Word Candy: Poetry

Making poems yours

2 sessions, January 22&29 @1-3pm

Learn how to make poems from poems. For each session, we’ll focus on two poems, taking each apart to see how they work. Then we’ll build a recipe for writing our own poems based on the ingredients we discover. This low-pressure intro to writing poetry allows you to discover by doing, learning about the elements of poetry from the inside-out. Have fun, build knowledge, and explore new forms of self-expression. Each session will have plenty of time to write and share during our time together.

1. LINE, STANZA, IMAGERY: We’ll examine the building blocks of poetry in our first lesson, line and stanza, along with imagery and the ways we use language and figures of speech to establish a mood   Poems: William Carlos Williams, “This Is Just to Say”; Mary Oliver, “Sleeping in the Forest.” (1/22)
2. METAPHOR AND MUSIC: This lesson goes to the next level as we dip into the mood and magic of poetry: in particular, the layers of meaning we find in metaphor and the added dimension of rhythm and rhyme. Poems: Emily Dickinson, “Hope Is a Thing with Feathers”; Seamus Heaney, “Blackberry-Picking” (1/29)

SUSAN DAVIS has taught writing and literature to students of all ages for over three decades. A recent convert to art journaling, she is currently working on her first chapbook of poems.

You can find more about her work at susan-lucille-davis.weebly.com/ .