Poetry: Writing the Moment

(EGL 103)

Robert Lowell said, “Poetry is not the record of an event: it is an event.” In this course, we will learn what makes a poem come alive, how a poem is made, and how one begins to write one. Emphasis will be placed on getting started, developing ideas, and learning how to shape a poem once it has made it on the page. In the spirit of exploration, weekly creative assignments and spontaneous writing prompts will lead to the creation of original poems submitted by students for supportive group discussion. Although our primary focus will be student writing, we will also consider the work of contemporary authors, including Robert Hass, Li-Young Lee, and Sharon Olds, in order to increase our understanding of the tools and resources available to us. This course is suitable for those who are new to poetry, as well as for experienced writers looking to experiment with diverse approaches to their writing.

Sara Michas-Martin, Former Stegner Fellow

Sara Michas-Martin has taught creative writing at Stanford, the University of Michigan, and Goddard College. She has received scholarships from the Hall Farm Center, the Vermont Studio Center, and the Bread Loaf and Squaw Valley Community of Writers conferences. Her writing has appeared or is forthcoming in American Poetry Review, FIELD, Forklift Ohio, Gulf Coast, Iowa Review, Prairie Schooner, Threepenny Review, and elsewhere.