After ten days spent immersed in craft talks and readings, surrounded by folks absolutely committed to their writing, returning to everyday life and everyday concerns can be disconcerting. I mentioned a sense of isolation that is a part of the low-residency model and, for me at least, this feeling is most acute in the days immediately following Residency. Like being adrift, unmoored.
Fortunately this feeling passes after a day or two, especially when you realize the sheer amount of work ahead in the next six months. I’m in my essay semester and I’ve just started doing research for my paper on Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel, The Unconsoled. It’s a dense novel and will be a real challenge to write about. Fortunately, it’s also a novel I greatly admire. One thing that’s helped a lot is Pacific University’s account with Jstor, an online resource that lets you access a huge amount of articles and scholarly essays from a myriad of academic journals. It’s an incredibly useful resource that students can access through Pacific’s library website.
I’ll be at Clarion West next summer. From the frying pan into the fire, etc. etc. If you have any questions about the MFA at Pacific University, especially regarding wheelchair access, feel free to contact me.
Akopos 