Should you get an MFA? Courtney talks with special guests Erica Dawson (poet, author, MFA program director) and Leah Hampton (writer, editor, current MFA fellow) about one of the biggest—and most mystifying—decisions a writer can make.

Erica Dawson is the author of When Rap Spoke Straight to God, The Small Blades Hurt, and Big-Eyed Afraid. Her work has appeared in three editions of Best American Poetry, The Believer, Virginia Quarterly Review, and other journals and anthologies. She is an associate professor of English and Writing at University of Tampa, where she directs the low-residency MFA program.

Leah Hampton is a fellow at the Michener Center for Writers and Editor in Chief of Bat City Review. Her work has appeared in Ecotone, storySouth, Appalachian Heritage, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, and elsewhere. Her first book, Bodies, will be released by Henry Holt in 2020. 

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