WEEK 2: July 1 - 5
Poet-in-Residence: MARGARET GIBSON
Workshop: Title: "Working with the Line"
Description: In this workshop, we will focus on what constitutes "the line," its length and cadences, and its essential role in the poem. When the line in a poem changes, the voice alters. When the voice alters, breathing and rhythm, body and mind alter. "The eye altering alters all," said William Blake. Ultimately, when the line changes, the field of vision changes and a new presence emerges. Participants will be given some in-class writing exercises focused on these matters, and there will be in-depth critiques of the poems each poet brings to the workshop.
M-F 8:30-10:30 a.m., CLSC Alumni Hall
Prose Writer-in-Residence: DAVID MCKAIN
Workshop: Title: "Writing from the Self"
Description: The emphasis in this workshop will be on discovery, on shaping fragments of memory into a narrative whole. All good writing begins with the physical world. Lead your reader into that world. Don't try to cover a lifetime. Stay with a single scene. Write as though directing a movie. Plant your feet behind the camera. To make sure you make discoveries, follow Grace Paley's advice: Write about what you don't know about what you know. The goal is to feel more confident about what works in memoir, and what doesn't, and why. The class will be a hands-on workshop, with discussion of individual memoirs. No writing will take place in class.
M-F 1-3 p.m., CLSC Alumni Hall