Please note: most of the content in this course builds upon key concepts & ideas taught in Poetry in Depth: Getting Started, so it is highly advised that you have attended that course prior to starting this one.

Back by popular demand, Poetry in Depth returns with a brand new syllabus exploring the weird and wonderful world of the poem.

No longer daunted by sestinas and villanelles, this course will introduce more complex and contemporary forms such as node poems, duplexes and vers libre, as well as exploring the influence and qualities of key poetic movements such as The New York School of Poetry, Eco-Poetry and the rise & fall of the lyric ‘I’. We’ll also be looking at some exciting ways to combat writer’s block, and discussing the process of putting together, editing and submitting your pamphlet or collection (once you’re ready of course).

Classes are in-person and will run for 6 weeks, starting Tuesday September 23rd (19:30 - 21:00) at Christchurch Methodist Church (Bedford Rd, Hitchin SG5 1HF).

Session Schedule:

Week 1: Passivity in Poetry (David Bowie, Terrance Hayes, Mary Ellen Solt)

Week 2: Free Verse and the Lyric ‘I’ (Walt Whitman, Allen Ginsburg, Claudia Rankine)

Week 3: Complex and Abstract Forms (Maureen Thorson, John Cage, Jericho Brown)

Week 4: Climate Writing and the Poetics of Place (John Clare, Kathleen Jamie, Jorie Graham)

Week 5: The New York School of Poetry (Bernadette Mayer, Eileen Myles, Frank O’Hara)

Week 6: Collections and Submissions (Maggie Nelson, CA Conrad, Seamus Heaney)