Intro to Lit: Creative Writing (Community as Poetic Practice)Instructor: Hannah Beresford
This workshop will provide a supportive community wherein poets share their original written work and respond to the work of their fellow classmates, both in equal measure. Each week, our class will focus on a particular craft concept—such as tracing sensory memories, exploring dream interpretations, stylizing scene performances—inspired by weekly readings of contemporary and canonized poetry. In-class generative or revision exercises will emphasize active encouragement, multi-media expression, play, and humor as methods of building trust and making space for vulnerability. This class will also encourage and help poets to find a lineage of a poetic and creative writing practice that reflects and celebrates their own identity. By the end of the semester, each student will prepare and present a proposal for a community initiative that centralizes poetry or creative writing. Students will discuss the logistics of their proposal, the ways in which their proposal would serve a particular community, as well how their unique perspective and skillset would inform their ability to create, enact, and facilitate the initiative. As poets in this class continue to help one another refine and value their voices as poets, care and consideration will continually be given to each poet’s aspiration and contribution to the world as an artistic citizen.