Writing Workshops in March

I’m teaching two workshops for Writespace Houston in March on Zoom. Come join me!

Writing About and With Music
Saturday, March 4, 9:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. CST on Zoom
Ekphrasis (eck-FRAY-ses) is writing about a piece of art as a literary device, or a piece of writing inspired by a work of art. Writers from Homer to Toni Morrison have used detailed descriptions of art to provide structure, add to character or scene development, and give context to their writing. Ekphrasis most often involves a piece of visual art, but in this workshop we’re going to explore writing about music to create a poem or prose piece. We’ll start off with talking about what ekphrasis means and how we can use it in various writing genres. We’ll go over musical terminology and resources for finding just the right words when writing about a piece of music, and discuss the idea that when we write about music, we are part of a long tradition of interpreting the music in continually-developing contexts. After reading a few ekphrastic poems about music, we’ll spend time listening to several different works and writing as we listen. All levels of writers are welcome.

Self-Editing for All Genres: Kill Your Darlings
Saturday, March 11, 2023, 9:30 AM – 12:30 PM CST on Zoom
What does it mean to really think like an editor? How can we bring the editorial gaze and frame to editing and improving our own work? Self-editing can be tough, but in this workshop, we’ll use various methods to evaluate our writing from a professional editor’s point of view, work on reading what we’ve written through an objective lens, and learn how to strengthen our poetry or prose by being our own most demanding editors. All levels are welcome; participants should bring a piece or writing to work on during the workshop.