Mapping Out the Calendar

Before I set goals, I do a calendar exercise where I put a copy of the upcoming year’s calendar all on one page. Each row represents a month, and the numbers in that row are the individual days. Using a marker or highlighter (or a more high-tech option, an Apple pencil and app called Paper), I block off windows of time that I need for various projects. I also color-code things so that each type of DIY MFA project (workshops, courses, HUB) gets a different color. This way I can see at a glance where my calendar is already full and where I have space to play.

I used to do this exercise on paper with different colored markers, but nowadays I use the more high-tech option, which makes it easy for me to edit things as plans ebb and flow throughout the year. My team and I call this the “kooky calendar” and it’s not set in stone, it gives us an overall roadmap for the year ahead so we have a general sense of what’s happening and when.

Climbing the Mountain

I like to think of writing books as being like climbing a mountain. Now, truth be told, I’ve never scaled a major mountain myself (the most I’ve done is hike up to the top of a small hill near campus when I was in college). Still, I think the analogy holds true. When you think about a big project—like climbing a mountain—there are a couple of different considerations.

Choose the Right Mountain

Your mountain is your “big vision” and the first thing you have to do is make sure you’re climbing the right mountain. After all, it does you no good to scale Everest if what you really wanted to do was reach the top of Kilimanjaro. The same thing is true with a big project. You have to make sure you’re tackling the right project, and for the right reasons. Writing a book is a big project, one that should not be taken on out of obligation or guilt. If you want to write a book, you need to want to write that book.

You also want to make sure you’re writing the right kind of book for you. Sure, it’s important to consider the market and what may or may not sell, but if you write a book solely based on market trends, you are fighting a losing battle. First off, things that are trending now won’t be trending two or three years from now (when your book finally hits the shelves). Plus, you have to live with your book for a long time, reading and rereading it throughout the drafting and revision process. If you don’t love the project, it’s going to be painful.

Plant the Flag

When people climb mountains and they get to the top, what do they do? They plant a flag to signal that they were there, that they reached the peak. Planting a flag is a symbol that you’ve conquered one mountain and are ready to pursue the next goal.

Writing a book is very similar. It’s important to have a symbol, something that signals that you’ve reached your goal and are ready to move onto the next thing. This plant-the-flag moment is going to be different for every writer. For one it might be holding a printed copy of the book in their hand. For another, it might be doing their first author signing. For still another it might be getting an award.

Regardless of what that plant-the-flag moment is, it should be a tangible, concrete event. Something that you can point to and say, “Yes! I did that.”

Determine the Milestones

The milestones are the big phases of your larger project, kind of like the places you set up camp when you scale a big mountain. You don’t try to climb the whole thing bottom to top, you just focus on getting to the next place where you’ll set up camp for the night. In terms of goal setting, basically you take your larger project and break it down into three-to-five overarching steps. For example, if your goal is to write and traditionally publish a novel, your milestones might be:

1. Finish a rough draft.
2. Do revisions.
3. Query agents.
4. Go through the publisher’s editorial process.
5. Launch the book.

These are not small action steps, but larger sub-projects leading to your big vision of writing and publishing your book. It’s important to break the big vision into smaller milestones because it makes the overall project feel more manageable. After all, “write and publish a book” can feel overwhelming to many writers, but finishing a draft—though still a big task—can feel a little less daunting.

Still, it’s important to recognize that these milestones are not small steps that can get done in a day. Rather, they are sub-projects that might take weeks or months to complete. This is why we must break our milestones down into action steps.

Break Things into Action Steps

Here is where the rubber meets the road. The key to completing your milestones (and thereby also reaching your big vision) is to break those milestones down into manageable action steps. These should be bite-sized steps that you can start and finish in one sitting. The idea is for you to feel that sense of accomplishment when you complete an action step. This is why action steps should be small, concrete, and easy to complete.

For example, let’s suppose your milestone is “finish a rough draft.” Unless you’re incredibly prolific (or are willing to sacrifice your sleep and sanity), you won’t be able to finish a draft in a day. But what you can do is break that draft down into manageable chunks.

Let’s suppose you can easily write 1,000 words per weekday. That means that in one week you’ll have 5,000 words. If a typical novel is 80,000 words, then it’s just simple math: 80,000 divided by 5,000 is 16. This means it will take you 16 weeks of writing (or a little under four months) to complete your draft. Then, all you have to do is stick to the program and knock out those 1,000 daily words.

Or as another example, let’s imagine you’re gearing up for your book launch and you want to weave podcast appearances into your launch strategy. First you may want to do some research on how to give good podcast interviews. (Here’s a post that walks you through the before, during, and after.) Next, you need to make a list of potential podcasts you’ll want to pitch. Making the list might be quick, but researching the various shows may take more time, so you may want to break that task into small batches of 2-3 podcasts.

After that, you need to start pitching. One action step might be to write a pitch letter template. (While you’ll want to personalize each pitch, it can help to have a template to work from.) Then you’ll need to start sending out pitches, one at a time.

When it comes to tracking complex action steps, I’m a big fan of using project management software. Currently, my team uses a program called Asana. It’s a great piece of software and has a lot of bells and whistles, but for many writers it’s likely much more than you need. Other software I’ve used in the past is Trello and ToDoist (both of which offer free plans). For many, even just a simple spreadsheet tracking daily word count can be sufficient. The point is, that it’s incredibly easy to lose track of how much progress you’ve made if you don’t keep a written record. So, find a way to record your progress and keep track of how far you’ve come.

Here’s a diagram showing the big vision broken down into milestones and then further separated into action steps:

What If You Hate to Set Goals?

Many writers—particularly “pantsers” who write by the seat of their pants—tend to resist goal setting. They want to throw themselves into their projects and write with abandon, not worrying about where that project might lead.

This is all well and good, and some creative exploration is important, particularly at the early stages of a career. But at some point, you’ll need to have a plan if you want to make good progress. It’s important to plan and set goals, especially if you’re juggling more than one big project at the same time.

At DIY MFA, we often have multiple projects in the hopper simultaneously. We might be gearing up to launch a workshop and have a course on the back-burner, ready to be launched soon thereafter. Plus, I often have multiple writers I’m working with one-on-one, and we have regular “maintenance work” we need to keep up with, like producing these Writer Fuel newsletters and the subsequent posts on our website.

Without setting goals, it’s hard to tell what’s important and will make the most impact, versus what’s just urgent and needs to get done right away. There’s a concept in time management called the Eisenhower Matrix, which looks at projects in terms of their importance and urgency.

Things that are neither important nor urgent can be removed from your task list altogether. Similarly, things that are urgent but not necessarily important can get delegated. The problem is, we often conflate urgency with importance and we’ll get tied up doing unimportant-but-urgent tasks when we should be focusing on the tasks that really matter.

This is where things get tricky. The temptation is to swat flies and focus all our energy on the urgent tasks that need to be done right now. But what about those important long-term tasks? They may not be urgent right this second, but they are often the things that move us closer to our goals.

Writing a book is an important-but-not-urgent task. Unless you’re under contract and on a deadline, you probably don’t have anyone waiting with bated breath for you to finish your manuscript. The task may not have an immediate deadline and it’s up to you to keep moving the ball down the field. With important-but-not-urgent tasks, the key is to schedule the time. You have to make sure you carve out room in your schedule and break that big project into small, manageable tasks so you can. Get. It. Done.

This is why goal setting matters. Without goals, we don’t know what tasks are important and what tasks are just urgent. Goal setting allows us to see the difference.

Until next time, keep writing and keep being awesome!

P.S. For more info on Gabriela Pereira, the founder and instigator of DIY MFA, check out her profile page.

The post Writer Fuel: Set Goals the DIY MFA Way appeared first on DIY MFA.

This final installment of Tales of a Solopreneur explains how you can combine strategic planning for your business with your personal planning using my Reflect, Reboot & Re-prioritize (“RRR”) framework to set you up for long-term success and short-term fun.

Reflect

Running a solopreneur business effectively requires an alignment between your mindset, skills, and determination. You can learn what you don’t know. You can develop your skills and double down on your strengths. But self-reflection is key to determining where you should be focusing your time, versus where you’re spinning your wheels or wasting your time. 

Spending one hour up front to reflect on the past year will help you more efficiently plan what steps you can take next year to move your small business forward without sacrificing your personal happiness and satisfaction.

The first step is to ask yourself the following questions about this year:

Completed Goals: Which goals did you complete, when, and how long did they take?

• Did you finish them sooner or faster than planned? Were they time-sensitive, or something you loved to do or played into your strengths?
• If you started them later or they took longer, why? Did other projects or self-doubt get in the way, or did you fail to plan right (i.e., underestimated how long things would take or failed to identify the action steps needed)?

Open Goals: Which goals did you start but not finish, and which goals were never started?

• Why? What roadblocks did you run into?
• Did timelines change, did the goals stop making sense, did you fail to plan right, did you get side-tracked with something else, or were your eyes bigger than your year and you just ran out of time?
• Which goals do you want to do a final year-end push on, carryover to next year (“Carryover Goals”), back burner for a future year, or eliminate completely, and why?

Themes: Identify themes that keep popping up.

• Did you complete the most important goals to move you and your business forward, or did you focus on the easiest goals because you were good at them, the other items were too scary, or you just wanted to check something off your list? 
• Did you delay goals because you were undermined by your mindset?
• How good were you at identifying smaller required tasks and estimating work time?
• How good were you at staying focused?

Progress: What progress are you most proud of, and why? Do you feel like you could have done more, or did you have unrealistic expectations? 

Resistance: What was the toughest challenge, biggest surprise, and biggest disappointment you faced and why? 

Lessons: What did you learn about your business or yourself this year, and which was the hardest lesson you learned, and why?

3 Roadblock Busters: Make a list of three actions you can take to bust through your roadblocks. 

• For example, do you need to start or stop something, to learn a specific skill, to hire an expert to complete a task that’s holding you up, to recalibrate your mindset, tips on developing an effective action plan, practice showing up and keeping a routine, or a reality check when setting expectations for yourself and others?

Your Wins: Celebrate where you are, what you’ve learned, and the progress you’ve made. Cue your happy dance!

Reboot

The hard part is over. Now for the fun part. 

Cast Your Vision

I’ve discovered planning for my business and personal life together provides a more holistic life perspective and is a better gauge of what I can reasonably fit into a year. 

Spend 30 minutes brainstorming what you desire for you and your business. Be bold. Do not self-edit. Only you will see your answers. Start with these questions:

• What’s your pie in the sky dream for you and your business?
• Where do you want you and your business to be in 1, 3, and 5 years? 

• What must you accomplish to achieve your vision? Is there a clear path forward, or do you need to design it? 
• What’s your WHY (or why do you want what you want)? 

Claim Your Goals 

Now, review your vision answers, and identify the goals you want to complete by the end of next year for you and your business.

Your Business.

• Top 3-5 new business goals that will move you closer to your vision.
• Carryover Goals.
• 3 Roadblock Busters.

You: Identify at least one goal from each category below to build balance into your upcoming year.

• Passion project (e.g., start or focus on a hobby, sport, or nonprofit organization).
• Physical and well-being (e.g., build and strengthen your health habits)
• Social and relationships (e.g., build and strengthen your connections and community). 
• Fun (e.g., add more joy, more often).

Re-prioritize

Finally, it’s time to re-prioritize your perspective and your task list and plan for next year’s goals. 

Adopt a Four Quarters Perspective

Focusing your energy and building your implementation plan on a quarterly basis provides you wiggle room to refresh and pivot throughout the year. 

• Quarters Grid: Draw a four-box grid on a piece of paper and label the quadrants: Q1, Q2, Q3, and Q4. Assign your new goals in chronological order to the four quarters based on when you need/want to work on each of them. Limit each quarter to 1-2 big goals or 3-4 smaller goals, so you can maintain your focus and gain traction.
• Bonus: Plot out your annual vacations and build them into your calendar and your four quarters now. It will give you something to look forward to, help you refresh periodically to avoid burnout, and help you be more realistic about what you can accomplish in a three-month period without sacrificing your time off.  

Plan Your First Quarter 

On a new piece of paper, prioritize each goal you assigned to Q1. Then, for each goal, ask: 

• Milestones: Identify the 3-5 action steps (“milestones”) you must take to complete the goal. If you’re stuck, try working backwards from the last step you need to complete the goal until you get to where you are now.
• Timing: Estimate how long each milestone will take to complete and then multiply it by 1.5 for a built-in buffer. 

On a separate piece of paper, write 1-12 down the left side and add the dates for each week in the quarter. 

• Commitments: Note for each week the days you need to block out for previously scheduled work and personal commitments, such as school breaks, work travel, and scheduled vacations.
• Weekly Targets: Assign your milestones in the order you plan to work on them across the 12 weeks, using your milestone time estimates and how many weekly hours you plan to devote to your goals. If you run out of weeks, decide which goal(s) to move to a future quarter.
• Bonus: Build in days for you to brainstorm and strategize for your business, as well as days for you to decompress. Also, build in at least one buffer week to knock out tasks on lingering projects. 
• Weekly Planning: Review your Weekly Targets for each new week and update them for your prior week’s progress. Consider what information, education, or resources you need to learn or acquire to keep moving forward on your milestones. Then identify which actions you will take that week. 

Refine Your Next Quarter

At the end of Q1, spend 30-60 minutes thinking about how your progress compares to your initial quarterly plan.

• What did you complete? 
• How close were your time estimates? 
• What challenges did you face? 
• What changed in your business that requires changes in your planning for next quarter?
• Will incomplete milestones be carried over or eliminated? 
• How do you feel? 
• What are you excited about?

Repeat the ‘Plan Your First Quarter’ steps for the goals you initially identified for Q2 and add in any Carryover Goals you identified from Q1.

Repeat this ‘Re-prioritize’ step for Q3 and Q4.

Then restart the entire RRR process at the beginning of December for the next year.

Implement

I will be finishing my 2023 planning over the coming weeks. I can’t wait to see which business and personal goals I decide on and the fun activities ahead.

I hope you find the RRR framework helpful as you strategize for your business and decide where to focus your time and energy in 2023. And remember to celebrate your wins now and throughout the year. Keeping your eyes on your prizes is a great way to create your own long-term success and personal fulfillment.

Richelle Lyn is a compensation & benefits attorney and HR executive, who now spends her days focused on the writing life. Her favorite fiction reads involve leading ladies who push boundaries and conquer their fears while preferably digging for secrets, learning magic, and/or saving the World. She’s also a fan of non-fiction reads focused on personal growth and transformation. She loves her tea hot and her coffee iced. She calls South Florida home, but her favorite place to be is on a trip. You can check her out on Instagram.

The post Tales of a Solopreneur: Plan Early for a New Year’s Success appeared first on DIY MFA.

Many new habits fail because we try to add them into our lives with body and soul-shocking speed, and without acknowledging our current limitations. Small steps inch us toward our goals. Their light push reduces the resistance and fear that can emerge as you integrate your new writing routine into your day.  

That integration begins with setting up parameters that accommodate your current limitations.

I know. None of us want to acknowledge our limitations. They are icky and shameful. Aren’t we doing this because we want to overcome them, ditch them, and forget they ever existed?

We must all start exactly where we are, with our ugly limitations and daily routines. This doesn’t mean that we don’t push against those old habits. By working within our limitations, we use those old supports to shore up our new writing routine until it can stand on its own.

Plus, our true limitations usually include all the things we need to feel good, stay healthy, and be creative, even if they feel scandalous to admit.

So, What Are Your Limitations?

For my first small step, I decided to write for fifteen minutes a day, five days a week. What were my limitations?

• I wake up early naturally.
• A quiet environment allows me to focus, and my wife sleeps in most mornings.
• I am at my most creative in the morning.
• If I wait to write until later, it doesn’t happen.
• If I rise too far before daybreak, I’m sleepy and grouchy all day.

Thus, I knew writing in the morning when the house was still would serve my writing, but I had to pick a time to get up that was not too early. Acknowledging these limitations supported my body, mind, and spirit as I began my new writing routine.

How do you feel about making a list of the things you need to feel good, stay healthy, and be creative?

Begin with general timing. Maybe you are at your best late at night. Perhaps you like to take a break in the middle of the afternoon. Consider when your creativity seems to be highest.

Do you like to work in the quiet? Can you take a bit of noise? Can you tune out distractions?

Do you need to define your workspace? A sign can hang on a doorknob or even on the back of your chair at the kitchen table, warning people to not disturb you. Lighting a candle or placing a totem in your creative space can move your mind into writing mode.

Of course, if you’re a parent, then your timing and space are not always your own. Do you need quiet to work? Then tucking your writing into naptime or after bedtime, may be your best option. Can you work through noise and distraction? Perhaps your writing can occur while playtime ensues.  

Give yourself the space and time to explore what you need to maintain a happy, healthy life while integrating your new writing practice. Consider how your small step can glide into your current routine, making accommodations for your lifestyle, body, and creativity equally.

Visualize How Your Small Step Will Fit into Your Life

Adding a small step, even within our limitations, means pushing against some part of your everyday life. Imagining your new custom begins your journey in a nonthreatening way. Tweak your vision until it feels easy and comfortable.

With my limitations clearly defined, I realized that rising fifteen minutes earlier than usual gave me the space to write. That meant waking up at 6:30 AM. The change from 6:45 AM to 6:30 AM seemed very doable.

Next, I visualized my morning.

At 6:30 AM, I would get up. Fifteen minutes to feed the pets and walk to my office. Time to write from 6:45 AM until 7:00 AM. Then, take my shower (½ hour), walk the dogs (½ hour), and eat my breakfast (½ hour). At 8:30 AM, get in the car and go to the day job.

Done and done.

Peace rose in my soul as I realized I’d created the space in my life for my writing to occur.

What is the tiny change you can make to your current routine to accommodate your small step? Can you imagine how it will fit into your everyday life? If it doesn’t feel doable, make changes until it feels simple.

Set Your Stage To Avoid Limitations

This part of the preparation is literally setting yourself up for success. Now that you can see your process, make sure that everything you need to write is ready to go and complete any necessary activities to make the space.

Before going to bed, I placed a pen that worked on top of my notebook. My laptop computer was charged. The writing program I prefer was updated and ready for action.

I also made my lunch for the next day so I could give that time to my writing.

Each evening, I committed to my morning writing time while chopping the veggies for my daily salad and giving my writing space that final check.

What can you do to set your stage? What items do you need ready to go when you walk into your studio or office? Are there to-dos that you can complete to make the space for your writing time?

Time to Begin

With the parameters defined, take action. Get started and see what happens. Adjust this routine as necessary to make it effective for you.

If you think that this small step can’t possibly be enough, know this. By starting where you are and getting comfortable with this tiny change, you are creating the possibility of more. When I began writing for fifteen minutes each weekday three years ago, I never imagined that it would translate into a habit that would encourage my work for hours at a time. But it did, and now I write for three to four hours each weekday.

Begin where you are. Take the action you can take right now. Once your small step has become a habit, you can allow your excitement to push you to do more.

But for now, let your parameters and the routine support you as you take that first small step.

***This piece is informed by and uses Kaizen-Muse Creativity Coaching Tools.

Tell us in the comments: What are your limitations? How can you overcome them and set your stage for success?

LA (as in tra-la-la) Bourgeois empowers you to embrace JOY as you manifest your creative goals through her Creativity and Business Coaching. Battle resistance, procrastination, and overwhelm with her at your side, gently encouraging with humor and heart. Discover more at her website, labourgeois.biz

The post Acknowledge Your Limitations and Set Your Stage for Success appeared first on DIY MFA.

Aside from whether to pursue the traditional publishing route or self-publish, the most frequently asked question I receive from those looking to publish is how much money my book made. The price of publishing comes in different forms – what was your cut, how many copies have you sold, has the book been doing well? Essentially, it all boils down to one simple query: was it worth it?

I always tell writers who ask these questions if their goal of publishing is to make money, then they definitely shouldn’t publish. Publishing a book will not make you rich. In fact, the royalties probably won’t be enough to make your student loan payment. When it comes to the price of publishing, so many are focused on the ROI, they forget “I” stands for investment. And you can’t get a return unless you invest.

Defining Success & Paths to Publication

Aside from evaluating why you want to publish, another important question writers need to ask themselves is “What does success mean to me?” Is success getting on the bestseller list? Is success selling a million copies? Or is success simply finishing something? Your idea of “success” has a drastic impact on your chosen path to publication, which then affects your investment.

Now, while I could probably talk all day about the different paths to publishing, we’re only going to take a little crash course here.  It’s important to understand how the paths to publication affect how much the writer will need to invest in making their book a “success”. 

The appeal of the traditional publishing route is the Big 5 publishing houses have spent decades cultivating connections within the literary community, which they use to promote their authors and their books, and usually have big budgets to back that promotion up. Independent publishers also have connections, but usually smaller budgets and less human power which puts some of the burden of making the book a “success” on the writer. Self-publishing, on the other hand, the writer is typically on their own from start to finish.

The Price of Publication

To give you a little background on where I’m coming from, I’m a first-time author whose book was published by an independent press. Here are some of the costs I encountered on my path from contract to bookshelf.

Website

These days, the thing you absolutely must have is a website. Fortunately, where are so many service providers such as WordPress, Squarespace, and Wix who make it easy to create a website, even if you’re not the most tech savvy person. However, the more fancy you get with it, the more costs can add up. Purchasing a domain name, monthly hosting fees, and design-related expenses can put you in the hundreds and go up to thousands of dollars.

Publicity

Whether you’re being published by one of the Big 5 or self-publishing, one thing is true everywhere: at the end of the day, getting your book out there is 100% on you. The costs no one tells you about are the time, effort, and energy it takes to get your book out there.

Even though I already worked full-time, promoting my book was the full-time job I worked after I clocked out of my 9-to-5. I spent countless hours carefully curating Instagram posts, sending messages to Instagrammers and bloggers, and planning a calendar of content designed to engage and pique the interest of readers.

That’s not an option for everyone, though. Publicity and marketing consultants are more than happy and qualified to help you navigate social media, make meaningful connections, and get your book out there…for a price. However, you’ll be happy to know that no matter what your price range, there’s a pot for every lid.

Giveaways

My publisher gave me a single box of 44 author copies for free, the rest I purchased at the author rate, which was still pretty substantial. Shipping fees, packing materials, and ads for giveaways quickly put my bank account in the red.

Final Thoughts

In the beginning of this article, I told you all this boils down to one simple query: was it worth it? I guess it’s only fitting that I answer. At the end of the day, my book ended up costing me more than it made back in terms of straight dollars and sense. However, my social media promotions allowed me to build an audience of people anxious for my next book, my website gets a decent amount of traffic, and I managed to have an email exchange with one of my favorite authors. Was it worth it? Absolutely.

LAUREN J. SHARKEY is a writer, teacher, and transracial adoptee. After her birth in South Korea, she was adopted by Irish Catholic parents and raised on Long Island. Sharkey’s creative nonfiction has appeared in the Asian American Feminist Collective’s digital storytelling project, First Times, as well as several anthologies including I Am Strength! and Women under Scrutiny. Inconvenient Daughter is her debut novel, and loosely based on her experience as a Korean adoptee. You can follow her at ljsharks.com.

The post The Price of Publishing appeared first on DIY MFA.

What got under people’s skin was probably not so much the tough “truths” that Boudinot spouts, but his attitude as a writing teacher. Since this essay first appeared, there have been numerous responses, including the website ryanboudinot.com that aggregates these follow-up pieces. Most recently, senior writer for Salon.com Laura Miller published a focused and in-depth response to the original piece. Her take-home message is that while there may be some truth in what Boudinot says about his experience as a teacher, his snarky attitude is out of line.

I couldn’t agree more.

Teaching Writing Is a Privilege

Here’s the thing about teaching writing: while it may not bring you gold or glory, it is perhaps the most important job a person can choose. Whether you teach toddlers to grip their crayons and shape their first letters, or you teach graduate seminars on postmodern literature, you are teaching people to write, communicate, record their thoughts and ideas on the page. Teaching is a noble art and nothing infuriates me more than people who debase it. Sometimes these people are the teachers themselves.

Teaching writing is not some sort of sacrifice or a form of martyrdom. It’s a privilege. It’s not a side-gig you do until you “make it” as a writer. It’s not a fall-back plan if the writing thing doesn’t work out. This notion that teaching is somehow second to the writing is completely backwards. Teaching should come first. True teachers moonlight as writers, not the other way around. And any teacher who thinks otherwise should seriously reconsider her career choice.

We Don’t Need Rejection From Our Teachers

As a subject, writing is particularly sensitive to an instructor’s hand. If teachers are not careful they can squelch a young writer before she even finds her footing. In an industry fraught with rejection and broken dreams, the last thing a writer needs is to get slammed down by a teacher. We writers get enough rejection as it is, thank you very much.

I know this first-hand because it happened to me. Not once, but twice in fact.

The first time was in a grade school, when the powers-that-be put me in a remedial English class because I was bilingual. According to the so-called experts at this school, although I was a perfectly capable student, the fact that my first language was not English meant I had a learning disability. Years later, research came out contradicting this stupidity and the head of that elementary school even went so far as to issue me and my family a formal apology. Still, the damage to my confidence as a writer had been done.

The real blow, however, happened in college. It was in my senior spring semester and decided to enroll in a fiction writing seminar. I thought this would be a fun way to round out my English major and take on a new creative challenge. Instead, what I got was a professor who created a hostile and competitive environment in the classroom. Students would undercut each other and tear down each other’s work so that they could get praise from this so-called brilliant scholar. That semester I learned nothing about writing fiction. Instead, I became so uncertain about my abilities that I did not put a pen to the page for seven–yes, seven–years after taking that class.

When I finally got my head back on straight, I decided that I would work day and night to get good at my writing, but more importantly, I would become the best damn writing teacher I could be. Maybe I had to suffer at the hand of a few lousy teachers in my own life, but I could protect other writers from similar monsters. Writing belongs to everyone, after all. And every writer–regardless of “talent” and “potential”–deserves a chance to find her voice, and tell her story. The latter has become my personal mission.

Of course, I’m not saying that all writers are destined to craft a bestselling series or win a Pulitzer Prize. For many, success means writing the story they have in their hearts, recording their life to share with their grandkids, or finally seeing their name in a byline. Success comes in all flavors and it’s not the teacher’s job to define what the “Real Deal” means for their students. A good teacher helps students inch toward their goals no matter what they may be. A good teacher fans the creative flame and motivates students to do their best work. And yes, a good teacher must sometimes give out a healthy reality check, but that should never come as public humiliation, however anonymous those comments may be.

This has been my core philosophy and the inspiration behind DIY MFA. I founded this program to empower the disenfranchised writers of the world, the writers who might not be “good enough” or “literary enough” for a traditional MFA, but who still love to write and want to share their stories. The MFA is not for everyone, and according to Boudinot even most MFA students don’t qualify as the “Real Deal” (at least not by his narrow definition). So, if a writer doesn’t fit into his tidy little box, what is she supposed to do… give up and stop writing altogether?

Hell no.

E Tu, Brute?

When Boudinot rails against his less-spectacular students, he breaks that sacred teacher-student bond. He does the same thing to his students that was done to me years ago: he silences their voices for his own narcissistic purposes.

I founded DIY MFA because I was done letting other people scare me into silence. No longer would I let someone else define what success meant to me. And dammit, above all else I was going to write. Will you join me in this crusade? Teachers like Boudinot only have power over us if we give it to them. It’s time we writers took that power back.

Don’t Give Up Hope

Before I close, I want to speak to all the writers out there who have been slammed down by a horrible writing teacher in the past. First, know that you are not alone. I’m right there with you, and as you can tell from this post, I’m mad as hell.

Second, don’t let these posers get you down. They’re not real teachers.

Real teachers honor and respect their students. They know when to offer encouragement and when to dole out “tough love.” Real teachers understand that learning is not one-size-fits-all. They encourage curiosity and help students develop in their own unique ways. Real teachers don’t see diverse skills or new ideas as “problems.” They relish the differences between their students and help them find their individual paths.

If you’re brave enough to put your words on the page and to share the story that’s in your heart, you are the “Real Deal.” Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

Keep fighting the good fight, and remember that I’m in your corner.

P.S. This post is dedicated to all the REAL teachers in my life: Mrs. N., Mr. W, Mrs. T, and Prof. L. They gave me the strength and courage to follow my “crazy” ideas wherever they might lead so I could make an impact on the world. While I can never repay this gift, my hope is to pay it forward and help my own students do the same.

The post To Anyone Who’s Been Slammed by a Writing Teacher appeared first on DIY MFA.

These words–from my own agent (Jeff Kleinman at Folio Literary Management)–are probably the best advice I’ve ever received as a writer. After all, the #1 way to improve your odds of getting published is to write a great book so writing beautifully is the obvious first step. But what does this advice mean, exactly? How do you know when you’ve written something truly great?

After all, if you’re anything like me, you’ve probably read countless books on writing, written hundreds of prompts, and practically have the three-act structure branded onto your brain. If you’ve taken those necessary steps to master nuts-and-bolts craft stuff, what do you do if you’re hearing crickets every time you send your work out to agents or editors?

The truth is that working on your own will only take you so far as a writer. There’s more to getting published than just writing a good book: you need a writing community.

Writing is not a solo sport.

There’s a reason most MFA programs and most writing classes revolve around a workshop structure. Sharing your writing, getting feedback on your work, these things are crucial for writing success. Community not only keeps you sane and offers you support, it will also make you a better writer. And in the end, becoming a better writer will help you write a better book… which improves your odds of getting published. (There’s that “write a great book” tip again.)

These days, there are a zillion and a half writing communities both online and off, so how do you find the one that’s right for you? If you’re into the DIY MFA approach, then you don’t have to go very far to find a vibrant, engaged community.

Introducing DIY MFA 101

DIY MFA 101 is our flagship course, designed not only to help you write a better book and navigate the publishing process, but to help you connect with a community of like-minded writers. This course is based on the three main tenets of DIY MFA–writing, reading and community–and it covers the seven basic elements of a writing education so you cover the essentials of an MFA curriculum in just 10 weeks!

When I first came up with the idea for DIY MFA, this was the course I envisioned. Over the past year, I’ve poured my heart and soul into building and testing every detail. I couldn’t be more thrilled with how it has turned out and I’m so excited to share it with you all today. More importantly, I am humbled and honored to be working with a phenomenal group of writers who have already joined the course.

These amazing, dedicated writers have blown me away with the sharp questions they’ve asked and keen insights they’ve shared. It’s such a diverse community, representing everything from novels to short fiction, poetry to memoir, and so much more. I am so thrilled to work with these writer and to have witnessed their leaps-and-bounds progress so far. I can’t wait to see them become the best writers they can be.

As an added bonus, when you take DIY MFA 101, you not only participate in the course this semester, but you have continued access to the materials and community long after the class is over. Unlike many writing courses where you get to the end of the semester and everyone parts ways, my goal with 101 is to continue building this community of intrepid writers so everyone can grow as a group and learn from each other in the process.

Here’s what writers are saying about DIY MFA 101:

“On the other side of the helpful techniques and general knowledge that would have taken me years of trial and error to learn on my own, the DIY MFA 101 course came with a collection of other writers to help form that ever elusive writer community. The other students of the course helped me to realize that even though writing feels like a solitary pursuit, there are other writers out there going through the same struggles and we all love to support each other.”

–Laura Highcove

“Since taking the class, I’m writing more and feeling more like a writer. I’ve joined another critique group and I’m finding more about what’s out there in the writing world. Also, the class materials are really well done and very motivational — especially for someone like me for whom writing can feel solitary! When each workshop came out, they always seemed to address a question I was having or a place I was stuck. It was almost eerie how apt they were.”

–Joel Knopf

“At first I was hesitant because of the time commitment–I wasn’t sure if I could keep up. I also did not have the flexibility to go to a classroom so I liked that it was all online. Before taking the class, I thought writing was magic. Now I pay attention to how things are written and I know that writing is craft and practice. My writing has improved immensely, I have made great friends via my critique group which started with this class, and I have gained some great job skills as well. I would definitely recommend this class. It is flexible, affordable, and gives you the opportunity to meet like minded writers.”

–Anel Albertao

Registration for DIY MFA 101 is officially open. If you’re looking to join an exciting writing community that will both support you and challenge you to do your best work, look no further.

Check out  DIY MFA 101. Class starts on September 15, so don’t wait!

The post What You Need for Writing Success… Besides Crafting a Great Book appeared first on DIY MFA.