UPDATE: I’ll be running two online creative writing courses starting in May! Poetry: Experimenting with Form & Technique begins on 4th May, and will be available to book soon. This self-paced course is aimed at poets who already have some experience of writing poetry, and would like to develop their skills. It will include 3 Live Workshops on Monday evenings, delivered via Teams (on 11th May, 6th June, 6th July).

We will discuss and seek inspiration from several contemporary poets, including Zaffar Kunial, Kim Moore, Jane Yeh, Gustav Parker Hibbett and Caroline Bird, as well as poetry greats, such as Dylan Thomas and Elizabeth Bishop. We will generate poems from a wide range of prompts, reflecting on word choice, extended metaphors, endings, line breaks, titles, and traditional forms such as the villanelle. We will also get to grips with the editing process and discuss options for publication. Students will be encouraged to complete weekly writing tasks through an online forum, and to provide constructive feedback on each other’s work.

Here’s an outline of the course content:

Week 1: Playing with Words: Sound & Sense

Week 2: Playing with Form: The Sonnet

Week 3: Playing with Form: The Villanelle

Week 4: Playing with Form: White Space

Week 5: Playing with the Poem: Editing & Revision

Week 6: Playing with Reality: Magical Realism & Humour

Week 7: Playing with Image: Extended Metaphor

Week 8: Playing with Reality: Myths and Fairytales

Week 9: Publication & Next Steps

I’ll also be teaching another online course: Inspired by Art: Ekphrastic Poetry and Prose…