See also:
Poetry Writing Intensive
Up next:
Poetry Writing II

Poetry Writing I

Poetry Writing I

Poetry Writing I is a 10-week workshop, which includes lectures, exercises, and the critiquing of student projects. It’s for beginners or anyone who wants to brush up on the fundamentals. Farther down, you can view a syllabus for this course.

Consider it the caviar of literature: tiny eggs with tremendous taste. Or the nitroglycerin: every drop explosive. Poetry's power has endured thousands of years, captivating the most passionate souls. If you hear mermaids singing or feel the winnowing wind or see the sun rising in ribbons, then you are one of these blissful few.

To write excellent poetry, you must learn the art of packing the maximum punch with a minimum of words. Here you will learn about the specialized techniques, demands, and forms of poetry, as well as how to market your work.

If you seek to write for publication or performance, yourself or the world, we’ll show you how to write exquisite poetry.

About Poetry Writing
Poetry Writing I

It opens your eyes to how different people will view your work.

Alden Masonis

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Upcoming Classes

Masks are not required, but we’ll provide masks for those who want them. We are no longer requesting proof of vaccination.

More Covid details

Price

Registration fee $25, paid once per term

See Payment Options

To register for a 10-Week course, you need to pay in full to guarantee your place in class. Or you can pay a $95 deposit plus a $25 registration fee (total $120) to temporarily hold your place, but tuition must be paid in full 10 business days before your class starts or you risk losing your spot.

10-Week

Syllabus

This course gives you a firm grounding in the basics of poetry craft and gets you writing one or two poems. Course components:
     Lectures
     Writing exercises
     Workshopping of student projects (each student presenting work two times)

New York City/Zoom classes
The syllabus varies from teacher to teacher, term to term. Many topics will be similar to those covered in the Online classes.

Online classes 
Week 1
Introduction to Poetry: What makes it poetry? Line breaks. Figurative language and imagery. Sound—rhythm, meter, rhyme. Free vs. form. Where to get inspiration.

Week 2
Line breaks: How line affects rhythm and sound. White space. Emotional impact.

Week 3
Figurative Language & Imagery: Figurative language—metaphor, simile, personification, onomatopoeia, synesthesia. Finding images. Bringing images to life.

Week 4
Sound: Rhythm. Meter. Rhyme. Repetition. Alliteration. Assonance. Consonance.

Week 5
Classic Forms: Sonnet. Sestina. Villanelle. Pantoum. Haiku. Haibun. Apostrophe. Narrative.

Week 6
Contemporary Forms: Prose poem. Found poetry. Persona. Ekphrasis. Narrative.

Week 7
Voice: Voice defined. Types of voice and vision. Finding your voice. Style. Digging deeper.

Week 8 
Imitation and Themes: Gaining inspiration and technique through imitation. Responding to themes. Drawing out your uniqueness.

Week 9
Revision: Stages of revision. Techniques for testing your work. The art of reduction. Knowing when it's done.

Week 10
Publication and the Poetry Scene: Finding homes for your work. The submission process. Participating in the poetry scene.

Note: Content may vary among individual classes.

Teachers

Casandra López
Casandra López

Casandra López has published short stories in the Packinghouse Review, Flyaway, Potomac Review, California Journal of Women Writers, Unmanned Press, and the anthologies Best Small Fictions and Dimestories. She is the author of the poetry collection Brother Bullet (University of Arizona Press) and the chapbook Where Bullet Breaks (Sequoyah National Research Center), and her poetry has appeared in Bellingham Review, NewBorder, Malpais Review, Hobart, Indian Country Today, Más Tequila Review, and Hamilton Stone Review. She is a founder/managing editor of the literary journal As/Us, teaches for the University of California at San Diego, and has taught at the University of New Mexico, Northwest Indian College, North Seattle Community College, and for Upward Bound. She holds a BS from Cornell, an MA in Educational Counseling from the University of Redlands, and an MFA in Fiction from the University of New Mexico.

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Matthew Lippman
Matthew Lippman

Matthew Lippman is the author of the poetry collections Mesmerizingly Sadly Beautiful (Four Way Books), A Little Gut Magic (Nine Mile Books), The New Year of Yellow (Sarabonde Books), Monkey Bars (Typecast), Salami Jew (Racing Form Press), and American Chew (Burnside). His poems have appeared widely in such journals as The American Poetry, Tin House, and Seneca Review. He has taught at the University of Iowa, Westchester Community College, Columbia University, Roslyn High School, and Beaver Country Day School. He holds a BA from Hobart College, an MFA in Poetry from the University of Iowa, and an M.Ed. from Columbia University.

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Michael Montlack
Michael Montlack

Michael Montlack is the author of the poetry collections Cool Limbo and Daddy (NYQ Books) and editor of the Lambda Finalist essay anthology My Diva: 65 Gay Men on the Women Who Inspire Them (University of Wisconsin Press). His poetry has appeared in North American Review, Prairie Schooner, The Offing, Poet Lore, Barrow Street, Court Green, and Los Angeles Review. He holds a BA from Hofstra University, an MFA from the New School, and an MA from San Francisco State University, all in Creative Writing and Literature.

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