Greetings Fellow Applicants

Hoorah!

I have been waiting for the 2010 CW forum to open up ever since new posts stopped appearing on the 2009 forum.  Now it's here and I am psyched.  I can't wait to start hearing from the rest of this year's applicants.

I guess I should introduce myself.  My name is Scott, but you can call me Oso.  I live in Tennessee, teach high school math by day and write by night (no time for crimefighting...yet).  Married, father of one human and two canines. 

I applied last year but missed the cut.  Still, I made lots of contacts and friendships through this forum.  Some of those I've been in touch with ever since; others I'm hoping to see posts from again this year.  And of course I can't wait to meet new folks, too.

I'm still wrestiling with which piece(s) to send so I'm attacking all ofmy most promising with a wire brush to see which ones shine best.  We'll see.  Good luck to all and I can't wait to hear from you.

-Oso

osomuerte.wordpress.com

Okay, what gives?

This forum was rockin by this time last year.  Okay, maybe not rocking, but we had a real community going.  It was nice.

Now if the silence means no one else is applying this year, well, I guess I'm in. Cool On the down side, I won't accomplish much there all by myself. Yell

[end desperate plea for contact]

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

Hey Oso, (New) forum

Hey Oso,

(New) forum moderator here!  Sorry about that - my class was pretty active on this forum, and as you've pointed out, so were many other years' classes.  I've just suggested to alumni that we encourage our friends who've applied to come join the conversation.  Hopefully things will get a little busier soon.

cheers!

amy

Hi Oso, I'm not applying (I

Hi Oso,

I'm not applying (I went in 2005) but good luck to you and everyone else in getting in. I remember sending off my application and waiting. Ack! It made me so nervous, but hopefully all this years applicants will have more grace than myself. 

Desperate plea answered!

All right, I have officially reset my login so that I can sign in. Any questions or excitements, Oso?

Yay, I'm not alone anymore!

No questions or anything, just excited about the possibilities...until I looked at my story stash and realized my best ones are all too long to submit.  Surprised  Working on that as we speak.

I'm trying to sit back and play it cool, waiting for the aspirants to come join the conversation.  After being waitlisted last year, I've been chomping at the bit for application time to come.  Now it's here and I'm not ready for it.  Embarassed  And I seem to be using a lot of emoticons this year.

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

Waitlisted last year -- did

Waitlisted last year -- did we meet at a party? Would have been the Palahniuk one. 

I've not really met anyone,

I've not really met anyone, isolated as I am in Tennessee.  I just meet people online.  *sigh*  And you wonder why I want to go to the workshop...

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

Not sure if I'll be applying

Not sure if I'll be applying this year (might, we'll see), but I'll say hi and good luck :)

 

 

S'okay, Oso, you're not

S'okay, Oso, you're not alone in application land.

I applied in 2009 and managed to work the entire house into a frazzled knot of stress before receiving my rejection.  My 2010 app. went out in the mail yesterday, and this year there is enough stress to keep my mind off the selection process.

I hope.

Since the 2009 application I've made 6 sales, one of which was to Jim Baen's UNIVERSE in their Introducing slot.  I will miss JBU when the doors close in April.

Fingers crossed for each and every one of us.

 

Sandra

Sandra, I remember you from

Sandra,

I remember you from last year's forums.  And JBU?  That's awesome!  Congratz.  and good luck with your app.

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

Right back at'cha!  Yeah,

Right back at'cha!

 Yeah, still writing, not like I can stop.  There are days I wonder if it would be easier if I didn't have that particular monkey on my back, but what the hell.

 

Sandra

Good luck, Sandra. I

Good luck, Sandra. I recognize your name from PodCastle slush--I hope you get in. --Rachel 

Hiya Scott/ Oso!  Glad to

Hiya Scott/ Oso!  Glad to see you are applying again.  Enjoyed exchanging posts last year.  One of the biggest secrets to success as a writer is persistence -- you just have to keep writing, and keep submitting, and keep trying, and not let the rejections stop you, until you succeed -- so you are on the right path.  Smile

Best of luck! 

Randy

 

Hey Randy.  Been a while.

Hey Randy.  Been a while.  You sure got the persistence part right: I just scored a finalist in the Writers of the Future contest!  (2009, 4th quarter)  Find out in about a month if I'm a winner. I think I've got that story whittled down enough to send with my CW app.  I just hope the cuts won't hurt the story too much.So yeah, I'm keeping at it.   -Oso  (http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

Wow, familiar faces from the

Wow, familiar faces from the WotF forum. Congrats on the finalist nod, Oso, and good luck applying for CW!

I will probably be applying to CW this year.  Looks like I'm in good company.

Yes, persistence!  I

Yes, persistence!  I applied to CW three times before I got accepted. Keep writing and submitting!

 Good luck!
Lucas '09

Hi Oso, I applied this year

Hi Oso,

I applied this year too, so best of luck to you!

I have to say, though, I visited the 09 gang last year and their forming of the hive mind on a regular basis frightened me. I've taken great pains to stash a copy of my 'uncorrupted' mind on my hard drive, should this great terror come to pass for me. You should do the same!

Best wishes,

Lauren

My mind has already been

My mind has already been locked away in cold storage.  Haven't used it in years.  Thought I might break it out for the workshop, but the thawing process takes weeks and a lot of warm saline.  Or was it warm sake?  I can never remember.

I'm not too concerned about a hive mind.  I already have enough personalities to take over the hive.

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

Hi Oso/everyone!  Frank

Hi Oso/everyone!  Frank here from Mobile, Alabama.  I'm new around
here, just getting my feet wet on the forums.  I'm throwing my hat into
the ring for this year's Clarion, both of them.  I've known about
Clarion for a few years, having learned about it from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Publishing Science Fiction. 

I've been reluctant to apply in previous years due to writing
immaturity and lack of funds.  This year, I hope my writing has
improved to a point that I have a shot, and my money situation is
working out such that I can pay for it if I'm lucky enough to make it. :)

I want to wish everyone all the best luck on their submissions and
on getting chosen.  If anyone needs a critical eye to look at
submission manuscripts, I'm your man.  ;)

 

http://frankrayard.wordpress.com

I just finished writing my

I just finished writing my application essay.  If anyone's having trouble with that, we had a threadlast year where people posted links to their essays.  It was kind of neat seeing different people's approaches.

Here's the thread. http://www.clarionwest.org/node/485  It was after the deadline that we started posting.  Actually it was after acceptances started rolling out.

By the way, welcome Frank.  Good luck.

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

Hi! I'm Corinne.  I'm also

Hi!

I'm Corinne.  I'm also new, terribly nervous, and a first-time applicant.

 

Good to meet you all. 

Hi Corinne.  Nice to meet

Hi Corinne.  Nice to meet you.  Been writing long?

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

All my life, but I'm still a

All my life, but I'm still a complete newb when it comes to doing it semi-seriously - I started with actual novels and short stories in late '07, and only sold my first story in mid-late '08.

 So I don't know what the odds are, but hey, it can't hurt to try! :)

 Nice to meet you, too. I can't wait to see this place flourish in the weeks/months to come.

Hi Corrine,   Nice to meet

Hi Corrine,

 

Nice to meet you.  Best wishes on applying, and here's hoping we'll meet in Seattle!

The thought alone makes me

The thought alone makes me squee. I've only been to the US twice, so if I'd make it in... man. It'd be so cool for many, many reasons.

 Thanks for the good-luck wishes - I'm going to need it. Still figuring out if I should submit a short story or a novel excerpt... 

 

Best of luck to you too - and everyone else applying, of course. It's going to be a tense two months :)

 (PS: it's Corinne - single R, double N. A lot of people get it wrong, so it's kind of a sore spot.) 

Corinne,   Sorry about

Corinne,

 

Sorry about spelling your name wrong.  I was posting between goings-on at work, and hopefully that explains, in some part, my ineptitude.

Where are you from?  

No worries :) Amsterdam,

No worries :)

Amsterdam, born and raised. I've previously visited Sacramento, San Francisco and New York, never Seattle - but I heard it's a really beautiful city. Plus, I have a friend there I've never met.

 What about you?

 

All right...I'm about ready

All right...I'm about ready to go.  Story is ready (an unfortunate font issue had me thinking it was too long, but it's perfect at 30 pages).  Essay is ready.  Scholarship form is ready to be scanned.  At least $30 left on my credit card.  Barring some horrific computer spasm (God, no!) I should have my app sent tomorrow. 

My Clarion SD app went out a few minutes before a stomach virus laid me up for the first half of this week.  Now CW is caught up.  I'm already telling my principal that my summer is shot for inservice.  :)  High hopes can't hurt.  

Hope everyone else is getting their apps out, too.  How many of you are applying for both? Or Odyssey?  Any other workshops?  

A thread came up last year as to which Clarion people would rather be accepted to.  That I won't ask.  It would suck to get into my "second choice" and be shunned like a traitor for my uneducated pre-workshop opinion.  My preference is to go to a Clarion workshop this summer and come out a better writer than I went in.  Beyond that, I don't care.

I'm rambling now, so I'll stop.

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

Exciting! Good luck :) I'm

Exciting! Good luck :)

I'm close to done as well. My essay needs one more read-through and I still need to figure out if I'm going to go with a short story or a novel excerpt, but I'll probably have it sent out before the end of the week.

 I'd apply to CSD as well, but I only have one short story I feel confident about right now, and they require two. Maybe if I finish another one before March, I'll whip up a last-minute application for them. 

I just realised I have the same initials as Clarion San Diego... wonder if that's a sign.

Just submitted, after an

Just submitted, after an hour of fiddling with PDF files. (Oh, how I hate them.)

 *faint*

When is the deadline for

When is the deadline for submitting anyway? I cant remember from last year and I don't see it anywhere obvious.

Deadline is March 1. 

Deadline is March 1.  February 1st is the early deadline...I think it saves you a little money if you apply before then and make it.  At least it used to.  I don't see it advertised anywhere, but I haven't really looked.

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

Congratz and good luck! 

Congratz and good luck!  And down with PDFs!

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

Two weeks to the deadline. 

Two weeks to the deadline.  Everybody got their applications filed?  I think you get until the zero hour to file the application electronically, but that takes more than five minutes (to be safe...and double-check your formatting!) so be prepared.

Last year, a couple calls went out by March 3rd.  I don't think it took more than a couple weeks for them to nail down the class and let the participants know.  I had my wait list notification by the 19th.  I won't dare expect things to move that fast this time (Heck, I'm still waiting for a contest result from October), but it won't be long.

"Won't be long"?  Did I just say that?  No, but I just typed it.  A month is long.  If my car was in the shop for a month, I'd be furious.  If I took a month off work, I'd be unemployed (bad example for people applying to a six-week workshop).  I can't hold my breath for a month or go a month without eating.   Who am I kidding, I can hold my breath longer than I can go without eating (though eating while holding your breath can be tricky).  

App is in and there's nothing left to do but wait.  I cope by splattering text over every message board I can find.  Last year I wrote a complete story while I waited to hear, though I can't recall which story.  I've got a couple contest and anthology deadlines looming in March.  I'm going to try to finish up the stories for those and write a full new one (okay, a flash piece I outlines at Starbucks) before my phone rings from Seattle.  Or the email arrives.  Last year it was phone calls for the acceptances and emails for everyone else.  San Diego reportedly did everything by email.  

It's always tough to wait.

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

Hey, Oso, other folks. I'm

Hey, Oso, other folks. I'm new to the forum, but Oso and I have been keeping track of each other since last year's app period. Wow, it's been that long! I applied to Clarion (the other one) last year and worked myself into a lather worrying about it. I was checking my email every hour in March! Then came the very politely worded rejection. I feel a lot more relaxed this time, just gonna take it as it comes. Looking forward to getting to know you all! 

When I was waiting in 05, I

When I was waiting in 05, I read every account of people attending the workshop that I could find. (Also, our embryonic class was very active in the forums, which helped defray some of the tension.)  I was waiting on acceptances from MFA programs at the same time so my whole future felt like it was in flux. The time passes. And there are lots of blogs about what the experience was like in the meantime.(Hint: awesome)  

I can't bring myself to keep

I can't bring myself to keep read people's experiences - what I've read so far has only made me more anxious *g*

Me, I'm trying to distract myself. I'm editing a novel, critting friends' books, sending stuff out on submission. Somehow, waiting for five things is easier than waiting for just one. 

That said: is it March yet?

Sent mine off today! For

Sent mine off today!

For those who have applied before, when do they normally make contact? Is it near the end of March or about midway?

Last year, I had my waiting

Last year, I had my waiting list notification by the 19th, which means the rest of the class was filled out by then.  Some rejections and all the acceptances heard earlier than I did.  

I'd say the median response time was about two weeks.  No telling how it will go this year.  

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

It's kind of appalling to

It's kind of appalling to say, but I don't remember. Definitely mid-way, I think, if not earlier. Good luck!

Oso, do you know if Jordan

Oso, do you know if Jordan ever posted the vlog he talked about doing for last year's workshop?

Jordan's Clarion West posts

Jordan's Clarion West posts are pretty much all here.  It's reverse chronological order, so you might want to start at the end.

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)

I think I was recalling the

I think I was recalling the whole CW Bloopers/Clarion West Reality Show proposal, so I had to go back and read that. Laughed all over again! We have to do at least a video blog.

I was the victim of a

I was the victim of a drive-by reviewing.  In her first review column for LOCUS Online Reviews, Lois Tilton offers her two cents on a number of magazines including the February 2010 issue of Jim Baen's UNIVERSE with my story.

I found out about the review by chance and can't quite decide if I should be giddy, confused, or...um...or...

Right!  Write, right!

 http://www.locusmag.com/Reviews/2010/02/lois-tilton-reviews-short-fiction-1.html

Awesome!  Go Sabdra

Awesome!  Go Sabdra go!

-Oso 

(http://osomuerte.wordpress.com)