Starting Vermont College MFA

Two weeks from Christmas I'll be boarding a plane at O-dark thirty in Des Moines and landing in Burlington, Vermont that afternoon. I've planned this for months.

I arranged my (gulp) financial aid in September. I bought my plane ticket in October. I sent my piece for the workshop in November.

But today a thick packet arrived from Vermont. Inside was a copy of the 20-pages-or-so piece I'd sent along with 11 other people's.

Flipping through 11 strangers' manuscripts made this whole going back to school thing seem frighteningly real all of a sudden. And exciting.