Two Roosevelt MFA events that will take the panic out of "post-graduation-panic"

One of the nasty bits of information which MFA students like to ignore is that MFA programs end.  Yes, there will be years and years of life after you cast off from the friendly shores of MFA-island, and what you do with that voyage can be a daunting task.  Especially, because, looking at the map, there are dragons out there.  

...Figurative dragons, of course.

 

Luckily, there  are two MFA-related events happening at Roosevelt next week designed to help make the terrifying post-grad school period ever-so-slightly-less terrifying.  First, on Monday, Roosevelt MFA Non-fiction fanatic Tovah Burstein (seriously folks, she’s so devoted non-fiction she looses every hand of poker she plays) will be leading a cover letter writing workshop. 

Cover letter fears?  Tovah's got your back!

 

The workshop will teach you how to wow prospective employers with both rhetorical flourishes and no-nonsense straight talk.   It will take place at noon this coming Monday, in the Roosevelt Writing Center Annex (Auditorium Building room 648).

Without publishers, these people would all be holding grapefruits or rubik's cubes.

But let’s say you’re not interested in cover letters.  You refuse to be bound by the shackles of “regular paychecks” and “health insurance”  and “gainful employment.”   For the uncompromising writers among us, we have, next Wednesday, a panel featuring a wide variety of publishing industry vets.   The panel will feature literary agent Ethan Bassoff, Random House editor Tim O'Connell, and Red Hen editor and publisher Kate Gale.  Bring your questions, your (publishing-related) dreams, your writerly nightmares, and hear from people who do this for a living how it is done.  That panel will take place next Wednesday, February 29^th in Auditorium Building room 232.  If you plan to attend that one, you should e-mail Scott Blackwood at sblackwood (at) roosevelt (dot) edu. 

Come to one, come to both, and be able to strut into the AWP conference with the confidence that you, good sir or madam, now know the tricks of the post-mfa-life trade.  

Timothy Moore and Tovah Burstein featured in Chicago Reader's Annual Fiction Issue!

Change the batteries in your smoke detectors and refill those fire extinguishers, because our Roosevelt MFA Students are ON FIRE.

More like MFA-ers on fire, am I right?

If you're in the Chicago area, pick up a copy of today's Chicago Reader and browse through the cover story- the winners of their annual fiction contest.  Inside you'll find not one but TWO Roosevelt MFA students, former-GA and megablogger Tim Moore and (also-)former-GA and rhapsodic reviewer Tovah Burstein!

First Step- the Chicago reader...

Next Step- the White House bookshelf.

The judge of this year's issue, Goldie Goldblum, an accomplished Chicago-based novelist and short story writer, clearly has impeccable taste.  Reader culture-editor Tony Adler heaped praise upon Tim's story "goofy-touching" story "Thank God for Facebook!," as well as Tovah's piece "Moving on at the Hipster Gym," which he called "a strange, compelling hybrid—a satire that's also a cri de coeu."  Well done, T and T!

 If you're not in the Chicago area and want to the read Tovah and Tim's pieces, they will be preserved on the interweb for eternity right here.

But that's not all- Tim also has a story forthcoming in the soon-to-be-released Spring 2012 issue of the Oyez Review, Roosevelt's own student-run literary journal.  Tim Moore- a publishing force to be reckoned with.

Burstein Review in Latest Bookslut

Tovah "The Granite Stater" Burstein

Proud New Hampshire native, and current MFA Non-fiction candidate, Tovah Burstein, has had an awesome semester! "How did she have an awesome semester?" You might ask. Well, first of all, thanks for asking! And if you must know, her review of the book, "Mutants and Mystics: Science Fiction, Superhero Comics, and the Paranormal" by Jeffrey J. Kripal, has been published in this month's Bookslut!

Bookslut is a monthly web magazine dedicated to those who love to read! They are a constant supply of literary news, reviews, commentary, and insight! Check out their submission page to see how you can submit a review or article!

A published review is not the only reason it's been an awesome semester for Tovah! She has just completed her Fall Internship for Roosevelt's Oyez Review (look for Volume 39 this spring!)! AND she's managed to juggle a variety of jobs on top of that! Including (but not limited to) tutoring at Roosevelt's Writing Center and working with a great reading program called WITS!

WITS (Working in the Schools) is a literacy organization that seeks to increase the reading proficiency and learning capacity of low-income and minority students in Chicago Public Schools! WITS brings together committed and cheerful volunteers to give consistent tutoring and mentoring services to students in need! It's a rewarding program, one that Tovah has spent a lot of time working with! Check out their many different programs and talk with Tovah if you want to volunteer! And then congratulate her on her published review and for her amazingly awesome semester!

Roosevelt Students Hired as Teaching Interns

Tovah Burstein, Bernard M. Cox, and Brittany Turski have been hired as part of the Community of Lake County’s Graduate Student Internship Program for spring semester 2011.

CLC’s program hires MA and MFA students as Intern Adjuncts to work with professors of English or Humanities. The Graduate Student Internship Program at CLC hopes to expose future faculty to a diverse, population of learners; and prepare Graduate students as future instructors with the aid of a teaching mentor.  

Burstein is working with Professor Amanda Cash in her English 121 Composition I class. Cox is working with Professor Martin Ley in his English 243 Introduction to Fiction class. Turski is working with Professor Jennifer Staben in her English 108 Strategic Reading and Writing class. Undoubtedly, all will come away from this semester with new skills and ideas for life after Roosevelt. 

picture by athena