Poetopia: Reimagining the Future
Inspiration, opportunity, and an invitation to contribute positively…to become the voices of a sounder future…this is exactly what we need during one of America’s more tumultuous periods. At this summer’s NYC Poetry Festival, the Poetry Society of New York defined a poetopia as: “a blueprint for possibility, a practice of reimagining a more inclusive, equitable world[…] a living force that can shape the future.” This is why the poets must write.
In this workshop, we will read, discuss, and explore a diverse array of speculative poems. Each of the selected authors transforms the world—and its malaises—through their poetry. Authors may include: Ocean Vuong, Dianne Seuss, Charles Simic, Tracy K. Smith, David Bowie, and Eve Ewing. Between poems, we will weave found structures, inspirations, and poetic devices to create, to share, and to strengthen our own poetopias. All levels are welcome!
melissa christine goodrum is the editor of four print anthologies and the author of two full-length poetry collections: definitions uprising (New York Quarterly Press) and something sweet & filled with blood (great weather for MEDIA). Her poetic experiences include being a guest editor for Pedestal Magazine, Poetry Workshop Leader for the Safe Return Project, Writing Teacher at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, and Administrative Director of Bowery Arts & Science. She was a recent Pushcart Nominee and the recipient of a Zora Neale Hurston Award from the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa University.
