Caught Between the MFA and the World
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Newsflash: my poem “Society” has been accepted by 42 Magazine!
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When I was an undergraduate in Religious Studies* I ran across the word “liminal” and fell in love. Who knew that there was a word for that in-between condition, the transition between one state and another? Is any time more beautiful than dusk, when there is still enough light to see, but not enough to cast shadows? At dusk the world gains a crispness to the eye, a clarity obscured by the harshness of bright sun and the dimness of evening.
For a person, that liminal state brings development. In fiction it holds tension before resolution. In nonfiction it grants distance and reflection. I touch on it in most of my fiction, and the events of my essay “Between Plausibility and Truth” take place almost entirely in the liminal state (in fact, I think I have to write an essay about it. Pardon me while I pause to take notes).
I banged my head on that liminal space today.
My essay “Engineering Coincidence” is in the current issue of Cirque. That’s fantastic. It’s a great journal. What’s more, the editor is coming down from Alaska next month to host a huge reading in Seattle. One of the readers arranged for it to take place at Seattle’s ACT. This is a large venue, probably five times the size of anyplace I’ve ever read, maybe ten times. I might be reading my essay to more people than I’ve ever publically addressed in person for any reason.**
The problem: the reading is on August 13th. My graduation residency ends August 14th.
As a writer trying to develop a following, I should go to the reading. It’s a great opportunity. As an MFA student, I shouldn’t skip any afternoon sessions to make it down for rehearsal and prep, not to mention skipping out on supporting my fellow students at the student reading that night.
I don’t like skipping classes, even when I can afford to (I went to an “extra” residency this past January), and I like supporting my fellows. But it’s a good opportunity. On the other hand, it won’t be my last.
I don’t know what I’m going to do yet. I’ve got to think about this one.
*It’s a group major at Cal, so you have to choose an emphasis. I chose two: ritual and mythology.
**Personally, that is. I’ve been part of Capoeira performances for large crowds, as well as on radio and television.
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Submissions update: since my last post, I have submitted pieces to Stupefying Stories, Electric Spec, 5×5 Magazine, Storylandia, and an agent.
