“I think the MFA programs have had a real effect on the state of American fiction, but I don't think it's a question of "this is written by someone with an MFA, and this isn't." I challenge anyone to identify a book in that way. It's totally impossible.” ThinkingWayBookRealStatesChallengesFictionImpossibleWrittenEffectsProgram Author:Chad Harbach
“The effects of MFA programs, and the rise of creative writing instruction more generally, are far more diffuse than people think. Even if you're a writer who has avoided institutions your whole life, you're still going to be reading a lot of writers who have MFAs, and are affiliated with universities.” PeopleIfsThinkingWritingStillsWholeReadingCreativeEffectsProgramInstitutionsUniversityWhole LifeInstructionCreative WritingAvoided Author:Chad Harbach
“If you're part of any kind of writerly community, some of those people will have gone through MFA programs, and their thinking leaks into yours. So whatever changes MFAs have made to the culture, it's to the culture as a whole. It can't be pinned down to individual books in a way that some people would like to do.” PeopleIfsThinkingWayKindMadeBookWholeCultureIndividualCommunityGoneProgramLeaks Author:Chad Harbach
“I sold a book six years after I left an MFA program. In between, there was a lot of endurance of poverty and a lot of fighting off doubt. It's all a part of the process of being or becoming a writer.” YearsBookFightingLeftProcessPovertyDoubtBecomingSixProgramEndurance Author:Chad Harbach
