Intro: Laura, Emerson (Class of 2013)

Hello! I'm Laura and I will be beginning Emerson's MFA program in poetry in the fall.

About me: I'm from the tiny state of Rhode Island, full of beaches, old buildings, unemployment, and unpronounceable town names. I am finishing up my BA in English at the University of Rhode Island, which has a little-known but amazing creative writing department. I have a habit of taking too many classes and working too many jobs at once.

I was first encouraged to apply to MFA programs my junior year in college by a wonderful poetry professor. After I did more research, I decided that going for my MFA was really what I wanted. Application season was pretty much a seven-month-long panic attack -- I wanted to get in so badly and freaked out daily about whether I would. I had plans B through E drafted in my head and ready to implement at a moment's notice. I was lucky enough to get accepted to multiple programs, and it was a really difficult decision. I chose Emerson because of the many different opportunities it offers: teaching; taking classes in publishing, literature, and from other departments; working in multiple genres (I also write creative nonfiction). I also love Boston and am really excited to move there.

A little bit about my writing: If it's true that every writer has some kind of central fascination or obsession that drives his or her work, then mine is the fact that I am endlessly fascinated by the strangeness of life. I love the odd, the quirky, the offbeat; how strange this world already is, and how many strange things humans have added to it. I'm especially interested right now in working along the line between realism and fabulism.

I'm looking forward to posting on this blog, getting to know the other bloggers, and writing about my MFA experience. I'm so excited!