“Our dead are never dead to us, until we have forgotten them.” — often attributed to George Eliot
Drawing from Dia de los Muertos traditions, this two-session workshop invites poets to create vibrant poems honoring the dead--celebrating their lives with color, humor, and memory. We will explore symbols of the Day of the Dead: marigolds, monarch butterflies, papel picado, sugar skulls, candles, and more. These images and traditions will inspire our writing prompts.
We’ll also examine calaveras literarias: short, rhymed, often playful verses traditionally used during Día de los Muertos. Participants can adapt the calavera's brevity and wit to write playful or poignant epitaphs, or craft ofrenda-inspired poems, naming what they'd place on an altar and why. Together, we'll experiment with writing poems that blend levity and reverence, reflecting the paradox of this cultural tradition.
This workshop encourages both brief, concentrated poems—where constraints inspire focus and precision—and longer explorations, allowing writers to find the length that best suits their voices and material.
Tamara Nicholl-Smith’s poetry has been featured on numerous radio shows, a spoken-word classical piano fusion CD, and public appearances. It has also appeared in print in many publications, including The Examined Life Journal, Catholic Arts Today and America. She is a popular faculty member for the Catholic Literary Arts/ virtual class series and longtime CLA member. Tamara inaugurated the CLA School Visits by a Catholic Poet in 2025.
Her poem on Saint Jerome is part of the display of the Guttenberg Bible installed at the University of Saint Thomas. Houston, Texas. Tamara is a member of Catholic Literary Arts and a contributor to the “Joy of Catholic Poetry” and “Resurrection Joy” presentations done at parishes, schools, and universities. She coordinates the annual Catholic Literary Arts’ Sacred Poetry Contest which brings together poets from across the globe to write in response to curated artwork from both historical and contemporary sacred artists.
This event will include:
· Handouts
· Discussion
· In-class writing
· Homework
· Written comments by professor on homework
