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Poetry is not a luxury. It is a vital necessity of our existence. It forms the quality of the light within which we predicate our hopes and dreams toward survival and change, first made into language, then into idea, then into more tangible action. ~ Audre Lorde
Hello, fellow poet.
Here are a few things I’ve learned about poetry ~
1. Poetry is one of my truest loves, like a religion but more sacred.
2. It takes the form of a small suitcase filled with metaphors that allow me to think, talk and write about everything in my life.
3. Poetry is sometimes a smooth, round stone in my pocket, a stone I turn over in my hand when I’m nervous or anxious.
4. It is a heart-shaped locket that acts as a protection spell whenever I wear it.
5. Poetry gives me courage, patience and hope.
Why it was hard to learn those things ~
1. All the white dude-poets, professors and literary critics I encountered during my English Lit degree preached FIRE AND BRIMSTONE SERMONS about what constitutes REAL, GOOD ENOUGH poetry. (Some of them were dead but not so dead they couldn’t make their point.) I was younger then and I believed them (even the dead ones) despite the fact that their words made me feel bad about my words and the way I arranged them. I was younger then and too quick to abandon myself.
2. I write about things that I love and these are also things that teenage girls love and there is nothing that draws as much criticism as that which teenage girls love. (Note: If it is not clear, the problem is not with teenage girls.)
The thought that saved me ~
There cannot be just ONE way to write, love and appreciate poetry!
(This holds true for bodies, education, love and other human endeavours.)
It turns out that this stubborn commitment to my poetry is a superpower and I’d like to share it with you.
YOU
I’m not the only one
to feel bad about her words,
to metabolize old ways of thinking
like a tablet under my tongue.
I’m sorry if that happened to you.
You are not alone, dear poet.
Here, I made something for you.
In September 2016, I offered my first poetry class, Poet Laureate of Your Own Life. Then, in 2020, the pandemic isolation I felt prompted me to create a course called the smallest words {a poetry primer}.
Both courses were designed to help you grant yourself the permission and freedom to write poetry while ditching the unhelpful stories you’ve been taught about whether your poetry was REAL and/or GOOD ENOUGH. People wrote surprising, poignant and beautiful poems, some of which brought me to tears. More importantly, those poems allowed the poets to name the forces in their life, grieve their losses and begin healing. Encouraging and witnessing the writing of people’s poetry is one of the most important things I get to do.
The new course that’s asking to be created is an invitation for you to write and assemble poetry into a small body of work ~ for yourself, for a few beloved people in your life or for publication in the form of a chap book. Imagine what would happen if you believed that you are the gate keeper of your poetry!
I’m delighted to inform you that YOU ARE BOTH THE POET AND THE PUBLISHER!
Collected is an eight-week course with three objectives:
1. Explore the question, “What do I love in poetry and why?” Each of us will create a small collection of poetry we love and pay attention to what we love and how those poems work.
2. Write poetry. Given the way the course is structured, most people can expect to write at least 12 new poems. Some people will write more than that.
3. Create a chap book or a collection of our own work for ourselves, loved ones, to be published via Instagram or a blog, to be published as a chap book.
My metaphor for this course is a party so thoughtfully constructed that even the most Introverted among us (puts hand up) stay up past midnight. At this magical gathering, people laugh freely, your favourite beverage and snacks are served in abundance, every conversation is deep and interesting, and everyone feels welcome. The folks at this soiree are curious about themselves and about you and about the human condition. You won’t have to hide out in the bathroom or on the balcony because these are your people and we’ll figure things out together.
Please note that there will be no poetry critiques in this class. We will encourage the other poets by sharing what we love about their work, what resonates, and what their words make us feel or remind us of.
How this will work
Dates
Collected will run for eight weeks ~ from Monday 18th April until Sunday 12th June 2022
Course Modules
Week 1: Introduction to the course and chap books + Writing
Week 2: How does a poem move? + Writing
Week 3: What is the story of the poem? + Writing
Week 4: How does a poem look? + Writing
Week 5: Understanding the poetry you love + Writing
Week 6: Understanding your poetry and yourself as a poet + Writing
Week 7: Revision Week 1
Week 8: Revision Week 2 + Poetry Salon
Included in this course:
Eight weekly emails about writing and collecting your poetry, a PDF of 200+ poetry prompts, membership in our course Slack group, and 16 Zoom calls (two a week) to help facilitate and encourage your writing and revision. I’ll explain each in greater detail below.
Weekly Emails
On Mondays, you’ll receive an email with that week’s lesson as well as a link to the audio recording if you would prefer to listen to the material. I will provide questions for your consideration but will try to keep homework light as your work will be the poems you are writing and collecting. You are encouraged to do as much or as little as you’d like/are able and to change any exercise to fit your situation or preferences. You are always invited to respond to the weekly email with any questions, concerns or thoughts.
Poem Garden: Collection of 200+ Poetry Prompts
Because I want you to always have something to prompt a new poem, I have created a PDF with more than 200 poetry prompts. I will include this with our first email message on Monday 18th April.
Our Slack Group
During Collected, we’ll use a private Slack group. It’s a combination classroom and living room that we’ll create together. In this space, I will share links to resources and you can ask me to address particular questions in that week’s class. You’ll be invited to share your poems, learnings, epiphanies and celebrate your cool moves. You’ll cheer on your classmates. Feedback will be positive in nature; we’ll share what we liked/loved, what we were reminded of and/or how this piece made us feel.
Weekly Zoom Calls
In this course, I will host two weekly Zoom sessions:
1. Thursday Scrawl ~ 60 minutes of independent writing together on Zoom.
Thursdays at 5 p.m. Pacific/ 8 p.m. Eastern./ 9 p.m. Atlantic/ Friday at 9 a.m. in Tokyo/ 10 a.m. in Sydney.
Dates: April 21, 28; May 5, 12, 19, 26; June 2, 9.
2. Sunday Seminar ~ A class guided by Monna with epiphanies, mini-lesson, short poetry exercise + sharing.
Sundays at 5 p.m. Pacific/ 8 p.m. Eastern./ 9 p.m. Atlantic/ Monday at 9 a.m. in Tokyo/ 10 a.m. in Sydney.
Dates: April 24; May 1, 8, 15, 22, 29; June 5, 12.
There won’t be a recording of the Thursday class as we’ll be writing the whole time. For the Sunday class, if you are not able to attend, you can watch the short video I will make of the week’s teaching. I will include questions or thoughts that came up in our Zoom class.
This course is for you IF ~
* you write poetry and you’d like to write more
* you WANT to begin writing poetry
* you are ready for the process of writing and revising poetry to feel easier and more joyful
* you’re willing to play and experiment with writing in the company of other poets
* you are looking for a safe and supportive writing community where we do not critique each other’s work
* you’d like to put together a collection of your poems or writing for yourself, a few people in your life or for publication online or in book form.
Questions?
Please email me at monnamcd (at) gmail (dot) com with any questions you might have.
Investment
The cost of this course is $350 Canadian Dollars payable via PayPal.
If you are Canadian and would prefer to e-transfer your tuition from your bank account, please email me and we can set that up.
I look forward to our poetry-adventure together.