To MFA or Not to MFA?

I’m on a listserv of writing teachers, and the question recently came up of the value of MFA programs. Though none of us are questioning that people get a good education – and often great networking with publishing professionals – these programs can be expensive. Like $36,000 plus travel expenses for one of the best-known low residency children’s book writing MFA programs.

Obviously, that’s not realistic for everyone, especially if you don’t want to go into debt for your education. And although you occasionally hear about six-figure deals, advances for children’s books are much more likely to be in the $5000-$20,000 range. You’d have to sell several to make back the money you put into the MFA. There’s no guarantee you’ll sell a book just because you have an MFA, and I’ve heard of people getting so burned out and stop writing altogether.

So what if you feel like you need a better education – or the contacts that come with a respected MFA program?

On the list, we discussed other options. Kristi Holl said she interviewed MFA grads about what their program involved and how they learned the most. The three main components:

• Reading an extensive list of current and classic children’s books
• Studying craft books
• Writing and being critiqued

How about doing that on your own? You should be reading extensively anyway.

You can find many lists of “best” books. The American Library Association has many annual awards, including the Newbery (for middle grade books), Caldecott (for picture books), and Prinz (for young adult books). The international reading Association has the Children’s Choice Reading List. The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators has the Golden Kite Award and the Crystal Kite Award, which is based on a vote by peers. Visit your local bookstore or library, pick up a stack of books, read, and analyze – perhaps with A Copy of “Reading like a Writer“ or this online guide to “How to Read like a Writer.”

The craft books Kristi found most helpful include:

THE ANATOMY OF STORY, by John Truby
WRITING SUBTEXT, by Linda Seger
WRITING FOR EMOTIONAL IMPACT, by Karl Iglesias
WRITING 21ST CENTURY FICTION, by Donald Maass

Other books which are favorites of writing teachers:

THE PLOT WHISPERER, by Martha Alderson

ADVANCED PLOTTING, by yours truly, Chris Eboch

SELF-EDITING FOR FICTION WRITERS, by Renni Browne and Dave King

SCENE & SEQUENCE, by Jack Bickham,

MANUSCRIPT MAKEOVER, by Elizabeth Lyon

The WRITER’S JOURNEY: MYTHICAL STRUCTURE FOR STORYTELLERS & SCREEN WRITERS, Christopher Vogler
THE HERO WITH A THOUSAND FACES by Joseph Campbell

And that’s just a small selection of what’s available. You can also follow blogs on the craft of writing. One of my favorites for craft is Janice Hardy’s The Other Side of the Story. Many of the members of this blog also have individual sites. I’m no longer regularly posting new information, but you can see past posts on topics ranging from developing secondary characters to improving your pacing at my Write like a Pro blog.

And finally, writing and critiquing.

Some people work better with deadlines and penalties for failure. If that’s you, consider starting a group with some other writers where you share your weekly word count and keep each other on task. Or get your family involved by making a schedule and “due dates.” Maybe your kids will like seeing you do your “homework” and start to understand that you need work time!

Getting quality feedback can be a challenge. But even if you live in a remote place, you can try to connect with a critique group online, perhaps through the Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Chat Board, now run through SCBWI.

You may reach a point where your critique group can no longer help you. This often happens when your work is very strong – but not quite strong enough. Then consider hiring a freelance editor. Some of the big-name former editors from the publishing industry now work freelance. Or for lower rates, look for experienced writing teachers. (You can see my rates and recommendations here.)

There are also plenty of online classes, like those offered through the Institute of Children’s Literature, which pair you with experienced teachers at a much lower cost than MFA program.

As Kristi commented, “While this isn’t the same as getting an MFA, you CAN study and practice and do a reading list and get a critique group and create your own home-study pseudo-MFA program—and have no debt when you’re finished.”

But what about the business side of the industry?

The Idiot’s Guide to Children’s Book Publishing, by Harold Underdown, is an excellent overview of the business. It explains the different genres, the difference between a magazine story and a picture book manuscript, how to find a publisher, etc.

There’s a good book by Nancy Sanders called Yes! You Can Learn How To Write Children’s Books, Get Them Published, and Build a Successful Writing Career. She points out that we typically write for three reasons—the emotional satisfaction of getting published, to make money, and for the love of writing. She suggests separating those three goals, so you don’t put pressure on yourself to sell what you are writing for love, and you find more practical ways of approaching the other two goals. She then addresses how to target each goal. This is a great book if you are interested in making writing a career.

You can find lots of other books on writing for children, or writing in general. SCBWI provides members with THE BOOK: The Essential Guide to Publishing for Children, with information on preparing and submitting your work, market surveys, and resources.

And then there’s networking.

This is an important part of being a professional writer. But you don’t need to go to an MFA program to connect. I’ve gotten lots of job leads from list serves. I’ve met editors and agents at writing conferences and retreats, such as those offered all over the country by SCBWI. Personally, I recommend the retreat format, as it’s typically a smaller group and you have more one-on-one time with the speakers. Check out events in your state, or where you have friends and family, to save money. Some people even successfully network by following editor/agent blogs or Twitter feeds.

There’s one final advantage to a degree program: It’s “legitimate” and therefore could be taken more seriously by the family. That might be a reason to set up a “curriculum” on one’s own, with twice a year events, time scheduled for homework, etc. – and to tally up the cost to show how much cheaper it is than a MFA program. That might help you protect your writing time and counter any grumbles about the expense of a few hundred dollar retreat.

I’ve heard great things about writing MFA programs, but if you want some of the benefits with little of the cost, consider creating your own. You might even get your critique group or other writing friends to join in. And then you can hold your own writing retreats! But that’s a topic for another post….

Summer Reading

The June bugs are banging on windows. The cicadas are revving up. There's the occasional whiff of charcoal, fresh-cut grass, and sunscreen. Lemonade suddenly tastes so much better. Have you noticed? It’s almost here!

Ah, summer. Sure, the calendar says it’ll be June 20th before summer’s officially arrived, but any middle grader worth his kickball knows that summer begins the moment that school gets out. For some out there, summer’s already begun; others have another week or two left. That's where my school falls. Two weeks left. That means this is my last week to see students. It also means my big push for summer reading.

I won’t see my students over summer (well, except for the random encounter at the pool or at the Summer Snow slushie stand), so I do all I can to get them set up to read this summer. After all, I sincerely believe that it’s the number one thing they can do to get ready for the next school year. I talk about the school district’s reading program and the public library’s reading program, and I share with them some of my favorite bookish websites. Since most of you aren’t eligible for our local summer school or public library reading program, I thought I’d share the websites here. Here are my favorite book lists, incentives, reading challenges for middle graders in summer.

The Top 100 Children's Novels

I’ve been sharing this video for the last three years with students. It’s a survey that Betsy Bird over at Fuse #8 did, put together by Maggi Idzikowski. Betsy’s doing new surveys this year (Top 100 Novels), but they won’t be done in time for me to share, so it’s this one again. And, as I say to my kids, these aren't all the good books in the world, but you certainly can't go wrong picking one off of this list. I’m also not too proud to admit that it always gets me a little teary-eyed. I don't know if it's the music, the cramming together of so many old "friends", or hearing my students gasp as their favorites appear. But....every time!

Read Kiddo Read 

This is James Patterson’s website. He does a great job of making it kid-friendly and I love how he’s divides up his suggested reading lists.

NoveList K-8

NoveList K-8 is a paid subscription we get through the state of Wisconsin, so I can’t guarantee you have access to it. But it’s definitely worth asking at your public library about it. You can type in your favorite book and find read-alikes, you can pick a genre you love and browse, you can even plug in your reading level in the advanced search and find books that way. I’ve often found that sometimes it’s not that kids don’t want to read, they just don’t know WHAT to read. So my fifth graders, who are heading off to middle school in the fall, are creating and printing personal reading lists from the site using the folders this week. (Writers, it’s also a great resource for finding what other books are comparable to yours.)

Mrs. Wojahn Reads

What!? You haven’t heard about this site? Ha! This is my own little summer reading challenge I do with my students each year. In the summers, I post what I'm reading on this blog. Then I challenge my students to keep track of their summer reading. Anyone who brings me their reading list on the first day of school gets a free book. And anyone who reads more pages than me in the summer also gets a GOLDEN LIBRARY CARD, which is really just their regular card with a gold sticker on it, but it comes with unlimited book checkout for the school year. You would not believe how motivating that is for kids. And it's a lot of fun for me, too.


So what are your favorite reading sites? Not just for kids, but for us grown-ups, too? After all, summer is our reading season, too. Share them in the comments here, or, if you're on Twitter, shout out your summer reading plans to the world. Katherine Schulten over on the Learning Network at the New York Times invites you to take to Twitter and share your thoughts, book recommendations, and ideas about #summerreading on June 7.

I can't wait to tune in. Preferably with the grass mowed, lemonade in hand, and the grill fired up. (The June bugs I can do without.)