The ars poetica—by definition a poem that conveys the “art of poetry” as practiced by a particular poet—is a poetic form we stumble upon when we’re least expecting it. It’s a collision between ourselves (“the poet”) and our passion (“the poem”). Like any relationship, this is the poem you understand the least—the one that starts, “I am sitting down to write a poem,” then yields nothing afterward but frustration. In this five-week, online workshop, we’ll study the form of the ars poetica, reading heavily from poets such as Alison C. Rollins, Ocean Vuong, Evie Shockley, Ross Gay and Jason Magabo Perez to examine the form as a way of writing as self-revival. We’ll write and workshop our own ars poeticas and experiment with ways to push through the process of relaying our identities as poets into our work. Class sessions will meet synchronously via Zoom, and assignments, poems and critiques will be shared via Wet Ink.
Workshop Details
Starr Davis is a poet and essayist whose work has been featured in multiple literary venues such as the Kenyon Review, the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day, Catapult, and the Rumpus. Previously a 2021–2022 PEN America Writing for Justice Fellow, a 2023 Fellow for the Virginia Center for Creative Arts, and the creative nonfiction editor for TriQuarterly, she holds an MFA in creative writing from the City College of New York and a BA in journalism and creative writing from the University of Akron. She has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize anthologies in poetry and creative nonfiction, Best of the Net and Best American Essays.