Writing the “After” Poem: Taking Inspiration from Your Poet-Forerunners with David Groff (via Zoom)

Our poems exist in the context of poems already written. In this workshop, we’ll join the tradition of poets responding to the work of poets who came before us. We’ll write and discuss our own “after” poems—poems that recast, revise, renew, reimagine, and maybe even reject modern and contemporary works that are part of our personal canon. Our result will be poems that transcend imitation, homage, and critique to become truly original, truly our own.

NB: This class will be taught on Zoom (Saturday, December 7, 12:30-4:30 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. 

David Groff’s most recent book, Live in Suspense, was published by Trio House Press. His previous book Clay, also from Trio House, was chosen by Michael Waters for the Louise Bogan Award. His first collection, Theory of Devolution, was selected by Mark Doty for the National Poetry Series. He is the coeditor with Philip Clark of Persistent Voices: Poetry by Writers Lost to AIDS (Alyson) and, with Jim Elledge, Who’s Yer Daddy?: Gay Writers Celebrate Their Mentors and Forerunners (University of Wisconsin Press), winner of a Lambda Literary Award. He is a cofounder and board member of The Publishing Triangle, the association of LGBTQ+ people in book publishing, and a board member of Nightboat Books. An independent book editor, he teaches poetry and publishing in the MFA creative writing program at the City College of New York. www.davidgroff.com