The Poem Under the Poem: Revision with January Gill O’Neil (via Zoom)

Sometimes our best words, lines, and phrases are keeping the poem from blooming. How can we take a fresh look at our writing to find the poem under the poem? Revision can feel overwhelming, particularly for emerging writers, but having strategies and tools for what to do can rejuvenate any poetry project. Join me for a lively conversation on how to revise both new and old work. We’ll do a close reading of poems and examine the aural dynamics and rich imagery in action. Participants will leave with new insights on how to take risks in your creative practice, and claim your unique voice through the revision process.

NB: This class will be taught on Zoom (Sunday, September 8, 12:30-2:30 PM ET) and will be capped at 15 students. Registrants will receive the Zoom link to the email address they use to register. It will arrive immediately after registration so please check your spam folder if you do not receive it. It will also be sent the day before class as a reminder. Please review the course policies page before registering for any classes. Please email misty@writerscenter.org with any questions.

All HVWC scholarship applications will be available on May 1 and will be due on May 15 for all summer/fall 2024 classes.

January Gill O’Neil is an associate professor at Salem State University and the author of Glitter Road (February 2024), Rewilding (2018), Misery Islands (2014), and Underlife (2009), all published by CavanKerry Press. From 2012-2018, she served as the executive director of the Massachusetts Poetry Festival. Her poems and articles have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-A-Day series, American Poetry Review, Poetry, and Sierra magazine, among others. Her poem, “At the Rededication of the Emmett Till Memorial,” was a co-winner of the 2022 Allen Ginsberg Poetry award from the Poetry Center at Passaic County Community College. The recipient of fellowships from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, Cave Canem, and the Barbara Deming Memorial Fund, O’Neil was the 2019-2020 John and Renée Grisham Writer-in-Residence at the University of Mississippi, Oxford. She currently serves as the 2022-2024 board chair of the Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP).

O’Neil earned her BA from Old Dominion University and her MFA from New York University. She lives in Beverly, MA.