The Portable MFA in Creative Writing [Kindle Edition]

Editors of New York Writers Workshop (Author)

Book Description

Get the core knowledge of a prestigious MFA education without the tuition.



Have you always wanted to get an MFA, but couldn't because of the cost, time commitment, or admission requirements? Well now you can fulfill that dream without having to devote tons of money or time. The Portable MFA gives you all of the essential information you would learn in the MFA program in one book. Covering fiction, memoirs, personal essays, magazine articles, poetry, and playwriting, this book provides you with:



Inspiration and tips on revision, stamina, and productivity

Clear instruction on the craft behind the art

Detailed reading lists to expand your literary horizons

Exercises to improve your writing endeavors



By heeding the advice in The Portable MFA, you will gain the wisdom and experience of some of today's greatest teachers, all for the price of a book.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

The New York Writers Workshop is the only teacher-founded, teacher-run writing collective in New York City. It offers writing courses to writers of all levels on short stories, novels, non-fiction and other disciplines. The rapidly growing group also co-hosts a webzine at www.ducts.org and runs a monthly reading series.

Product Details

• File Size: 487 KB
• Print Length: 280 pages
• Publisher: Writer's Digest Books (April 29, 2006)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B0033ZAVVM
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #77,704 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

111 of 119 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Book for Pros, not Academics June 5, 2006

By Judy Brunch

Format:Paperback

Just finished THE PORTABLE MFA IN CREATIVE WRITING by NEW YORK WRITERS WORKSHOP. It impresses me as a book for the pros, not the academics. No dull jargon, no preposterous theory, just the straight dope on writing in five different forms. Since I'm primarily a poet, I spent the most time with Rita Gabis's section -- it's like Mary Oliver's POETRY HANDBOOK meets THE ARTIST'S WAY. You can't read this book without developing the habit of writing, and in the ten-to-twelve days that I've had my copy, I've seen my work improve. This book is indispensable.

70 of 76 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Inavluable writing guide April 15, 2007

By Derek Alger

Format:Paperback

I'm a graduate, or maybe I should say survivor, of what was considered a prestiguous MFA program, and I

can truthfully say that not only would The Portable MFA in Creative Writing have helped me then, but it certainly would have proved invaluable if I had decided to forego the MFA experience and write on my own in a cabin by

a lake in Ontario.

I knew Tim Tomlinson in a former lifetime and I'm happy to see that he has become a wise, helpful guide

in leading readers through the section on fiction writing in The Portable MFA. There definitely is a craft to

fiction writing, which goes along with a writer's innate ability, and Tim approaches the subject as one who

could almost be considered a friend trying to offer sincere advice from experience, experience which includes years of teaching.

Likewise, Charles Salzberg comes off as a natural born teacher in offering practical advice about the craft of magazine writing. As you read his insights, you can't help but feel that Salzberg is a three-dimensional person

and extremely dedicated teacher who wants what's best for each individual reader,

There are many good books on the craft of writing but I rank The Portable MFA certainly up within the top five.

I am not a poet or a playwright but the sections on these disciplines in The Portable MFA are also interesting and enlightening. In short, this book is a great investment for both beginning writers, as well as experienced writers with many publications to their credit. One can always learn new things and The Portable MFA refreshed my creative drive and also prompted me to see truths I knew from a new perspective well worth

many, many times more than the cost of this great book.

52 of 57 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect May 23, 2006

By Writer's Writer

Format:Paperback

This book has it all: how to write fiction, how to write plays, how to write for magazines... It's the best single source on writing that I've found so far (and I've read almost all of them).

More About the Author

I am a New York based freelance writer whose worked has appeared in Esquire, New York magazine, GQ, Elle, Redbook, Good Housekeeping, the New York Times Arts and Leisure, the New York Times Book Review, the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Travel and Leisure and other periodicals. I've been a Visiting Professor of Magazine at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University and I teach writing at the Writers Voice and the New York Writers Workshop where I am a Founding Member. My detective novel, Swann's Last Song was nominated for a Shamus Award for Best First PI Novel . I lost. I got mad and wrote a sequel, Swann Dives In, which I am sure will win numerous awards. I've also got another novel, Devil in the Hole, due out in July 2013.