A 2-Day Poetry Workshop
2 Saturdays, February 8th & 14th, 12 - 3 PM
Frost reminds us: “The only way out is through.” This class is, therefore, centered on the
making of poems. For the entirety of our present century, our literary production has
been consistently challenged, inspired, stymied, and warped by the rapid (and radical)
transitions introduced (ad nauseum) by our digital age.
Overwhelmed? Tired? You are not alone. Take heart. Technology shapes our
experience of time, and poems have long embraced such changes on molecular and
metaphoric levels. Imagine: many of the poems we love best were written before we
had electricity, phones, cars, or TV. And we now have a responsibility to continue the
literary tradition after, and, indeed, in spite of, the challenges that come with
transitioning into the digital age.
But it’s more than a responsibility. It should and must be a pleasure. We owe it to our
poems and ourselves to consider how we might fashion poems that respond, adapt and
reframe the poetic experience in relation to unfolding technologies. How will we do this?
First, we will consider the topic of digital literacy and then trace our own personal
deepdives into the emotional rabbitholes with which the internet consistently seduces
us. What is habit? Only another version of obsession. Obsession is always a good thing
for poets.
Once we take inventory of our personal rabbit holes, we’ll consider the manner in which
formal strategies may offer us the tools to transform them into wormholes. Poems are
inherently such: time machines that ferry us backwards and forwards through the
human experience. (And, no, AI is not writing this course description for me, lol.)
By the end of this six-hour course, students will have responded to several prompts that
directly address (emulate / combat) the myriad of forms and structures introduced by
new technologies.
$120 Members/$175 Nonmembers
Cate Marvin teaches poetry writing in the Stonecoast M.F.A. Program at the University of Southern Maine and is Professor of English at the College of Staten Island, City University of New York. A 2015 Guggenheim Fellow, she lives in Scarborough, Maine. Event Horizon, her fourth collection, appeared from Copper Canyon Press in 2022.
ADVANCE REGISTRATION REQUIRED
All MWPA workshops require advanced registration. We accept registration by phone, mail, and online via our website. We cannot guarantee registration in the final 24-hours before a workshop, and can rarely accommodate day-of registration.
PAYMENT & CANCELLATION POLICIES
If you need to withdraw from a class after registering for any reason, please email or call the MWPA immediately. You may be eligible for a partial refund or credit, depending on how far in advance you cancel. → MORE INFORMATION
QUESTIONS
For any questions regarding this workshop, please contact programs@mainewriters.org.
REGISTER BY PHONE
Call 207-200-7180 and register with your VISA or MasterCard.
REGISTER BY MAIL
If you prefer to pay by mail, please print this registration form (downloadable PDF) and mail it to the MWPA with a check or credit card information.
SCHOLARSHIP
The MWPA is proud to offer one partial scholarship to this workshop for members-only. Scholarships are awarded on a combination of need and merit. Email programs@mainewriters.org to see if the scholarship is still available. Application Due by January 25 at 9:00 a.m.
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MWPA WORKSHOP POLICIES
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