Annie’s Ongoing Workshop in Form 
Now Forming to Start Fall 2017
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A biweekly mall group teleseminar where we workshop different aspects of formal poetry.

We will share poems in form to workshop on a special blog page and discuss them every other week. The atmosphere is fun, supportive, and challenging. Optional readings  suggested but the only commitment is to write your poems and show up fully for workshop.  Workshop limited to 9 poets.  In the event that there are more applicants than spots, poets will be chosen by application.

 Contact Annie for scheduling details before registering.

Full Moon Meter Madness 
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A freewheeling, freestanding rhythmic celebration of poetry and the moon by teleseminar (group phone conference).  Bring your meter questions, poems in rhythm to share and/or request comments from Annie and the group, or just an open poetic mind for whatever rhythmic inspiration the night will bring.  7-8 pm EST on the night of the full moon.

 Contact Annie to confirm dates before registering.

Form Teleseminar 
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In-depth focus on a poetic form by webinar (group phone conference plus slideshow).  Includes discussion and lecture on the form’s background and qualities, writing exercises, and group sharing.  7-9 pm as needed by popular request.  See Annie’s Facebook page for polls on which form will be next, and feel free to  contact Annie for scheduling and topic details before registering.

Women’s Sonnets Studio
London Poetry School 
3 weeks starting July 3, 2017
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Explore how women have claimed the sonnet as a vehicle of self-expression, and write your own sonnets.

Women poets have long claimed the sonnet as a vehicle of self-assertion and self-exploration, a site of passionate sensuality and literary defiance, despite literary orthodoxies favouring male practitioners of the form. From Louise Labé in the 16th century through Elizabeth Barrett Browning in the 19th century, Gwendolyn Brooks in the 20th century, and Marilyn Hacker in the 21st century, this mysterious and compelling poetic form, with proportions that echo those of classical architecture and the human body, has encouraged women to break out of the object position and develop our own strong voices. In this Studio course we will survey poems demonstrating some of the memorable strategies and unique triumphs of the women’s sonnet tradition – from reclaiming the Italian rhyme scheme to creating experimental hybrid forms – and then use that momentum for you to create your own sonnets, focusing on a different strategy each week. No previous experience writing sonnets is needed.

Poetry Studios are three week intensive courses. Reading material will be distributed before the course begins. There are no live chats so they are suitable for both UK & International students. 

Working the Beat: How to Make Poems Sing
24 Pearl St, Provincetown Fine Arts Work Center
Fall 2017, Dates TBA
More Information

It can be tempting to think of rhythm, meter, or form as a container, something outside and separate from a poem.  But the best poems sing with rhythms that move them as innately and mysteriously as waves work the water.  Whether or not you’ve written in meter before, these powerful rhythms are there in your poems already.

In this one-week intensive course, we will trace the patterns that already move through your lines, whether in free verse or form, and unpack the dynamics of the energies they carry. By working the beat, you will have the chance to explore and connect with the deepest structures driving your poems. You will discover voices you never knew you had—and a sure and instinctive path to fresh and exciting revisions.  Following the course, each student will receive an email talking about the strengths of their work, with ideas about moving forward.

Recommended Advance Reading: A Poet’s Craft 

I teach poetry and nonfiction writing in the St. Francis College Low-Residency MFA Program. Based in Brooklyn, the two-year program consists of online distance work with a mentor combined with two 10-day residencies per year in Brooklyn.

I also teach privately online and in various online programs. Upcoming online classes are listed below. To arrange private teaching, please contact me.  To be informed of my online classes via email, please subscribe to my newsletter.

Comments From Annie’s Online Workshop Students

An incredibly valuable workshop, This isn’t my first poetry class, but it’s been the most transformational. Many thanks. I will miss this class.—Barbara B., “Working the Beat: How to Make Poems Sing”

This was a wonderful week. I’ve never done an online workshop before, and I didn’t know what to expect, but this was a great experience.
—Susan R., “Working the Beat: How to Make Poems Sing”

Raves for a great class and experience!
—Jeffrey B, “Working the Beat: How to Make Poems Sing”