A very busy time of writing

I am nearing the end of the second semester of my Master of Arts in Creative Writing course. With only nine days to go the pressure is really on to get all those assignments finished and handed up.

I’ve been writing a 4000 word short story over recent days. It currently stands at about 900 words, so there’s a fair way to go. I’m not concerned about it because I spent a great deal of time thinking about the plot and jotting down an outline. I still have to get the words down though. I also need to have at least a thousand words ready for the workshop I am leading the day after tomorrow. I’ll get there – but will take some effort.

I’ve also been working on the major poem for this term. The requirement is 100-150 lines of free verse. Sounds easy – until you go to think of a topic that can be sustained for that many lines. I put the finishing touches to it a few minutes ago and then printed out copies for the workshop tomorrow. I ended up with 140 lines called ‘Chaotic Kathmandu’ relating a few experiences from a visit several years ago to that fascinating city.

I’ve also been working on two journals over recent days. One is due tomorrow and the other next week. We are required to submit our rough, handwritten copies – in journal format – of all of the poems we have written this semester. Earlier this evening I put the finishing touches to that one too. The other journal is for the prose writing unit and that is almost finished as well. Both of these I’ve worked on steadily throughout the semester, so it’s no big deal near hand up time.

Several weeks ago it was my turn to present a tutorial paper. This was a discussion of the work of the Australian poet, Bruce Dawe.  I received the paper back today: another distinction. That makes 15 out of 15 so far. Can I keep up the pressure I’ve put on myself?