This workshop will explore the influence of media, technology, and performance as generative tools within the poetic process, and explore a variety of works that reflect these preoccupations. Students will read, listen to, and view a variety of foundational texts, then produce both audio and written work over the course of the term. You'll also receive training in the use of free audio editing software.
Exactly what are we doing in this class?
In short, we’ll try to take students out of their creative comfort zones and find new ways of generating poetic language through the use of recording technology, gameplay, performance scores, etc. We’ll create collages, mash-ups, and soundscapes, use audio deconstructively, play with sound as raw material, listen attentively, be weird and adventurous, have fun, and get some writing done in the process.
This class will be different than typical workshops in which you just bring in your latest work to get feedback. Instead, you'll all be responding to a series of writing prompts —nine in total, or maybe ten if we have time at the end of the semester — and then everyone's work written in response to that prompt will be workshopped over the course of a week. I've modeled this organization after my experience of Pam Painter's short short fiction workshop at Emerson College, and the clearest benefit of this mode is that you get to produce (and get feedback on) a lot more work than you usually would in a workshop. Think of this class as an investment in your future writing practice; an opportunity to learn and experience things you wouldn't otherwise be exposed to.
Do I need to have taken ENGL 3015 before taking this class?
While this is a companion workshop to Poetry: Sound, Media, and Performance (ENGL 3015), which is largely a literature course with a small creative component, it's not a prerequisite. If you’ve previously taken Poetry: Sound, Media & Performance that’s great, but we’ll cover many key ideas from that class over the course of the semester.
Do I need special software or tools?
If you have a smartphone and a computer you should be set. You will be taught how to use the free audio editing program Audacity, but can also use any other audio editing program you're familiar with (Logic, Ableton Live, GarageBand, etc.).
