Why MFA Programs Matter

It is a sunny July morning in the Midwest, one of those days when it starts off cool, the dew lingering a while on the grass and the delighted flowers. Yet you know the second you walk outside and feel the sultry air on your skin that it will warm up dramatically by lunchtime. And in my small town of Ashland, Ohio, a classroom building whose large windows face a bright flower garden is filled with activity—conversation after conversation on various aspects of writing literature.