<p>Great idea about the "thanks to" section, wis.</p>
<p>Interesting about St. Johns, I have heard of that (we use a classical/"great books" approach in our homeschool) but not in regards to creative writing. Thanks for sharing.</p>
<p>Barrons: The emotions between parent and child don't change much. The struggle for independence, the 'hothouse' nature of a close relationship, the pain, and the joys do not change, no matter what. Kids raised by nannies still talk about their parents on the psych's couch. Letters from the Ancient World complain about rebellious children and kids getting drunk at school instead of studying. Plus ca change....</p>
<p>With fiction, emotion is everything. If you can encourage the desired feeling in your reader, you have succeeded. Make them laugh out loud or cry or gasp in horror and success will be yours. Merely to bring them to a state of empathy with a character who is nothing more than little black marks on white paper is a notable success. By tapping into their childhood memories, where emotion is freshest, many writers can find the power to do that. It can be draining to the point where you 'burn-out' but that's the risk in the game.</p>
<p>Johns Hopkins is top notch, but very tough to get into. I believe the classes are almost all 'workshop' style and can be capped at something like 15-20 students. </p>
<p>Department: Writing</a> Seminars Home Page
About Writing Seminars: Department[/url</a>]
Course Listings: <a href="http://catalog.jhu.edu/artsci/writing_seminars.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://catalog.jhu.edu/artsci/writing_seminars.pdf</a></p>
<p>Definitely:
[quote]
she should look into the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Also, here is a very interesting-looking creative writing summer program I read about in the CC summer forum. A summer writing program or two would be great for her.</p>
<p>Here's the link:
[url=<a href="http://sharedworlds.wofford.edu/inner-faq.html%5DSharedWorlds%5B/url">http://sharedworlds.wofford.edu/inner-faq.html]SharedWorlds[/url</a>]</p>
<p>When I sold my first novel to a large NY publishing house I was neither asked to produce my college diploma nor was I even asked if I attended college. It all came down to what was written on the manuscript page. If your D is determined to become a writer, she must simply keep reading and writing. But in an odd way, sometimes studying creative writing in college gets in the way of this simple advice. That's why I and other published novelists are leery of guiding talented kids to study creative writing in college--it can be competitive, stifling and the hothouse artificial when a young artist most needs to be original, freed from rules, and real. </p>
<p>If your D's goal is to become professionally published, writing classes can be useful, but for any <em>extreme</em> arts careers (the kind where a handful of people make huge $$$ at it, the rest wait tables or marry rich spouses), college degrees are not required. To become a rock star, movie actress, or best-selling fiction writer, in addition to some skill and training, what is most important are a hunger to be successful, tireless drive, a passion for self-promotion, the right connections, creative and emotional energy, and a huge dose of luck. For a novelist add: years of observing life and people, preferably in odd and unique circumstances, the ability to sit for hours and hours alone in a room with a keyboard, the strength to resist alcohol, depression, and the lure of your credit cards, and the means to do all this while making almost no money.</p>
<p>My strong advice is to tell your D to go to the most fascinating college she can find and study with the most gifted professors, no matter what they teach. Get the most out of it. Live. Study odd and quirky things. Major in something amazing she is yet to discover. Fall in love. Break someone's heart. Go out and have a thrilling life, and keep reading and writing all the time.</p>
<p>While she's doing all of the above, also suggest that she acquire a very hard, employable, marketable technical or language skill to use as a "day job" that won't drain her creative energy. Learn a foreign language that has a hot market for translators; train medically as an Emergency Medical Technician or dental hygienist, find some niche in computer work with a focussed skill...the list is endless. There's no need to fall back upon waiting tables. Instead, prepare for some high pay-per-hour skill to put food on her table so she can work part-time and not starve.</p>
<p>Few jobs put as much in your pocket as being a waiter at a nice busy restaurant in a major city. You can go to all the auditions during the day and have way more job flexibility. $500/night is not hard these days. That's $100/hr.</p>
<p>There's always the success stories - such as Matt Ruff who studied English / writing at Cornell, wrote the basics of a novel "Fool on the Hill" for his senior thesis, got it published soon after to critical and cult success, and has never worked any job but as a novelist. (though he did inspire a page limit regulation on senior theses)</p>
<p>Your d should probably decide whether including other types of writing (journalistic, technical) would drain her creative focus. If so, she should perhaps double major or major-minor in something marketable along with the creative writing. If she's okay spending her days writing products that are not her deepest passion, then including technical and journalistic writing / editing can help pay the bills and keep her writing.</p>
<p>"It is my observation that intensive "writing programs" like Iowa seem to turn out a somewhat uniform type of writing."</p>
<p>Consolation-I disagree. If intensive writing programs scare people they shouldn't pursue creative writing in the first place. These intensive writing programs prepare people to complete their work on the deadlines. And yes, when it comes down to the very last minute, it will be intense. I recommend any of Iowa's writing programs, and I don't really find any uniform type of writing in any of Iowa's graduates. </p>
<p>I think majoring in English (general) with an emphasis in creative writing is your best bet. That way, she can still teach or write for newspapers if worst comes to worse. There are many schools who allow you to do this. I know that the University of Chicago allows an English major with creative writing minor, its definitely worth looking into as well.</p>
<p>I think its important though, that she travel abroad and never loses her imagination! </p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Wow fascinating discussion here. I realize there is not a "one size fits all" when it comes to getting published. She is interested in so many things - one plus of homeschooling is the flexibility to go down rabbit trails when the interest is there. She enjoys math and music, Highland dance, chemistry (not so much biology - maybe because of the math aspect ;). She has loved our travels. I guess we all have family drama :) but ours may not sell books - not so much shock and awe. Anyway thanks to all for dialoging with me here!!</p>
<p>Well, obviously, life is the best preparation for writing. Living your own life, observing others, reading great books, etc. I disagree with people who have said it's not important to be in a creative writing program. I studied creative writing at Sarah Lawrence and there's no substitute for getting the feedback of professors who are actual fiction writers and being in writing groups with other new writers. Although a writer's voice is highly individual, there is still a craft to be learned, underpinnings that you're not going to just "get" from studying liberal arts.</p>
<p>Also, the publishing world is something to study and understand. I self-published a book, promoted it to success and sold it to a publisher. The book world is hard to break into and has its own crazy logic and laws. Remember the famous book "Ironweed" that was rejected by every publisher until a friendly novelist pushed it with his publisher? It went on to win the Pulitzer Prize. That just shows the prejudices you're up against. </p>
<p>In the modern age, though, there are many ways to publish. So a writer can achieve success through means that weren't even available 10 years ago.</p>
<p>It's not so much that the book world's logic and laws are crazy; it's more that the tastes of the book-buying public are unpredictable.* Also, publishing is a business, and fiction is art, and the mix is a difficult (sometimes volatile) one.</p>
<p>HighlandMom, you've gotten lots of good answers here. Novelisto, madbean, and paying3tuitions have covered things especially well. And I think you're taking in the right ones, given your realization that one size doesn't fit all.</p>
<p>I just feel a need to hit their high notes again: 1. A writer needs to have a day job (preferably one she likes!); the number of novelists who support themselves on advances/royalties is mighty small. 2. Creative writing courses can help a budding writer's craft improve but can't make a fiction writer out of someone without stories to tell, and no, an intensive writing program is not necessary. Iowa's programs are second to none - and they certainly do not turn out rubber-stamp, uniform writers - but a writer can become a superb (or wildly popular, or both!) novelist without ever participating in theirs, or any other. Sure, it doesn't hurt to check to make sure colleges your D is interested in have a couple of creative writing classes, in case she chooses to take them, but beyond that, she should choose a college for other reasons. 3. Yeah, madbean's third paragraph. :)</p>
<p>*barring, maybe, dog stories and police procedurals</p>
<p>"It's not so much that the book world's logic and laws are crazy; it's more that the tastes of the book-buying public are unpredictable.* Also, publishing is a business, and fiction is art, and the mix is a difficult (sometimes volatile) one"</p>
<p>So true. Nothing against Harry Potter, but when a book (and its sequels) occupies so much shelf space in a bookstore, it means less space for other books.
.</p>
<p>Has Oberlin been mentioned for creative writing?</p>
<p>I apologize for not having read all of the posts, but I wanted to quickly chime in. It happens I had a mystery writer staying with me for a couple days this week for the purpose of speaking at my book club Tuesday night. She actually addressed the issue of what to study if one wants to write; her recommendation was that aspiring writers explore various subjects and choose to study what interests them. For example, she studied medieval history and that's the time frame for most of her books.</p>