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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>I thought I would share my thoughts regarding courses we are
required to take outside the Creative Writing Dept., i.e. English Seminars –
I know some of you are working on an intro for new MFA’s for next year.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>While it is true some English professors will allow you to
write a “creative” piece instead of an academic paper for English
seminars, I would like to suggest that some of you might consider taking up the
challenge of writing an academic piece for whatever English seminar you choose.
I believe we are required to take these classes for a reason—to stretch
our range, and hopefully be more prepared should we enter the teaching field. After
all, many of us are going to need some sort of income while we continue to
write. </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>That said, I’m sure there are some professors that are
more helpful in this area than others. Speaking from experience, I took
Dr. Steven Axelrod’s English Seminar on “The Poetry of Grief and
Sadness in the Cold War Era.” It was informative, and opened my
eyes to new works and new ways of thinking about poetry. He was also very
helpful and supportive and gave a lot of input into my academic paper and put
me at ease, even though I was in a class with several Ph.D. candidates (who
often seemed to speak in a different language </span></font><font size=2
face=Wingdings><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Wingdings'>J</span></font><font
size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'> ). If
you feel you simply can’t do it, then of course, approach your professor
about writing a creative work – but we certainly get a lot of that in our
workshops and other classes, don’t we? I encourage everyone to
challenge themselves and make the most of your time here at UCR. It goes
by all too fast.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Mary Copeland</span></font></p>
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