Trying New Things

Linda Bilodeau is the author of Stepping Through Seagrass, The Wine Seekers and The Olive Branch- A Tale of Resistance. She is a student in the MFA program at Spalding University in Louisville, KY.

The butterflies are dancing now, quick and limber. As the day to my MFA residency draws near, I find myself in fury of activity. What have I forgotten? What do I need to bring? What am I to wear? Knee deep buried in details. Buried in those picky little life issues is the fun, the joy of trying new things.

At Spalding University MFA students are assigned a mentor and work with that person through a semester, communicating by internet, emails, telephone, snail mail, tapes, letters almost every possible method known to man. Assignments fly back and forth, the writing, the reading, analysis of classical works, analysis of pop fiction, opinions, rewrites, better use of words, highly polished verbs. Like all fields an MFA student emerges herself in words, unique to studying writing and literature.

I am a student of fiction, which means I must produce so many words every three weeks. Not a problem for me since I love to write. I read and reread my assignments to make sure they are in order and correct. I just love golden A’s.

Twice a year we get together on campus for a 10 day residency. There we listen to authors, to professors, to trained editors and agents. In person we learn more about the craft of writing and we share works for critique, share joys, sadness, disappointments. We eat together; we laugh, sing, write, and advise. We establish, in those short 10 days, a camaraderie that lasts six months until the next time we meet.

We try new things and we learn together and for those short 10 days we become a writing community and share the best of what we know with each other.

Best to you all

Linda Bilodeau