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Poetry

Thinking Narratively; Memory and Imagination

SA9-P01
3 Tuesdays 6-8 p.m.
May, 5, 12, and 26 (No class May 19)
$61 W&B members / $65 general public
Instructor: Tom Painting

Primarily generative, this course will explore the territory between memory and imagination. In a workshop setting, participants will respond to a series of writing prompts, as well as read short pieces that reflect memory and imagination. Discussion, process writing and revision exercises will help participants craft their writing with the goal of publication. All materials will be provided by the instructor.

Register Online

Intersections: Working Poets

SA9-P02
4 Wednesdays 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
May 20 through June 10
$87 W&B members / $93 general public
Instructor: M. J. Iuppa

This workshop is for intermediate and advanced poets looking to improve their skills and create new and vibrant work. The instructor will present published poems for students to read and study, but the focus will be on writing assignments to keep poets active. The general setting will be an open discussion among colleagues. It is expected that students will have had some workshop experience.

Register Online

Deep Revision: An Advanced Workshop for Poets

SA9-P03
1 Saturday,10 a.m.-1 p.m.
May 30
$39 W&B members / $43 general public
Instructor: Patricia Roth Schwartz

How often do we give up on a recalcitrant poem, or settle for a draft we know isn’t what it could be? In this intensive, we will learn and practice a variety of techniques and processes for deeply revising a piece of work to make it as good, in terms of both craft and inspiration, as it can be. Bring copies of one poem (you will be told in advance how many copies) to share with the group. No “critiquing”—just gentle help. Expect amazing results! A bibliography and handouts are included.

Register Online

Lyric Yoga: Poetry and Contemplative Practice

SA9-P04
1 Saturday at Gell 10 a.m.-3 p.m. [ONE DAY AT GELL]
May 30
$49 W&B members / $55 general public
Instructor: Naomi Guttman

How can we sing the body electric when we check the body at the door? Beginning with a combination of yoga practices, proceeding to writing exercises, reading aloud, and listening, this workshop engages students contemplative practices in the service of poetic production. No previous experience with yoga is necessary, but those with chronic spine or other injuries should not participate in posture practices. Bring journals and pens. Wear comfortable clothes.

Register Online

Frog Jumps In: Writing Haiku

SA9-P05
1 Saturday, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
May 30
$39 W&B members / $43 general public
Instructor: Michael Ketchek

There is a lot more to haiku than 17 syllables. Be like the frog in Basho’s celebrated poem and jump into the world of writing haiku. This workshop will offera n introduction to the basics of writing haiku, a discussion of traditional and modern styles of haiku (senryu and haibun too), with time to write some haiku and have it critiqued.

Register Online

From Poems to Manuscript--How-tos and Wherefores

SA9-P06
1 Saturday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
May 16
$49 W&B members / $55 general public
Instructor: Karla Linn Merrifield

Take a mess of poems, toss them into a pile and stir many times with a large spoon of discipline. Voilà! An editor-ready manuscript! Whether you think you’ve got a book or chapbook ready to go or you’re daunted by the task of compiling one, there’s work to be done! This workshop will guide you through step-by-step of preparing your collection of poems for editorial submission. It’s a hands-on, nuts-and-bolts session that will set provide you with a recipe for success with your poems. Please bring a manuscript-in-progress or a batch of poems you’d like to see assembled one day between book covers.

Register Online

Playing Dice with Poetry

SA9-P07
4 Thursdays, 7-9 p.m.
May 7 through May 28
$87 W&B members / $93 general public
Instructor: Deanna Ferguson

Einstein was wrong – God does play dice with the universe! So why should poets turn up their noses at it? Whether you’re looking for inspiration for a new poem, or tired of the same old subject you turn to again and again, or struggling to express that whatever-it-is that’s at the tip of your tongue, turning to randomness, chance, and serendipity is a powerful way to move beyond your habitual chain of thought to the openness of creativity. In addition to the considered and considerate reading and evaluation of one another’s work that is at the heart of any poetry workshop, time will be spent each session “playing dice” (Surrealist games, cut-ups, found poems, group poems, automatic writing, even traditional forms and meters), all the time striving for what poetry at its best actually does – linking our day-to-day lives with the reality that lies beneath them.

Course Cancelled

Writing Nature Poetry: Tuning in to the Untamed

SA9-P08
1 Saturday 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
May 2
$49 W&B members / $55 general public
Instructor: Karla Linn Merrifield

This workshop will provide poets with a toolkit they can use to embrace nature in their writing and get some real, immediate, and essential practice. Participants  should bring a notebook, a journal if they keep one, and any poems they've written about nature that they would like to work on or share with the group. Bring snacks or a bagged lunch.  

Course Cancelled

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The Bertrand Russell Society

Hosted by: Dr. David White
Thursday, March 11
Admission: Free to W&B Members/ $3 General Public

The Bertrand Russell Society was formed shortly after Russell’s death in 1970. Russell was born in 1872 and worked in fields such as mathematical logic; philosophy; social, religious, and educational reform; anti-war protests and politics. An accomplished writer, Russell received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1950. This ongoing lecture series promises to enlighten and entertain. Monthly meetings are open to everyone, not just to members of the society.

Monthly Story Slam

March. 17, 7 pm
Signup: 6:30 pm
Host: Carol Roberts

An open mic of true loose and spontaneous stories based on one’s own life! Themes include: “Brush with the Law,” “Love Life,” “Embarassing Moment,” “True Tales from College”...but stories can be independent of the theme. This is an event where participants tell stories about their lives. The stories are loose and spontaneous, and the emphasis is on authenticity. See examples on Youtube by searching MothUp Story Slam. According to The New York Times: “Like the folk revival in the 70s or standup comedy in the 80s, all of a sudden everyone is doing it....Storytelling has exploded into a thriving genre all its own, a new avenue to prominence for writers and, increasingly, for actors and comedians.” Each performer gets approximately 5 minutes. Signup list at front desk 1/2 hour before. or sign up by emailing Carol Roberts at crobert8@rochester.rr.com with “Monthly Sign Up” in the subject line.

Valley Manor Book Discussions

1570 East Avenue, Rochester, NY 14610
Thursday, March 18th from 10:30 a.m. - Noon. Music Room. .
Each event is Free and Open to the public.

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. This is the “If All of Rochester Read the Same Book”.

History Reading Group

Hosted by Steve Huff
Thurs. March 18
Topic: Vaudeville
Free to WAB members & students/$3 general public

Join Writers & Books’s history buffs as they explore the big issues and personalities of history. We do not choose particular books, but only subjects. You can read any book or other material on the subject and join the discussion. Meets on the third

Wide Open Mic

Monday, March 22
7:30 p.m., W&B
Free to W&B members,/$3 suggested admission general public

W&B is proud to sponsor Rochester’s longest-running open mic, hosted by Norm Davis, poet and editor of HazMat Review. Known for its eclectic mix, Wide Open Mic welcomes poets, performers, and writers of all kinds.

25 & Under

Tues. March 23
7 p.m. W&B
Free to WAB members & students/$3 general public
Hosted by Sally Bittner Bonn

More than a quarter century ago W&B first opened its doors. To celebrate that milestone anniversary we initiated a monthly reading series featuring writers who are 25 and younger. Join us as we discover a new generation of writers for the next quarter century.

 

 

Click here for more March Events...

 

 

Writers & Books, Rochester's community literary center, inspires and instructs over 25,000 people each year through a wide array of offerings in nearly every literary genre. Believing that the written and spoken word are central to our lives and culture, Writers & Books celebrates, promotes and works to make them available to all. Writers & Books is located at 740 University Avenue, near Atlantic Avenue in the Neighborhood of the Arts.