I'll never forget the first year of my MFA. I had a great adviser, a well-published writer, who was also a minimalist. I am not. I love
lyrical prose. So we were an odd match that turned out to be one of the
best parts of my expensive education.
As my adviser, Rebecca required me to send her a packet of new writing every two weeks. She would read the pages and mark them up, then return them to me. her handwriting was atrocious but her comments were stellar. She didn't hold back. If she loved something, she raved. If she hated it, she said that too. She assumed, rightly so, that at this point in my writing career I was past coddling. I just wanted the straight truth.
As my adviser, Rebecca required me to send her a packet of new writing every two weeks. She would read the pages and mark them up, then return them to me. her handwriting was atrocious but her comments were stellar. She didn't hold back. If she loved something, she raved. If she hated it, she said that too. She assumed, rightly so, that at this point in my writing career I was past coddling. I just wanted the straight truth.