Goddard MFAW Residency: A unique but difficult opportunity

Some readers might have noticed a change in my Twitter bio, including myself, as a Goddard College student. I didn’t make a big announcement out of it, but I am pursuing a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing. Since it will be important later and interesting for my writing readership, I wanted to start at the beginning and blog my journey through the program.  If you want to learn about the history of Goddard and the way they do things, then please visit them here. 

I applied to the program in October as I knew Rouges Magazine was breathing its last. I attended an informational zoom call to learn more about the program, and I was pleased with the format. I chose the program because it was open to working professionals like myself, was self-directed, and most importantly, had a local campus. I didn’t want to travel all the time for grad school residencies or activities. I was excited when I received my acceptance call/letter. Goddard is small enough that you get a personal call. 

Goddard is unique because the program is low residency, and the course work is self-directed around certain degree requirements. The semester is in two parts. The first part is the residency. This lasts about 8 days and is incredibly exhausting. My only experience is so far is residency over Zoom. Residencies are normally in person at either the Vermont campus or the Washington campus in Port Townsend. Some intrepid students will attend residencies for their year at different campuses depending on where they are in the country. The residency has an extra student orientation for the first-semester students (G1). The program’s support and personal attention are quite nice. There is a personal touch from the first interaction all the way through getting students familiar with the campus and its resources. Each student is assigned an advisor, and the bulk of residency is spent working with your advisor to create the study plan for both the program and the semester. Along the way, there are readings, workshops, and special events to fill the days with nothing but the talk of reading and writing. 

I will say upfront that I struggled with this residency. The hours of zoom calls, the flurry of information, and the digital communication difficulty sapped my energy. As a new student, it is also tough because not only are you meeting a few dozen new people, but you are also getting familiar with the Goddard way of doing things. Everyone else is familiar, and you’re still trying to catch up.  This was tough, but as I heard more about the degree requirements and what was really expected, I questioned if this program was me at all. I talked seriously about dropping out and decided to stay in the program for now. 

The Goddard self-directed study model is not for everyone. I had doubts if it was for me. The bulk of the MFA is reading. There are 3 papers and 45-60 annotations on readings to complete along the way (as well as a finished creative work, but we’ll come back to that). In their process, students read their reading list and submit packets over the semester to their advisor. This is similar to the Oxford model, where you work with tutors with readings and assignments for learning. As a former homeschooler, this is familiar to me.  The goal of this method to use the writings of others to teach you the craft stuff that is nearly impossible to learn by rote or by lecture. It’s learning by example in the best way possible. I liked this method initially, but I would appreciate some more classes and in-depth learning about writing and literature. 

It is a unique experience surrounded by people whose passions are centered on reading, writing, and books. I will admit that is probably the hardest part because I do not share the same passion. I read a few books a year, and I have a rather tortured relationship with writing that can be best described by the Emerson quote, “I do not like writing; I like having written.”  So the experience of being around people who are passionate and are putting their money where their mouth is pretty significant. 

My biggest concern with the program had primarily to do with my experience. Most of the people in the program have not finished a book and those that have not published it. On the other hand, I come into the program with 3 books out, a major journal piece, and years of journalism and digital authorship. I do this full-time. Writing fiction is what I spend the most time doing.  I have my own voice that I have developed, and I don’t want to mess with the special sauce that I have developed over the past 15 years. This is especially true when it comes to the creative pages. Goddard is focused on revision. You write pages and then revise them many times over the course of the program. Each semester includes new pages and revisions. My advisor calmed my fears about this. 

I am still getting into the swing of the program. Now that residency is over, I have a pile of reading and a pile of papers to do. I will admit seeing the pile of books is intimidating. I don’t have a ton of time to read given my business and such, so I am still very intimidated by the whole thing, but I am beginning to start to get about the business of diving into it. My first packet is due March 22, 2021. 

Goddard has a tremendous asset in their student community. The student community is so supportive. When I was thinking about dropping out and talking about how my brain doesn’t think in a way that is conducive to analyzing literature the way the workshops described, it was not the faculty who helped me; it was the students who walked me through things and helped me feel better about the program. Their support made me feel like I could do it. 

Overall, my impressions of Goddard so far are basically positive. I did not really connect with my advisor this semester, but I will have a chance to have someone new for my second semester, so hopefully, I will find someone I will connect better for G2. I will be continuing to catalog my thoughts, feelings, and reflections on the program and my reading list over the next two years or as long as I stay in the program. Watch this space for more updates on my MFA journey.