what you are doing?

Other goals for next submission
Write a lot in my character's voice before I try to figure out the plot. Best Blogger Tips

7 comments:

TI said...

I only re-read some parts of the book, esp. if it is long. Once I have in mind what I want to write my annotation on, I just focus on the bits that contribute to that particular piece of craft learning. I've learned a lot so far by focusing in this way, and will stick to my method.

TI said...

I also meant to say that this is a great post, and you've done really well over the past two months. The way you share your process is really helpful. Thanks, Bug.

Idiot Cook said...

Hey--did you get actual feedback on your annotations??? My advisor said this: "I enjoyed reading your cover letter and craft annotations; your observations are keen, and your enthusiasm contagious."

That was it. I didn't get them back with mark-ups or anything...did you and TI???

I agree with TI, Bug...you're doing great work and making great progress.

TI said...

My advisor put comments on my annotations and my cover letter, but mostly to elaborate on points that I made or answer questions that I raised with suggestions. I found all of the comments really helpful.

Writer Bug said...

Thanks ladies! I'm finding writing about the process really helpful--I'm so glad it's helping you too!

FC, I did get detailed notes on my annotations.

Anonymous said...

I like how you recapped your activities for the month. Now that's a great idea for improvement.

Writer Bug said...

Thanks Jan!