COVER STORY
Why creative writing is a force on campus: Maintaining a balance between 'the mind and the heart' through storytelling
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"I don't at all doubt that MFA programs work," she says. "This is the only space where serious writers can engage in their craft. As you see students' evolution, it's remarkable. You can see by the sheer force and success of their work and the impact they make."
There is no better example of this evolution than Melissa Bank, MFA '88, who returned to Cornell to teach in spring 2009. The author of the best-selling short story collection "The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing" and the novel "The Wonder Spot," Bank declares, "I learned everything you can learn from other people about craft in an incredibly supportive environment."
Cornell's MFA program, she says, "is kind of miraculous, and the faculty are open-armed, very generous, thoughtful, inspiring people.
"I know that I turned into a better writer there."