Letters to Kelsey Part One

As someone who started his poetry through journaling, I would recommend being open to just writing in whatever way you feel is poetic while you are in the midst of that time. I sometimes feel it tough to make time for writing, so it's awesome that you are doing that.

I've found part of being a poet is just a willingness to be there on the page to see what happens.

Prompts are a great way to do that. One prompt I like using is to think of a favorite color and write a dedication poem to someone using that color as many times as you can. Some write lists of, let's say, purple things. I like to think of a scene with, let's say, Carrie and the boys, and begin with the purple night.

Another wonderful prompt is the word association: start with a word and do the word association--first word that pops into your head, write it down, thing. Then repeat that next word to yourself, write the next word that pops into your head. See how long you can go until you know you have a poem in there. No need to even use most of the words--just whatever poem you feel like writing at that point.

Finally, I will send a few books your way, but stay away from "how to" books in general.


I really got my start in open-mic poetry nights. They are supportive, non-judgmental, non-critical. There is one here in town on the first Wednesday of every month and I'd be happy to hang out with you if/when you want to go. They all know me there, so you could meet amazing people. My dear sister-friend Annette Hope Billings helps host it.

Oh, and this is nice--to get a poem a day in your email: https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem-day

CCW

W7. “Leading Public Creative Writing Workshops for Social Justice”
Rose Gorman, NY Writers Coalition / The Tuxedo Project, Marygrove College
Aaron Zimmerman, NY Writers Coalition

A7.  Writing as Ecology: How Writing Environments Shape Public Encounters
Chair: Katherine Silvester, Indiana University Bloomington
Katherine Silvester, Indiana University Bloomington
Joan Linton, Indiana University Bloomington
Laura Clapper, Indiana University Bloomington


DTT3: DEEPTHINK TANK: “Feminisms, Activism, and Community Writing”
Jenn Fishman, Chair, Marquette University
Heather Branstetter, Executive Director, Historic Wallace Preservation Society
Erin Krampetz, Board Member, Watson University and Amani Institute
Sagashus T. Levingston, Founder of Infamous Mothers
Tessa Zimmerman, Founder of ASSET Education

B8.  Feminist Connections and Outreach: Building Networks for Women and Girls
Chair: Jennifer Bay, Purdue University
Becca Hayes, University of Missouri-Columbia, “We’re a Very Connected Community, Very, Very Interconnected: Engaging Lesbian Community Through Rhetorics of Gathering”
Carrie Grant, Purdue University, “From Community Outreach to For-Profit Tech Camps: Technofeminist Interventions into Girls’ Digital Literacies”
Wendy Vergoz, Marian University, “Life in These Bones: A Community/University Partnership in a 21st Century Women’s Writing Workshop”
Jennifer Bay, Purdue University, “Women Mentoring Women: Rhetorical Networks Across Institutional and Community Settings”

C5.  Riding a Wave of High Impact Community Engagement Practices: An Institutional Story
Chair: Melanie Burdick
Dennis Etzel Jr., “A View of the Pool:  Defining HICEPS”
Melanie Burdick, “Swimming Lessons: Models for Professional Development”
Jennifer Pacioianu, “Dipping a Toe in the Water: HICEPS in Process”
Mary Sheldon, “Diving Right In: A Second Time Around”

W7: WORKSHOP: “Leading Creative Writing Workshops for Social Justice”
Rose Gorman, NY Writers Coalition / The Tuxedo Project, Marygrove College
Aaron Zimmerman, NY Writers Coalition


G7.  Food Literacies
Chair: Steven Alvarez, St. John’s University
Steven Alvarez, St. John’s University, “Taco Literacies: Mexican Foodways Writing in the Bluegrass”
Constance Gordon, University of Colorado Boulder, “Community Food Justice: Re-Defining Food ‘Deserts’ from the Ground Up”
Molly Kugel-Merkner, University of Denver, “Emily Dickinson’s Botanical Legacy, Community Gardens, and Poetic Pedagogy”
Tara E. Friedman, Widener University, and Patricia M. Dyer, Widener University, “Generating Powerful Voices: ‘Farming’ Local Change and Sustainability Through Writing”