my 1000 day mfa

“If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” – Toni Morrison

READING

Read wide and deep. Read in your genre and in every other genre. Read craft books and do the exercises in them.

Keep a running annotated bibliography. Annotation can be as simple as a note about what you liked or didn’t like about the book (at least one paragraph, three to six sentences long, 150-200 words). Look at the book as a writer - what did you learn from it?

Keep a reading log.

Read a short story, a poem, and an essay every day.

When choosing your essay, read through a wide variety of disciplines. Read science. Read history. Read religion. Read geology, zoology, astronomy, sociology. The goal is to expand your mind to a wide range of ideas floating around in the world.

Read one book a week.

Read four long-reads a year (every three months).

Read one play every winter, spring, summer and fall.

Listen to one audiobook a month.

Read one poetry book a month. As well as find a biography on the poet if possible.

Schedule a weekly library trip into your week. Think outside of the box.

Read writing craft books (and do the exercises).

WRITING

The goal is to consistently create new work. Be brave. Take risks. Write stories that you don’t feel ready to write. Write in formats that you’re not familiar with, in genres that make you uncomfortable. Stretch.

Do writing prompts from Poets & Writers Magazine.

Do writing prompts from A Writer's Book of Days.

Write one short story a week for a year. It’s impossible to write 52 bad short stories in a row. Try to write flash fiction (500 words).

Write one novel a year.

Start to carry a writer’s notebook with you everywhere. Use it. Make notes on story ideas, on conversations you overhear, on places you visit.

CLASSES

Seek out opportunities to learn in a classroom setting.

Twice a year, clear your calendar and dedicate a week to immersing yourself in learning to be a better writer. If you can swing it, consider spending a weekend in a hotel, just writing, without the distractions of home.

Masterclass (Neil Gaiman, N.K. Jemison, Margaret Atwood and Amy Tan)

Literary Arts’ Writing a Novel in Eight Weeks

Sarah Selecky’s Writing School (formally known as Story is a State of Mind)

Short Story Course through Fish Publishing

One Story’s Online Generative Writing Class

Mentoring from Helen Sedgwick through WoMentoringUK.com

Two Day Online Workshop with Robert Vaughn offered through www.WordTango.com

Check into https://bendinggenres.com

Short Story Master Class with Short Fiction UK’s Tom Vowler (Unthank School)

Fast Flash Workshop with Kathy Fish

AWP’s Writer to Writer Program for Creative Non-Fiction

One Story’s Become Your Own Best Editor: Learning from Jonathan Durbin’s “Claire, the Whole World” with Will Allison

UL Winter School held in Doolin, Ireland

Bread Loaf School

Bennington Master Class

Gotham Writer’s Workshop

Iowa Writer’s Workshop

MENTORS

Join an in-person writer’s group. Check with your local library or book store, or if you’re in a city you might find a chapter of a larger writing group like Romance Writers of America or Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.

Try to attend at least one writer’s conference a year. You’ll meet other writer’s including published authors who are at least a few steps ahead of you in the process, and have access to workshops. More importantly, you’ll be inspired to work.

WATCHING

Bradbury advises a lot of movie watching. Watch 3 movies a week.

Watch interviews/lectures of authors on YouTube.

LISTENING

Podcasts, TED Talks, Playlists, etc… anything to encourage or inspire.

PACING OURSELVES

A thousand days is about three years, which is the common length for a traditional MFA program.

I think you can do the reading in an hour a day, and the writing in another hour. What are the chances that for three straight years, you’re going to follow this program every single day? Probably pretty slim. And that’s okay. Life happens. We get caught up in other things.

But, if you take this challenge, I hope you’ll take it seriously. The same way you’d take it if you were spending $20,000 a year on an MFA from a university. Make the reading and writing a habit and, I promise you, that habit will serve you throughout your writing career.

The goal is to get to 1000 days where you’ve read and written. If it takes you five years to get to day 1000, okay then. If it takes you ten years, no problem. But you’ll benefit from building up the discipline to read and write intensely every day.

my 1000 day mfa

September 27, 2023

Day 1

September 26, 2023

My 1000 Day MFA

September 25, 2023

Day ??