When writing concrete poems, we match the shape and form of the written poem with it's content. You can write a poem in the shape of angel wings, hearts, spirals, and so many other things! Come experiment with this tradition and see what you can create.
read moreAdvanced Nature Writing Refresher Course. This class is open to the five students who participated in the one-year Nature Seminar with Leslie Shiel (former VisArts Development Director Susan Early) several years ago. Aside from reading the print copy of Emergence magazine together, and writing and critiquing our poems and (short) essays, we’ll work together on […]
read moreLet’s generate new work! Through intensive freewriting and class discussion, we will delve deeper and complicate our initial ideas. Open to all genres and levels. This class is for first-time writers, writers in the muddled middle of a longer project, and writers feeling directionless after time away from the page. Like going to the gym […]
read moreExplore the dark self, what Carl Jung called the “shadow” part of our psyche. Sometimes we see it in our dreams, sometimes it appears in dark imaginings. We’ll learn what the shadow can add to our creative writing by experimenting with timed writing, dream journals, guided imagery and Active Imagination.
read moreDid you know that fiction and creative nonfiction often use similar elements of narrative design? For writers of fiction and/or creative nonfiction, this class will be part craft discussion, part workshop, part generative space. Each week, we will close-read an essay or short story and articulate the craft elements being used (for example: POV, subject […]
read moreCelebrate the poet Emily Dickinson by reading some of her poems, eating her famous cake, and writing poems of your own. We'll also look at some of Dickinson's manuscripts and letters, and we'll consider how her writing process and life experiences shaped her poetry.
read moreSay what you mean to say, in front of an audience and on the page with this poetry workshop utilizing performance as a tool for revision. Through in-class writing exercises and small group performance, poets will unpack voice, meaning and even form in the poems they bring to class. We will finish with a group […]
read moreWhy do folktales and fairy tales have such a remarkable staying power? Author and mythographer Marina Warner suggests that it’s “because the meanings they generate are themselves magical shape-shifters, dancing to the needs of their audience.” In this class, we’ll read and discuss fairy tales, both traditional and revisionist. We will then reimagine them, as […]
read moreLearn the foundations of storytelling and fiction writing while exploring the possibilities that ghosts, specters, and spirits open up in our world and other realms. Students will learn to dissect ghosts and their stories, write their own, and create zines to trade and share with each other, all while learning more about character, setting, conflict, […]
read moreFire, flood, hurricane, quarantine, even downsizing, evict you from home. What precious object must you save? In this class, students will explore memory and understanding using such chosen objects. Exercises and prompts will help them look more deeply. Writing and reflection will tap feeling and memory, layering them into fiction or nonfiction that brings the […]
read moreExplore the fundamental elements of poetry, through the reading and writing of poems. We’ll read and discuss poems written by other people, then write poems of our own, with special attention to elements of line, image, and syntax. Students will learn how close readings of other poems may inspire their own work, and how they […]
read moreExplore short story fiction writing by studying narrative craft elements like story, plot, character, scene, structure, archetypal patterns and dialogue. We’ll examine professionally published pieces and your own work. By the end of the course, you’ll be ready to begin a story based on a word or an idea. You’ll also understand how to evaluate […]
read moreAre you a poet who’s inspired by art? In this course, we’ll learn about the tradition of ekphrasis and how contemporary poets write about all of the things that move us, including the visual arts, film and music. Each week students will be asked to bring a poem in response to a writing prompt and […]
read moreIn this workshop, we’ll write about where we’re from, where we’ve been, and where we hope to go in the future. We’ll generate essays about one’s hometown or region, travel or exploration, and the changed geography of our lives during the pandemic. Part workshop, part craft discussion, part generative space. You will write four short […]
read moreExperiment with or continue developing screenwriting for film through exercises and workshops. Students will work towards completing a short screenplay or TV pilot ready for production or begin/continue working on a feature length screenplay. This class is suitable for writers of any level and can be repeated.
read moreThomas Larson writes that “memoir is most successful when it is not the ‘story of a life,’ but a focused part of that life—a dozen summers spent working on a grandfather’s farm, a long relationship with a dying relative, the first year of law school.” You’ll work on writing prompts and timed writing exercises, and […]
read moreHave a story that needs work but you don’t know where to start? Nothing we write can stand on its own without some phase of revision. In this one-day short fiction intensive, students learn different methods for revision, plus come away with resources and actionable steps for how to address revision in their own work.
read moreTap into the power of your imagination, observations, and memories to draw inspiration for creative writing. We’ll transform an ordinary composition book into a writer’s notebook and use it to write about personal experiences, interesting characters, memorable places, dream worlds, and more. Each class will include a combination of fun, short activities and a longer […]
read moreLearn to write your own children’s book story, then create illustrations to go along with it!
read moreExplore exciting ways to combine words and pictures as you record creative ideas, document your life, and express your thoughts and feelings. We’ll fill the pages of a composition notebook with images and writing that reflect who you are, what you know, and what you find interesting. This class will include both writing and drawing, […]
read moreTap into the power of your imagination, observations, and memories to draw inspiration for creative writing. We’ll transform an ordinary composition book into a writer’s notebook and use it to write about personal experiences, interesting characters, memorable places, dream worlds, and more. Each class will include a combination of fun, short activities and a longer […]
read moreExplore exciting ways to combine words and pictures as you record creative ideas, document your life, and express your thoughts and feelings. We’ll fill the pages of a composition notebook with images and writing that reflect who you are, what you know, and what you find interesting. This class will include both writing and drawing, […]
read moreExplore the relationship between words and pictures in a collaborative setting. We’ll use visual images (including, but not limited to: photographs, paintings, postcards, and comics) to prompt new creative writing, in the style and genre of your choosing.
read moreThomas Larson writes that “memoir is most successful when it is not the ‘story of a life,’ but a focused part of that life—a dozen summers spent working on a grandfather’s farm, a long relationship with a dying relative, the first year of law school.” You’ll work on writing prompts and timed writing exercises, and […]
read moreExplore short story fiction writing by studying narrative craft elements like story, plot, character, scene, structure, archetypal patterns and dialogue. We’ll examine professionally published pieces and your own work. By the end of the course, you’ll be ready to begin a story based on a word or an idea. You’ll also understand how to evaluate […]
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