Adventures in MFA Land

When I receive a pitch to be on my podcast, Washington Square On Air , I ask for a CV, resume or similar document. That similar document can be a messy list of degrees and jobs with or with accurate dates.  I don't care how the thing is formatted or how "pretty" it is. I sure don't care if it's 25 pages long. My show looks at the intersection between the writer's writing life/publications and their "other life." If a pitch states that the writer is a philosopher I want to know what kind. Are we talking the everyday kind? The scholarly kind? If we're talking the everyday kind, I'll know that when I don't see a degree listed. If we are talking the scholarly sort, a CV helps me see what type of philosophy studied, researched and/or published. The CV also informs me regarding the writer's journey. MFA route? Craft books and self-determination route? Other? Personally, I've done both. Both are fine. But each are different. I'd say ...

  Super excited to receive the w3award for my Washington Square OnAir interview episode with musician, writer, and more, MK Punky. Former gambler, current professional dog trainer and life-long creative M.K. Punky chats with Washington Square Review editor Melissa Ford Lucken. Punky, aka Konik, once a high stakes gambler, discusses how evaluating his intentions led him to living a very different life–one as a professional dog trainer. A lifelong writer, he muses over how his journalist mindset has contributed to his creative vision.

Let’s say its 1980 and you live in Detroit. Let’s say you’re one of the poser assholes who saw “Rock ‘n Roll High School” then thought you knew everything about punk music and the punk scene, so you decided to go see the Ramones at the Motor City Roller Rink. You wanted to be cool. You wanted to think you were better than the losers whose dashboards were stacked with AC/DC and Journey cassettes. Let’s say you showed up at that show in March, expecting to see those girls from the movie. You know, the ones in the skintight pink leopard print tops, smiling with their glossy lips and smelling like Love’s Baby Soft. Maybe you planned to hang with the jocks, pogoing in the mosh pit. You wanted to be one of them, jumping and down, shaking your moussed up, Supercuts hairstyle. Let’s say you were me. Maybe if I’d told what I saw that night back then, we all could’ve found a way to stop them. At least been ready. But I didn’t tell no one. And now that it’s too late, I’m telling you. ~~~~~~~~~~~~...

  Just for fun, here's a photo of Charles Schulz check, paying for his subscription to Archie comics, 1961.

In this clip, Shachi Kulkarni describes how watching the Beverly Hillbillies helped her make sense of her MFA program and begin to write herself as a author. One of my favorite moments of that season. Former competitive figure-skater Shachi Kulkarni chats with Washington Square Review editor Melissa Ford Lucken. Kulkarni describes a personal journey from the ice rink, through a political science undergraduate degree to the American University’s MFA program. An author who writes of heartache and once got a new perspective on creativity from a single episode of The Beverly Hillbillies inspires writers to follow their own path. Hear the full episode here.

This post is a compilation of reflections and information gathered during my 2025 spring sabbatical. My goal with the interviews (posted previously) was to gain insights about how journals are run and how the journals fit into other 2-yr writing programs. I compared what I read to my interview findings. In addition to the readings from my sabbatical, at AWP in March, I attended the sessions below about literary journals at four-year colleges. This document contains a blend of all those experiences.    Literary Journals Literary magazines don't make money. The goal of a literary journal is rarely to turn a profit. They are part of a bigger conversation about what matters in writing. Literary magazines are places for new ideas and changes. Since they don't aim to make money, they can take risks and try new things in writing and publishing.  These innovations can show up in different ways. They might include new content, fresh voices and perspectives, creative styles, new na...

Considering starting a literary journal at a two-year college? Already have one and looking for info or inspiration? You're welcome to check out my  OER: The Two-Year Lit Journal . It contains resources and information for faculty who manage a literary journal at a two-year college.

Poet and assistant Director of the Solstice MFA in creative writing program Quintin Collins provides inside information on MFA programs: how to apply, what to expect, and how to make the most of the unique opportunity. Listen to episode on Spotify

In February 2025, I interviewed 10 community college faculty. Each is an editor or supervisor of a literary journal published by their community college. Community College Literary Journals The journals are published in two formats: electronic and paper. Seven are available in both formats, one is paper only, and two are electronic only. All journals include fiction, poetry, and essays. Nine also include art. Art includes original art, such as graphic designs, and photographs of other artworks such as ceramics, murals, or paintings. Seven of the journals are given away for free. Three have a price between 4-10$. Three journals originated in the 1970s. Two began in the 1980s. One started in the 1990s. Two journals originated in the early 2000s, and two more began after 2010. All journals publish one issue a year. The smallest total number published by a journal, 15, and the largest total number published, 56.   Eight journals take the full academic year to put together and p...

  My essay, "Writing an Erotic Romance Novel" is included in this beautiful collection of "Bimbo" work. From my author's Note: Isabelle Drake was born in the spring of 2005. After 5 years of publishing mainstream romances, I’d gotten a small press contract for my first erotic romance, Everglades Wildfire. I used a pseudonym not because I was embarrassed about penning an erotic romance but because I wanted to enjoy the creative process of writing. I’d been trying to sell my manuscripts to The Big Publishers for years and had come heart-breakingly close on several occasions; publishing the steamy stuff in silence reconnected me with my love of writing and telling stories.... Surrounded by other hard-working authors and dedicated, happy readers, I didn’t find what I was doing scandalous, insignificant, easy, or worthy of ridicule. What did they, these freshly reacquainted folks of my past, think? Well, the essay answers that.  Read my essay and all the rest in The ...

Absolute  from Oklahoma City Community College Alchemy  from Portland Community College Bare Hill  from Finger Lakes Community College The Bellwether Review  from Portland Community College Breakwall from Cuyahoga Community College Cababi  from Pima Community College Cabbages & Kings  from Monroe Community College Calliope from Northern Virginia Community College Cedar Valley Divide  from Kirkwood Community College  Channel Marker  from Tidewater Community College Citadel  from Los Angeles City College Connections from College of Southern Maryland Facets  from Butler County Community College The Fall Line  from Piedmont Virginia Community College Freshwater  from Asnuntuck Community College Go Anywhere from Ozarks Technical Community College Images  from Monroe County Community College Letter & Line  from Portland Community College Luna  from Nassau Community College The MacGuffin  fr...

Last summer, when I was at a research institute reading my way through the mid-1950’s. I attended the Popular Culture Association’s Research Institute at Bowling Green State University’s Pop Culture Library to research the CCA approval process’ impact on Betty and Veronica and started reading wide for context. I read the comics, and about the comics, but then I started reading other periodicals published at the same time.  I read stacks of magazines from the mid-1950’s. I read Teen, Good Housekeeping, Playboy. I was struck the messaging around dating, dating culture, and “relationships.” Struck is putting it gently. Disturbed or disoriented are better descriptors. When I returned home, the desire (need) to “do” something pressed at me. I crafted a collage essay of featurettes. If you follow me on social media, you may have seen photos and read my comments about the surprises I encountered. Well, when I returned home, I pulled some of it together and created a new CNF subgenre:...

Podcasts of all kinds are everywhere and in many forms. Naturally you have thoughts about being a guest on one - chatting about your work, your glorious life as an esteemed author, and generally having a good time. How do you get on a podcast? How do you handle the moment once you get there? So many podcasts Think about which podcast you'd like to be a guest on. Start with the ones you enjoy and that relate to your interests and what you have to talk about. To find more podcasts, try using ListenNotes . This website provides information on podcasts, their topics, where listeners are from, and how popular they are. PodChaser is another place to find podcast lists. If you're interested in newsletters about podcasts, The Audio Storyteller substack offers helpful information. Once you've found some podcasts, listen to at least a few episodes. Note the common topics, tone, and vibe of the show. Analyze what makes the podcast special and how your topic fits in. Learn about ...

  Dark author humor of that particular breaking point right before you switch it up.

Career goal: contribute to the writing community The literary journal I relaunched at the college where I once taught continues publication. Under my editorialship, it earned high prestige and became one of the up-and-coming hot, must-read journals. Pieces I accepted won the Pushcart Prize, the O. Henry Award, and others. The over-all quality of the journal was so stellar, the publication too won awards.  Too many to list here. Currently, the journal continues its award-winning tradition and practice of accepting a variety of pieces, including ones from new authors whose writing, although not yet perfect, shows unique promise. Publication in the WSR, for new authors, is a career-changer.  My connection to the journal is as a consultant and occasional editor. I help with the tough decisions, when needed, and attend promotional events. Everyone wants to meet the brilliant, funny, and charming woman who brought the journal up out of the dust. Career goal: contribute to the readin...

Washington Square On Air, my podcast, is supported by the college where I teach and features authors from our literary journal, the Washington Square Review, students, publishing professionals, scholars, and others I think the writerly and creative world will find interesting. My goal is to connect with writers (as a writer), chat about the writing life, and the writing journey. I also poke around into other areas of the person's life. Writers write, but they also do other interesting things. I love to hear about jobs and trips and experiences and discover the way those things do and don't impact a person's creative life.  I ask the writers to talk about their book and how they came to write it, but my focus is on the writer, a person, rather than on a particular book. That's the vibe of the show. My thinking is focusing on the writer as a person will ensure that their episode remains relevant over time. Here's the official show description: Melissa Ford Lucken, the...

  In June I attended a research institute in Ohio. It was a scholarly thing, populated by grad students and independent researchers all studying some aspect of pop culture. My research project was on Betty and Veronica from the Archie comics prior and after the Comics Code Authority approval process. While I was passing through the stacks, I spotted a shelf filled with issues of True Story, a confession genre magazine I published with in the very beginning of my writing career. I think I sold about a dozen of my very secret and scandalous confessions. Naturally, upon seeing these issues I had to make a video - see above. The confession magazines printed stories they claimed to be the darkest confessions from all around the world. Looking back now, I think they are much like the reality shows of today. The stories fill the same niche. Here's what the ultra trusty and scholarly source Encycopeida.com has to say about these magazines: "In May 1919, the first issue of True Story ...

Isabelle Drake was born in 2005, the year I (Melissa Ford Lucken) published my first erotic romance, Everglades Wildfire, with the long defunct Venus Press. She, I, published several titles with Venus Press before moving on the publish with the now infamous Ellora's Cave. For those more recently delivered to this romance book scene, Ellora's Cave was The first big publisher of erotic romance. Being an EC author was, despite quick and sad the way things ended, great. Big parties, big promotions, and truly great readers. In addition to having fun, I learned much writing erotic romance. One thing I learned about my writer self is that I like writing what "they" tell me I can't. If someone adds to that message that I shouldn't write something that doubles the likelihood that I will be writing it. The entire time I've been building my career as an author, I've been building an academic career. Sometimes people think I kept the two parts of myself separate b...

  The unique feature of the he Louisville Book Festival  is that the event supports young readers and authors of children's and YA books. In October, I attended both days of the event and had a great time chatting with the bus loads of middle and high schoolers who attended the event. 

The very first thing is to write the entire first draft. Step 1 While polishing up that first draft, get a subscription to Publisher's Marketplace . Make a list of agents/editors who are selling/buying a manuscript similar to yours. Continue examining the market. Occasionally skim  Publisher's Marketplace . Make a list of "comp" titles .  Step 2 Prepare the query. If you’d like a template to get you started: check out this template . Using the list from step 1, start submitting. You can get agent/editor submission information from Publisher's Marketplace (above). Agentquery.com is a good source for agent information. Keep track of the queries. I’m old school so used paper. I used 3x5 cards because they are big enough and small enough. If you’re more of a spreadsheet person, do that. Send the submissions. Keep track of those as well. Include what you sent, etc. At the time you send them, you may think you would never forget, but consider the possibility ...