Description
Eight Mondays, March 6-April 24, 6-8pm
Open to all.
Limited to 12 participants.
Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) is known to have said, “A writer only begins a book. A reader finishes it.” Put differently, a reader’s personal response offers an added dimension to a book. In this workshop, participants will select a published poetry collection whose world resonates with them, one that includes poems they would like to “dialogue with” for the remainder of the workshop.* Weekly writing prompts will initiate a “conversation” with a chosen text from their book, an opportunity to engage with the source material on a deeper level. Topics covered will include imagery, line breaks, and poetic language, and we will attempt a variety of poetic forms. Roughly half of each session will be devoted to theoretical concerns and/or writing exercises; the second half to workshopping the pieces produced in class and tweaked at home. Aside from the selected poetry book, no texts are required, but participants are strongly encouraged to read poetry and/or essays on poetics outside class time and share materials/information that might be of interest to the group.
*A list of suggested poets and/or titles will be provided after the first class, upon request.
This workshop will take place at the QWF Office (Room 3, 1200 Atwater Avenue, Westmount, Quebec) with up to 2 virtual spots for participants who are unable to attend in-person.
