MFA – Page 2 – The Debutante Ball

Learning to Write: an Alarm, a Gun in the First Act, and an MFA

Tuesday, September 15, 2015

To all those also celebrating Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year), I wish you l’shanah tova tikatevu! My writing education began in Mrs. Dubois’s 4th grade language arts class, when she gently informed me that stories were stronger when they didn’t end with “And then the alarm went off and I realized it was all a dream.” I had other wonderful teachers who taught me different literary forms and opened…

The New Debs: Please Welcome the Class of 2016!

Saturday, September 5, 2015

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Please return next Saturday for the Deb class of 2016’s first guest, Carolina De Robertis — author of THE GODS OF TANGO — and a giveaway! We’re excited to announce the new blog schedule as of Monday, September 7th. We know the 2016 class will continue the Deb traditions in fine form, and we look forward to following their journeys over the next year! So please join the fabulous 2016 Deb Class next…

News Flash: Vacations, Revisions & a Writers Retreat!

Congratulations to Annie Aizon, winner of WHEN REASON BREAKS by guest author Cindy Rodriguez! Check back next Sunday for this week’s winner of LITTLE BLACK LIES by guest author Sandra Block … From the 2015 Debs: Colleen Oakley is just thrilled she survived winter break — a week at her home with her 4 and 2-year-old. Otherwise, she’s been busy attending book clubs for BEFORE I GO, working on book 2,…

Sunday, February 22, 2015

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Finding A New Crit Partner Is Like Dating

Thursday, January 22, 2015

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Starting grad school four years ago, I thought I had the writerly thing down. After all, I worked in big New York media and then got a degree in screenwriting. But I was a total fiction newbie, and there plenty of things I learned the hard way. Like about workshopping. And trading pages. And even trading fulls. The bottom line? I learned about developing relationships with other writers — especially…

Life Lessons from Hollywood, With Love

Thursday, December 11, 2014

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People say book publishing is a hard game. Heck (haha, heck!), I’ve said it myself, right here on this very site. And I won’t deny it. But think publishing is hard? You should try Hollywood. That, there, is a true pit of despair. Because in LaLaLand, you can do everything right and still fail big time. And in fact, chances are 99.99 percent that you will. Case in point? This…

On Writing Communities, Competition And Finding Your Tribe

Thursday, November 6, 2014

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I’ve always heard of this legend, the solitary writer, head down at her desk, never looking for the light or sharing her words. And I have to say, that was never me. From the start, to me, writing was a collaborative craft. I remember sharing stories with my kid sister across our bunk beds — about frogs and princesses, our favorite Bollywood stars, and eventually even New Kids On the…

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