Tomorrow night, the IPRC is hosting an info session for the 2011/2012 session of their Certificate Program in Independent Publishing, a three-semester program with tracks in Fiction/Non-Fiction, Poetry, and Comics.

Many writing and cartooning programs cost roughly the price of a new BMW. Our program, on the other hand, costs about as much as a nice new bike. And as a program we are much like a bicycle: not flashy, but nimble. Human powered. Something old that is also new. The future.

Furthermore, while we are all for traditional undergraduate and MFA programs (many of our instructors have MFA’s), we’re critical of the skewed exchange that sometimes takes place between students and large educational institutions, especially when it comes to writing and the arts. At the same time that many students graduate with large debt loads, they’re also denied further access to the very institutions that created that debt. On the other hand, tuition in our Certificate Program is also an investment in the IPRC’s publishing resources and vibrant community—which are forever available to all our students, and that will continue to develop and grow with each “investment.”

Honestly, if I were inclined to spend money to improve my writing skills and learn more about publishing (ha! don't get your hopes up), I'd do it. Learning design and e-book creation alongside writing workshops, plus the knowledge that my tuition is going to support the IPRC? Um, yes.

The info session is tomorrow night from 6-7 pm at the IPRC, 917 SW Oak, Suite 218, More info on the program here.