Emily Dickinson famously said &ldquo\;If I read a book and it makes my whole body so cold no fire can warm me\, I kn ow that is poetry. If I feel physically as if the top of my head were take n off\, I know that is poetry. These are the only ways I know it. Is there any other way?&rdquo\; This definition is helpful when considering the sl ippery\, yet fertile\, form known as prose poetry. As prose poems often do not conform to the traditional trappings of poetry\, they can offer a uni que way to approach our personal experiences of being in the world. In thi s workshop\, we will engage with examples of the prose poem by contemporar y poets Richard Siken\, Mary Ruefle\, and Claudia Rankine and see how we m ight use this form to generate new work of our own. We will mine our own m emories and/or observations\, work with prompts\, and explore strategies f or drafting and revising. This workshop is open to all\, from the newest n ew to more experienced writers.
\nPens and notebooks will be pro vided for participants. You are also welcome to bring your own materials a nd/or a writing device like a laptop.
\n\n
Facil itator Hannah Sullivan Brown holds an MA in English from Indiana University and an MFA in Poetry from Butler University\, where she also served as Poetry Editor of Booth magazine. Recent work appears in Ne w Ohio Review\, So It Goes\, and Sport Literate. She lives with her family and teaches in Indianapolis
\n\nAbout the Butler
MFA Community Workshop Series
The
Butler MFA Community Workshop series is a free writi
ng program facilitated by Butler University alumni of the MFA in Creative
Writing. These one-off workshops\, hosted at partner sites including books
tores\, nonprofits\, and public libraries in the Greater Indianapolis area
\, connect adults at all stages of their writing journeys
with workshop experiences shaped by graduate-level study. Thanks to a gen
erous gift from the Efroymson Family Fund\, alumni from the program's conc
entrations in Poetry\, Creative Nonfiction\, and Fiction will guide local
writers into creative practice. Each workshop is designed to help
participants generate new work\, learn new ways of thinking about
the craft of writing\, and more confidently cont
inue their own writing practices. \;Learn more about
Butler University's Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing by visiting <
a href="https://www.butler.edu/arts-sciences/master-fine-arts/">their webs
ite.