“The Space Between Poems,” a poetry workshop led by Juliet Patterson, will be offered Thursday, November 3, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm, at the Roeliff Jansen Community Library. The workshop will be followed at 6:30 pm by a reading by Patterson from Threnody (Nightboat Books), her new collection of poems. An open mic follows. Attendees are invited to bring a poem to read.
The workshop fee is $20, and enrollment is limited. To register, or to request a fee waiver, contact Cecele Kraus by October 31 at cecelekraus@gmail or 518 329 3056.
The workshop will include a thirty-minute break with beverages and light snacks provided.
Juliet Patterson describes the workshop: “What happens when you feel as though you have nothing more to write about, or you land in a valley on the other side of a creative peak? In this highly interactive workshop we will explore the silence and emptiness that often follow the writing of a poem. The space between poems is real, and affects both beginning and experienced poets.
“Through writing exercises, discussion and group sharing, we’ll talk about how you can use this space to reinvest in your creative self. We’ll explore methods of craft, as well as the roles of temperament, logic and intuition, and the importance of a creative temperament in the making of art. Participants will come away with a handful of tools (and exercises!) to inspire and challenge.”
Juliet Patterson is the author of Threnody and The Truant Lover (Nightboat Books), and the chapbooks Epilogue (Spout Press) and Dirge (Albion Books). Recent awards include the Arts & Letters Susan Atefat Prize in Non-fiction, the Lynda Hull Memorial Poetry Prize, and a Jerome Foundation fellowship. Her memoir in progress, Sinkhole, has been supported through a Minnesota State Arts Board grant and a Minnesota Emerging Writers grant. She lives in Minneapolis.
Roeliff Jansen Community Library, which is chartered to serve Ancram, Copake and Hillsdale, is located at 9091 Route 22, approximately one mile south of the light at the Hillsdale intersection of Routes 22 and 23. For information on hours and events, call 518 325-4101 or visit the library’s website at www.roejanlibrary.org. Follow the library on Twitter: @libraryroe
