Over the summer, I will again teach a 5-week intensive poetry workshop at the Vintage Theater, located at 119 Penn Ave. in downtown Scranton. I wanted to cap the workshop at 5 students again, and I have that many down already, but I’ve decided to bump the number up a little bit. The workshop will again focus on the key elements of poetry, such as crafting an extended metaphor, developing voice/persona, and strengthening the rhythm of the line. The workshop will again conclude with a public reading of student work at the Vintage Theater.

I think there’s a few benefits to joining a community workshop. First, it forces one to write each week, to bring two poems, one that gets critiqued by the group, and one that goes home with me for thorough written comments. Second, I teach a variety of contemporary American poets whose work ties into the units we focus on week to week. Third, it’s simply nice to be part of a writing community, to get solid feedback on your work.

The cost of the workshop is again $75. The dates are Thursday, May 26, Thursday, June 2, Thursday,  June 9, Thursday, June 16, and Thursday, June 30 from 7-9 pm each week. If you’re interested, email me at bfanelli84@gmail.com to reserve a spot.