We are walking wounds, but I am not sure any of us know quite how to talk about it.

–Roxane Gay

As human beings, we’ve all experienced trauma—simply defined as the significant events that have shaped our lives and identities, no matter how big or small. During this immersive writing workshop, we will explore the complex relationship between trauma, language, and healing. We will focus on how to write about the significant events of our lives, moments which often leave us stripped of language. We will start with poetry, a genre built upon the fundamentals of imagery, metaphor, and sensory fragments—the natural language of trauma. From there, we will examine how various craft elements help us gradually construct a narrative from the fragments, as well as the particular patterns and images that pull it all together. Poets and memoirists such as Gregory Orr, Sharon Olds, Audre Lorde, Lidia Yuknavitch, Kiese Laymon, Roxane Gay, Lacy M Johnson, and Melissa Febos will guide our path. Each week will include teaching, reading, and workshopping submitted pieces. The hope of this class is to reclaim language in the places it was once taken, and in doing so, to reclaim lost fragments of the self. If you have an important personal story you want to tell but do not know how to tell it, then this class is for you. Recommended for students with some poetry/memoir experience and time to commit to their personal writing process.

Please note: This class or event will be held online (using Zoom or a similar live platform). To participate, students or attendees should have a stable internet connection. Class participants: you should have a computer or device with a webcam and microphone; and your Zoom link will be automatically sent to you after you register. Check your spam box if you don't see it.