Some of the world’s best-known writers have adored cats, and that adoration has shown up in their writing. sharing about the influence of their feline friends on their literary We will talk about the influence cats can have on how we approach our creative writing and explore how we can use cats to help us […]
read moreIn this 2-hour generative session, we will practice managing our doubts when they interfere with our creative process. Together, we will allow ourselves to write in ways that are brave and embarrassing, confusing and important, strange and exciting. We will create a set of strategies we can use the next time we face a blank […]
read moreIn this introductory class, we will take some basic principles of photography and apply them to our work as writers. We will take photos; do some writing; learn to crop and edit both our images and our words; talk about the similarities between the two art forms; and how our exploration of one can feed […]
read moreThis class is for the conversations that still need to happen. We’ll talk about the barriers that keep us from writing what we need to write. We’ll also examine works by Chanel Miller, Jeannette Walls, and Layli Long Soldier to take lessons from the ways in which they make difficult topics easier to access. Students […]
read moreSending writing to literary journals can be an intimidating process. In this two-hour class, we'll take a step-by-step approach to sending our writing out to journal editors. Learn directly from Samantha Steiner, MFA, a writer with 50+ publications including fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. In addition to her work in the world of book publishing, Steiner […]
read moreJoin us for a crash course in reading and writing poetry. We’ll read a few poems together, talk about what makes them tick, and try our hand at capturing some poetry on the page. (If we run out of time for the writing exercise during the allotted workshop time, participants will be given a writing […]
read moreIn this workshop, students will have a chance to brainstorm lyrics and determine song structures after listening to a few instrumental melodies that could use some words of their own! Students towards the end of class can perform their piece if they'd like to share. Whether you're a beginner or intermediate songwriter, or just love […]
read moreHave you taken poetry workshops at VisArts? Do you feel ready to deepen your craft? Work with other experienced writers to study, learn new forms and critique your classmates' work.
read moreThis workshop is for students who have some experience writing poetry and are looking to dig deeper into their writing practice. In this poetry workshop, we'll read published poems (written by contemporary and historical poets), and we'll use this work to inspire our own creative writing work. We'll write poems, and we'll spend time discussing […]
read moreGot ideas for a science fiction or fantasy story but aren’t sure how to approach it? Have you wanted to try exploring these imaginative genres but need a push to get started? Looking for like-minded folks with whom to share work and explore ideas? If you answered yes to any of those questions, this is […]
read moreWhether you're currently working on a literary project or trying to get inspiration, this generative workshop will serve as a gentle and fun way to push yourself creatively. Through prompts, mini-lectures, readings, supportive discussion, group members will work towards realizing their prose visions.
read moreBeyond the fundamentals of point-of-view considerations in fiction, we will take a methodical approach to POV experimentation in our work. We'll study how the limitations of each POV can actually result in a fully fleshed-out story. You will come away with several short pieces or one longer.
read moreExplore short story fiction writing by studying narrative craft elements like story, plot, character, scene, structure, archetypal patterns and dialogue. We’ll examine professionally published pieces and your own work. By the end of the course, you’ll be ready to begin a story based on a word or an idea. You’ll also understand how to evaluate […]
read moreIn this generative workshop, students of multiple creative writing genres will explore nonlinear storytelling and learn how and when to effectively use this more experimental narrative style. Students will read and discuss short texts and media in class to explore storytelling using a nonlinear framework, including short films, poems, essays, and short fiction. These will […]
read moreClarissa Pinkola Estes writes about el duende, “the goblin wind,” that can breathe the creative spark into fire. The goal of this creative writing class is to fan your ideas and inspirations into flame. We’ll use timed writing, dream journals, guided imagery, Active Imagination, and anything else we can think of to get in touch […]
read moreThomas Larson writes that “memoir is most successful when it is not the ‘story of a life,’ but a focused part of that life—a dozen summers spent working on a grandfather’s farm, a long relationship with a dying relative, the first year of law school.” You’ll work with writing prompts and timed writing exercises, and […]
read moreDive deep into the realm of images to discover new possibilities for your poetry and prose. In this workshop, we'll tap into memory, imagination, description, observation, and discovery, through a number of playful, strange, and thought-provoking writing activities. These exercises will inspire new work and offer fresh ways of looking at your works in progress, […]
read moreExplore the fundamental elements of poetry, through the reading and writing of poems. We'll read and discuss poems written by other people, then write poems of our own, with special attention to elements of line, image, and syntax. Students will learn how close readings of other poems may inspire their own work, and how they […]
read moreThis class will focus on confessional style poetry. We will look at examples for inspiration as well as write in a workshop style class.Poets like Sylvia Plath will be helpful in guiding us to look inward and explore some themes for our writing, including personal growth, grief, beauty, and the spiritual. Be prepared to leave […]
read moreSome of the world’s best-known writers have adored cats, and that adoration has shown up in their writing. sharing about the influence of their feline friends on their literary We will talk about the influence cats can have on how we approach our creative writing and explore how we can use cats to help us […]
read moreIn this introductory class, we will take some basic principles of photography and apply them to our work as writers. We will take photos; do some writing; learn to crop and edit both our images and our words; talk about the similarities between the two art forms; and how our exploration of one can feed […]
read moreIn this 2-hour generative session, we will practice managing our doubts when they interfere with our creative process. Together, we will allow ourselves to write in ways that are brave and embarrassing, confusing and important, strange and exciting. We will create a set of strategies we can use the next time we face a blank […]
read moreThis class is for the conversations that still need to happen. We’ll talk about the barriers that keep us from writing what we need to write. We’ll also examine works by Chanel Miller, Jeannette Walls, and Layli Long Soldier to take lessons from the ways in which they make difficult topics easier to access. Students […]
read moreSending writing to literary journals can be an intimidating process. In this two-hour class, we'll take a step-by-step approach to sending our writing out to journal editors. Learn directly from Samantha Steiner, MFA, a writer with 50+ publications including fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. In addition to her work in the world of book publishing, Steiner […]
read moreWant to imagine the world beyond your own experience? To wonder about what you might find in the consciousness of a historical figure, an animal, a lamp, a well-loved book, a pen lost behind the refrigerator? Come explore these ideas via "persona poems," a style of poem that asks us to attempt the difficult but […]
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