Joshua Demaree is a creative nonfiction writer and a literary community organizer. Along with Emma Eisenberg, Joshua is a co-founder of Blue Stoop, a hub for literary Philly. Blue Stoop offers rigorous creative writing workshops as an MFA alternative with the express goal of opening up a physical space dedicated to literary culture in the greater … Continue reading Building Creative Community in the MFA and Beyond: A Conversation with Blue Stoop’s Joshua Demaree
MFA
Applying to Grad School? A Quick (Real) Guide to Applying to MFAs
Application season is a dreadful, exhausting season for many MFA-seeking writers. It's true when they say ('they' being current MFA students, past applicants, and program faculty) applying to MFA programs is not for the faint-hearted. For one, it takes forever. Researching and deciding on your top schools is not a simple task. Most programs require … Continue reading Applying to Grad School? A Quick (Real) Guide to Applying to MFAs
Experimental Fiction
New Writer: Hello, Mr. Editor. I have a story that I would like you to read. Old Editor: I figured you would. New Writer: Well, will you read it? Old Editor: I already read it, actually. New Writer: No way! When did you read it? Old Editor: Just this second. New Writer: Wow, you are … Continue reading Experimental Fiction
The Confessional: On Writing Sins
When I was a boy, I was an excellent listener. Every Sunday I would go to church and the preacher would preach and I would take his messages to heart. No matter how dubious the notion (water into wine, a pregnant virgin, condoms are bad), I would accept it as an absolute truth. I trusted … Continue reading The Confessional: On Writing Sins
The Final Ten Months of the M.F.A.
August: “So, you’ll be applying for a job, then?” my friend says to me. I cough up a little beer as I process his words. I’m heading into the last year of my M.F.A., and have a few things to show for it: teaching experience, a handful of connections, a few publications here and there, … Continue reading The Final Ten Months of the M.F.A.
What Murder, She Wrote Has to Say to the First Year MFA Student
After years of dreaming of joining an MFA program, painstakingly honing a packet of 15-20 poems, and spilling into tears at my first acceptance letter, I am here inside a verdant Virginia pocket. Chapbooks lean against a folding chair in my new living room. Drafts lie piled about my desk. The coffee pot huffs hourly … Continue reading What Murder, She Wrote Has to Say to the First Year MFA Student
The Minnesota Review 