The way Emerson has designed its teaching program, you really get a good taste for that beginner-professorial life in all its glory (and all the fun of grading papers all weekend, too). And it truly is a rewarding experience. At Emerson, selected grad students have the opportunity to teach the WR101 and WR121 classes. WR101 is called "Expository Writing"; the students expect something very boring when they walk in, but quickly find out how cool the class is. The course is designed to teach students to write personal opinion essays through the act of cultural criticism. WR121, which has the equally exciting title of "Research Writing," is a course that teaches writing through the lens of different genres, examining the craft, rhetorical situation, etc. of various texts. More on these courses later, but first, here's how you get the gig.

Fortunately, all my work for one class, my workshop, is already done. I submitted my third and final story before the Thanksgiving break and it was worked in class yesterday. I have the option of making a few final edits before turning it in with my portfolio, which I think I'll probably take advantage of.

For my other class, the Seminar in the Novel, I have the option of either two ten page papers or one twenty pager, which I have predictably just started. Additionally, I have a presentation on Irvine Welsh's "Marabou Stork Nightmares" Monday evening. The presentation is largely just leading a discussion and the book lends itself to a number of interesting questions that shouldn't make it too hard to get some talk going. The paper is where the stress lies. I originally planned to just do two 10 pagers, but I figured out what I would consider a good topic and think I might be able to parlay it into 20 pages. Using my film background, I'm breaking down the narrative structure in novels and their film adaptations and comparing how the complexities have to be altered for each medium. A cheap excuse to write about movies I like? Maybe. But an interesting topic that should be better for the teacher than reading yet another dissertation on the monotony of Tristram Shandy? Certainly.

With these different places of origin come different viewpoints and opinions on writing. I don't think I've heard two of my classmates claim to have the same favorite author, which means I'm constantly getting different perspectives on my work in class. It's always interesting to see someone who is largely influenced by Jane Austen commenting on the work of someone whose greatest influence is Charles Bukowski. It makes for an energizing and eclectic literary community.

A: For me, two things separated Emerson from other top tier creative writing programs. The first was the emphasis on integrating the publishing and writing students together to help form bonds that will continue out into the professional world and the second was the ability to teach freshmen writing classes to help gain experience towards possibly being a professor down the road, a course that I will be taking in the Spring.

My name is Alex and in this space on a regular basis you can find my commentary on Emerson's writing program, the literary community, and Boston in general. If you really wish to find out about me, you can feel free to check out my profile.

But I'm not what's important, at least not right now. What is important is Boston. As someone who grew up in the area, left it, and came back, I can vouch for the fact that it is a place like nowhere else. How so? Let's look at three things that distinguish this fine city from others:

1) Patriots' Day

Unless you're from Massachusetts or Maine, you probably think we invented this holiday to honor our illustrious football team. Not true. Patriots' Day is a holiday ONLY celebrated in these two states. It honors the memory of the battles of Lexington and Concord, which started the American Revolution. What does it mean now? It's a random day off in the middle of April, enabling you to do nothing on a Monday with no guilt. Watch the annual 10 AM Red Sox game, and keep tabs on the Boston Marathon. So if you're after random days off, it's gotta be either here or Maine. Maine usually still has snow on the ground in April, so the choice is easy.