By B.J. Hollars
If, over the past six years, you attended Cirenaica or The Priory Writers’ Retreat, then chances are you met Alex Ziztner—the ping-pong playing, hardworking poet whose retreat duties included everything from doorknob fixing to workshop, to hosting live readings. Through it all, Alex was also working on his own craft. A few weeks back, his hard work and dedication resulted in his admittance to New York University’s prestigious Master of Fine Arts program, where Alex will be working alongside renowned writers such as Terrence Hayes, Claudia Rankine, Sharon Olds, among others. A committed literary citizen, Alex has been serving our region’s writers since his second year of college at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. I recently chatted with Alex about his journey, the lessons learned, and what comes next.
B.J. Hollars: Tell us a bit about your writing journey at UW-Eau Claire and in the wider community. What inspired your work?
Alex Zitzner: Strangely, up until a few months before attending, I thought I was going to do pre-med or geology as my major instead of creative writing. Once I got to UWEC my first goal was to be published in NOTA, which somehow I was lucky enough to get into those first two semesters, and then somehow I became their editor-in-chief my second year. Taking on that role pushed me forward as an all-around writer, reader, and editor. I was reading a book of poems either every day or every other day, plus the occasional novel and short story collection, just to make sure I was as widely read as possible when it came time to evaluate submissions. It’s a never-ending game of catch-up though, trying to read books being published every month and then reading books published in the past.
As far as the wider community goes, since [as an editor] I couldn’t publish in NOTA, I published a decent amount of work in online and print journals across the states. I’ve taken a step back from submitting lately, and one day I’ll try to get some stuff published again, but it’s not something that really interests me at the moment. What inspired me or what still inspires me is friendship, which sounds mega corny. My main example, though, is that when I was living in Eau Claire, prior to covid, I’d get together with friends and we’d write. Like Chloe Ackerman, Connor Drexler, Katy Hackworthy, Mary Shaw, Reed White—I’d meet up with them one on one generally, though sometimes we’d have a crew, at a coffee shop, write and read for a while, then we’d go to the Joynt, sit in the poets corner if it was open, and talk about what we worked on over beer, or we’d play pool. It was great to have friends that I could write with and also hang out with outside of writing, because those are a few of my very good pals, and I’m stoked on their writing, which in turn got me stoked.
BJH: In addition to your course work, you also served as NOTA's editor-in-chief, an academic apprentice for fellow undergraduates, a CVWG board member, and a college assistant at both Cirenaica and The Priory. Can you share about how these literary activities influenced your growth as a writer?
AZ: Definitely, though I should say, I was a part of every English club for a certain period of time, primarily the English Ambassadors for incoming creative writing majors/minors and for the curriculum committee. Plus, I helped proofread The Flipside on weekends. I’d say the overlapping growth came from feeling a sense of community through those literary activities. I always felt extremely proud to represent each position I served in, and maybe that didn’t necessarily grow my actual ability to write, but I feel like it was each a maturing opportunity as a literary citizen. This isn’t to say I didn’t grow a lot as a writer through those activities, but being a literary citizen is even more important.
BJH: What were some of the challenges you faced as you began eyeing the possibility of graduate school?
AZ: Cost was the largest challenge. I’m not sure exactly how much I can reveal, but one aspect of NYU that was enticing was that at the very least, I think every student gets some funding, plus opportunities for fellowships and can teach in their second year. Mainly what I can say is that I got lucky with being able to attend, though I’ve already begun going over the headache which is then affording to live in New York City as a student. Aside from that, another challenge was choosing where I wanted to go, and then essentially gambling on being accepted. I was fairly particular with where I wanted to go and was ready to be in it for the long haul of reapplying year after year until I got into where I wanted to go. The largest challenge though prior to all of this was putting together my writing sample and letter of intent. I mean everyone always said to just submit my best work, which is what I did, but my packet was all over the place which kinda worried me. Like I had narrative poems, lyrical poems, translations, erasures, etc. I was extremely worried about there not really being a sense of cohesion, but I guess looking back that most accurately displays my writing style which is probably the most important, like that the selection committee saw a glimpse into how I write outside of just that sample.
BJH: What advice might you give undergraduate writers hoping to continue their studies at the graduate level?
AZ: Go to a school that pays you, offers funding, and offers teaching experience. Prior to applying, depending on where you’re at in your undergraduate journey, read as much as you possibly can and don’t stop. That will do more for your writing than only focusing on writing. I’m sure that advice has been given numerous times, but also read widely. If you’re not sure what to read, do what I did and pester your professors for recommendations. On the same level of importance would be to get involved with the writing community. If you’re a UWEC student reading this, or an Eau Claire community member looking to get an MFA, there are so many opportunities to get involved. There are always craft talks, open reads, and workshops going on. Plus there are numerous magazines and journals to potentially work for or get published in.
BJH: What excites you most about your forthcoming experience in New York University's MFA program?
AZ: I’m not sure if there is one aspect that excites me more than others, because it’s all very exciting. I think if I were to pick one, meeting the students and professors is really exciting. I’ve missed being in workshops and going to readings with friends, so I’m looking forward to getting to do that again too. I’m going to miss Wisconsin, especially Eau Claire and all of the friends I made there, but I can’t wait to represent the Guild and UWEC at NYU, as I’m very excited and proud to have that opportunity to do so.