Writing the Short Poem–Lake Region Writers Network and The Loft
Hybrid: In-Person and Online
April 25–May 29, 2015
In Person Apr. 25 , New York Mills, MN, 9:30-12:30.
Remainder online.
INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION–CLICK HERE
In collaboration with the Lake Region Writers Network, The Loft Literary Center is offering four creative writing classes (starting in April and May, 2015) in four locations in the Lakes Region of MN. Each of these hybrid offerings follows the same format: A first in-person meeting of teaching artist and students, followed by 5 weeks of online delivery, and concluding with an optional in-person public reading of student work. Each class is taught by an experienced Loft teaching artist.
Writing the Short Poem with LouAnn Shepard Muhm:
The first class meeting will take place in-person on April 25, 2015, 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the New York Mills Regional Cultural Center in New York Mills, MN. The conclusion of this class will be followed by an optional public reading of student work on June 5, 5-6:30 p.m., also at the New York Mills Cultural Center. All other sessions will be online.
Class Description:
Have you been told that your poems read like prose, or that “maybe that poem would work better as a short story”? Do you have trouble deciding what to cut from your rough drafts? One of the characteristics that makes poetry poetic is the compression of language. In this class, we will read and discuss a variety of short poems, practice cutting extraneous language from poems (by others and by you), and think about what kinds of language can (should?) almost always be cut. We will work with your drafts, old and new, and generate new poems with an emphasis on compression and concision. We will explore a variety of short forms as well as concise free verse.
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Poetry Inspired by Art–Online through The Loft
06/02/14–08/03/14
Location: Online
Ages: Adult
Reg $312.00 | Mem $280.80 | Low inc. $312.00
Looking for inspiration for your poetry? This is the class for you! Poets from John Keats to Rita Dove have written poems responding to art. The formal name for this kind of poetry is Ekphrasis. In this class, the emphasis will be on generating new poems. Each week, prompts from various genres of art will be provided. No special knowledge of art is required—students will write whatever the prompt inspires them to write, whether in direct response to the artwork, or in response to their own ideas and experiences brought up by the artwork. Students will generate from 8-16 new poems, give and receive feedback on the first drafts, and get a start on revising.
No class the week of July 4.
Enter Early Bird Promo Code EBSUOL1403 by May 15, 2014 and receive $20 off the regular and member class price. Promo codes only valid for online registrations.
Register here: https://www.loft.org/classes/detail/?loft_product_id=63356 (link at the bottom of the page)
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Triggering Inspiration–Online through The Loft
January 27-March 23, 2014
Location: Online
Ages: Adult
Reg $312.00 | Member $280.80 | Low inc. $312.00
Click here for more info and to register https://www.loft.org/classes/detail/?loft_product_id=53943
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Writing the Short Poem
Online through The Loft
September 16 -November 24, 2013
CLOSED
Have you been told that your poems read like prose, or that “maybe that poem would work better as a short story”? Do you have trouble deciding what to cut from your rough drafts? One of the characteristics that makes poetry poetic is the compression of language. In this course, we will read and discuss a variety of short poems, practice cutting extraneous language from poems (by others and by you), and think about what kinds of language can (should?) almost always be cut. We will work with your drafts, old and new, and generate new poems with an emphasis on compression and concision. We will explore a variety of short forms as well as concise free verse.
One scholarship available–first-come, first-served. See registration link below.
The scholarship for this session has been claimed.
Class details and Online Registration–CLICK HERE
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Poetry Inspired by Art–Online through The Loft
June 17-August 18, 2013
CLOSED
Looking for inspiration for your poetry? This is the class for you! Poets from John Keats to Rita Dove have written poems responding to art. The formal name for this kind of poetry is Ekphrasis. In this class, the emphasis will be on generating new poems. Each week, prompts from various genres of art will be provided. No special knowledge of art is required—students will write whatever the prompt inspires them to write, whether in direct response to the artwork, or in response to their own ideas and experiences brought up by the artwork. Students will generate from 8-16 new poems, give and receive feedback on the first drafts, and get a start on revising.
Class details and Online Registration–CLICK HERE
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Triggering Inspiration–Online through The Loft
February 18-April 14, 2013
CLOSED
Course description:
Where do poem ideas come from? Finding a way to sustain poetry writing beyond those first emotion-driven poems that we just have to write is often the challenge facing poets who have been writing for awhile. In this course we will be reading and discussing Richard Hugo’s excellent book on poetic inspiration and poetry writing, The Triggering Town. Each week we will read one of the book’s eight short chapters and discuss what we find there, in addition to writing a new poem from a prompt and posting it for discussion and feedback. Poets will come out of this class with eight new poems, as well as some new tools for generating inspiration and ideas.
One scholarship available–first-come, first-served. See registration link below.
Class details and Online Registration–CLICK HERE
May 12, 2012
CLOSED
Past Inspiration: Using Historical Research in Poetry and Creating Found Poems from Historical Documents
Poets Sean Hill and LouAnn Muhm
1:30 pm to 4:30 pm
Bemidji Public Library Conference Room
509 America Ave.
Downtown Bemidji
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER
Finding inspirationfor new poems is often a challenge for the poet. In this workshop, will delve into history through poetry and vice versa. Hill will discuss his and other poets’ strategies for creating poetry with the materials provided by history—from the odd language of primary sources to the blunt facts about events and lives lived before us, the lives that made us. These strategies include textual and visual prompts aimed at helping writers to focus on concrete, detail-oriented writing. He will also discuss techniques for exploring local histories to keep the writing relevant and necessary for the writer. Muhm will walk the workshop through working with the elements of found poetry, looking to historical documents for nuggets of inspiration we can turn into our own, original poems. Her exercises will include erasures, cut-ups, and chance operations.
Poetry Inspired by Art–Online through The Loft
June 11-August 12, 2012
Looking for inspiration for your poetry? This is the class for you! Poets from John Keats to Rita Dove have written poems responding to art. The formal name for this kind of poetry is Ekphrasis. In this class, the emphasis will be on generating new poems. Each week, prompts from various genres of art will be provided. No special knowledge of art is required—students will write whatever the prompt inspires them to write, whether in direct response to the artwork, or in response to their own ideas and experiences brought up by the artwork. Students will generate from 8-16 new poems, give and receive feedback on the first drafts, and get a start on revising.
One scholarship available–first-come, first-served. See registration link below.
The scholarship for this session has been claimed.
Class details and Online Registration–CLICK HERE
Writing the Short Poem–Online through The Loft–Feb. 6-April 15, 2012
CLOSED
Have you been told that your poems read like prose, or that “maybe that poem would work better as a short story”? Do you have trouble deciding what to cut from your rough drafts? One of the characteristics that makes poetry poetic is the compression of language. In this course, we will read and discuss a variety of short poems, practice cutting extraneous language from poems (by others and by you), and think about what kinds of language can (should?) almost always be cut. We will work with your drafts, old and new, and generate new poems with an emphasis on compression and concision. We will explore a variety of short forms as well as concise free verse.
Class details and Online Registration–CLICK HERE
Here’s what a student currently in the class has to say:
The Loft classroom format is easy to use and extremely convenient. LouAnn’s workshop in the short poem has been challenging and engaging. Each week she provides different topics and exercises which have really helped me excel with the craft of poetry. Her feedback on work is very thorough, and she has allowed me to see my poems in a new light and to become more concise.
~Linda C., Cedar Grove, NJ
Writing the Short Poem–Online through The Loft
Sept. 26-Dec. 9, 2011
CLOSED
Have you been told that your poems read like prose, or that “maybe that poem would work better as a short story”? Do you have trouble deciding what to cut from your rough drafts? One of the characteristics that makes poetry poetic is the compression of language. In this course, we will read and discuss a variety of short poems, practice cutting extraneous language from poems (by others and by you), and think about what kinds of language can (should?) almost always be cut. We will work with your drafts, old and new, and generate new poems with an emphasis on compression and concision. We will explore a variety of short forms as well as concise free verse.
Class details and Online Registration–CLICK HERE
The Art of Ekphrastic Poetry—A Writers’ Workshop
August 31-Sept. 24
Ekphrastic Poetry is poetry written about or in response to other forms of art, usually visual art. In this workshop, we will explore Exphrasis—reading Ekphrasitic poems by well-known and not-so-well-known poets, and trying our own writing in this genre. All the while, we will be surrounded by Old Masters’ paintings from the 15th and 16th centuries and Nigerian art and artifacts, as well as more modern works. We will take some of our inspiration from these works, and some from the participants’ favorite artwork from outside the museum. The emphasis will be on generating new poems and bringing them to the group for sharing, discussion and gentle critique. The class will culminate with a reading (optional) on Sept. 24, 2:30-4 pm at the Nemeth Art Center, as part of Park Rapids’ annual Art Leap event, and some poems may be hung next to the artwork that inspired the poem.
Dates and times: Wednesday evenings, 6:30-8 at Nemeth Art Center, August 31, Sept 7, 14 & 21, with optional reading Sept. 24, 2:30-4 pm
Where: Nemeth Art Center (formerly North Country Museum of Arts), 301 Court Street, Park Rapids, MN
Cost: $80 (contact me if in need of a scholarship)
Who: older teens (17 and up) and adults
To Register: Call the Nemeth Art Center at 218-237-5900, or email Kelly at kelly@ncmapr.com
LouAnn Shepard Muhm 
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