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Meet THe Team
There are as many ways to organize a collection of poems as there are poets who write them. And yet there are strategies and principles that can be useful across these differences. “If you have a book of twenty-four poems, the book itself should be the twenty-fifth,” Robert Frost has been quoted as saying. Using this statement as a guide, Pauletta will offer various approaches she and other poets have used to create that cohesive whole, including the writing of poetic sequences. She will also provide resources for further study on the matter. Please bring a few poems from your potential collection as a starting point for in-class writing prompt. There will be plenty of time for questions and discussion, so come ready to talk about your struggles and successes in developing your own manuscript.
• In-Class Writing Lift: Light
• Homework: None
• Workshopping Drafts: None
Pauletta Hansel is a poet, memoirist and teacher. Her ten books include Will There Also Be Singing? (Shadelandhouse Modern Press, 2024); Heartbreak Tree (Madville Publications, 2022), which won the Poetry Society of Virginia’s 2023 North American Book Award; and Palindrome (Dos Madres Press, 2017) winner of Berea College’s Weatherford Award in Poetry. Her writing has been featured in Cincinnati Review, Oxford American, Rattle, Appalachian Journal, Still: The Journal, Verse Daily and Poetry Daily, among others. Pauletta was Cincinnati’s first Poet Laureate and was 2022 Writer-in-Residence for The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County.
"Pauletta is both a master storyteller and a terrific teacher!"
"Pauletta was a wonderful instructor. She opened up the genre of memoir, and I’d love to take another class with her!"
"Pauletta's extensive knowledge of the subject and her gentle, sincere, and positive guidance was truly a life-changing experience. She made sure everyone was welcome and got to speak. She encouraged questions. She's such a skilled and caring teacher."
