WRITING THE MOON
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MOON CLASS
“The moon making a poem possible … what can we say about that?”
– Mary Ruefle, “Poetry and the Moon”
“I would like the moon in my poems to be a real moon, one which could be suddenly covered with a cloud that has nothing to do with the poem––a moon utterly independent of images.”
-Jack Spicer, After Lorca
The moon cycle is a phenomenon we can observe and predict, which can provide good structure for the writing process. For example, the new moon indicates the beginning of a lunar month, which can lead us to experiment with the stylistic decisions we make at the beginning of a piece of writing. The full moon asks us to explore themes of celebration and maximalism. When the moon gains light during its waxing phase, we will accumulate language, and when it loses light during its waning phase, we will pare it down. In this workshop, the phases of the moon will guide the reading and writing we do each week. Class will consist of reflective and generative writing exercises as well as extensive discussion of each other’s work. Readings will include C.D. Wright, Bhanu Kapil, Danez Smith, Mei-Mei Berssenbrugge, Jen Bervin, Lara Mimosa Montes, and more. Writers of all levels and genres as well as artists of any other medium are welcome. Classes will meet synchronously on Zoom. Students will leave with a structured body of work, detailed feedback from classmates and from me, and a set of exercises and prompts that can be used to inspire writing in the future.
WHEN: Tuesdays, March 21 – April 18, 6:00 – 8:30 P.M. EST
COST: $150-250 sliding scale, feel free to pay whatever feels right to you and your current financial situation. If cost is a barrier, please reach out, I’m happy to discuss payment plans, trades, etc.
TO SIGN UP: email me at carolinerayner90 [at] gmail [dot] com. I will follow up with details about payment as well as information about how to prepare for our first class. Limited to 8 participants per section.
Read testimonials from past students HERE
PAST CLASSES:
February 11 – March 11, 2021
May 8 – June 5, 2021
May 11 – June 8, 2021
January 3 – 31, 2022
March 29 – April 26, 2022