W403 5458 RICHARD CECIL
Advanced Poetry Writing

2:30p-3:45p MW (15 students) 3 CR.

PREREQUISITE: W303. Requires permission of instructor. Obtain authorization from BH 442.

This course is a workshop in writing poetry. Students will turn in a poem a week, which will be discussed in class. The poems will be formal exercises drawn from Wendy Bishop’s Thirteen Ways of Looking for a Poem. Students will learn to work with accentual and syllabic meters, as well as to create contemporary versions of ancient forms such as sonnets and sestinas. No tests. No auditors. Students will distribute copies of their work to all members of the class.

Approval of the instructor is required for admission. To apply, submit 5 pages of poetry and a list of creative writing courses (including the name of their instructors) you've taken to my mailbox in BH 442 at least one week before your registration day. To improve your chances of getting a place in the workshop, submit your manuscript as soon as possible, since places will be filled as people apply. Those who register late should apply at the beginning of the registration period so that, if admitted, a place will be reserved for them in the class. No places will be saved for late registration. I will post a list of those admitted on my office door (BH 458), and give a copy of the list to the Undergraduate Secretary in BH 442. As soon as you are admitted, pick up an authorization to register from the secretary.

Course Text: Wendy Bishop, Thirteen Ways of Looking for a Poem.