Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Jesse Ferguson talks about his upcoming creative writing workshop

Jesse Patrick Ferguson currently lives in Sydney, Cape Breton, with his wife and son. Jesse has published poetry and reviews in ten countries, in both print and online formats. Recently, his poems have appeared in Canadian Literature, Prairie Fire, The Walrus, Poetry Ireland Review, Poetry and Harper’s. His work also appears in the anthologies Best Canadian Poetry, 2009 and Rogue Stimulus. Jesse has been a poetry editor for The Fiddlehead and for several other Canadian literary journals. In 2009, Freehand Books published his first full-length poetry collection, Harmonics.

In this one-day workshop, we will explore the craft of poetry writing, within a fun and casual atmosphere. We will discuss some of the basics of poetry (meter, rhyme, metaphor, form, etc.), and in order to reinforce these basics, we will read some classic poems.

Our next task will be to workshop (share/edit) our own poetry. Participants will have the opportunity to share their poems and to receive constructive feedback. Participation is therefore encouraged, but not mandatory.

Finally, the class will discuss how to successfully send poetry out for publication in magazines, e-zines and/or books. Students of all experience levels are welcome, though some experience of writing poems is preferable (please bring them if you have any).

In this course you can expect to become a better writer and reader of poetry, gain confidence in your writing and ideas, learn how to get published, and, of course, have fun!

See the Cabot Trail Writers Fest website for further details.

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