“Is it worth it to pursue an advanced degree or are there now enough classes and tools and webinars and retreats out there to make a degree in writing superfluous?”

While I have chosen not to pursue an advanced degree in writing (which may tell you something right there), there are many writers who have done so and been glad they did. Writers I’ve spoken with who’ve completed MFA programs were appreciative of the rigor, focus, and structure of the coursework, and some later went on to teach themselves. The degree also gave them a sense of credibility as a professional writer.

On the other hand, many writers struggle to keep writing without the rigor and structure of a formal program once they’ve completed their degree, and I’ve spoken with more than a few writers over the years whose writing practices have simply fallen apart without their courses, deadlines, fellow students, and instructors to keep them going. This is a common issue for writers across the board, to be sure, but what I’ve seen with MFA graduates with this issue is an intensified sense of loss, guilt, and shame around not writing.  [more…]