Heart Poetry: an exploration of poetry, movement, and meditation.
Join meditation teacher and yoga therapist Ann Grace MacMullan and poet Amy Beth Sisson for a two-hour exploration of poetry through an embodied engagement with words.
Together we will read poems, use movement and meditation to reflect on them, share our responses, and begin to draft our own poems. This class is perfect for people who love reading and writing poetry and for those who are drawn to poetry but struggle to find a way in, as well as those who love to explore mindful movement and meditative spaces.
Wear comfortable clothes suitable for gentle movement. Maximum class size of 10. Sign up to reserve your spot.
Thursdays on the Stoop--A Blurred Poetry & Music
With Jimmy Levi
What lives at the blurred edges of music and poetry?
Many concepts are shared by music and poetry:
Phrase/Line
Motif/Repetition
Rhythm/Meter
What happens if we stop thinking of music and poetry as separate disciplines? What lives at the blurred edges?
We will explore:
Poetry as lyrics.
Hip Hop/Spoken Word
Music scores that work as poems
Poetry performed with or as music
Incurable Themes
"Certain themes are incurable." Lyn Hejinian
In this session we will explore the use of frequently used subjects in poetry such as flowers, the heart, and characters from mythology. Can there ever be too many poems on a theme? My own work contains many of these incurable themes. One way I explore this is to look at the breadth of poems. A rose poem is not a rose poem is not a rose poem. For me looking at the myriad ways a subject was treated by other poets frees me to write my own. In this generative session we will also talk about our own poetic obsessions and concerns to find a path toward creating new work.
Delco Writers and Friends and Mad Poets Poetry Month!
APRIL IS POETRY MONTH! JOIN US FOR A READING
Dilruba Ahmed
Nathalie Anderson
Courtney Bambrick
Betsy Bolton
Sibelan Forrester
Peter Schmidt
Amy Beth Sisson
John Sozanski
Roxanne Halpine Ward
Personal Velocity
Reading at the H&H Bookstore featuring Eshani Surya, Amy Beth Sisson, Juliana Feliciano Reyes, and, Ariel Delgado Dixon.
BACK TO ALL EVENTS Thursdays on the Stoop-- Links, Leaps, and Leitmotifs
How does a poet hold the reader's energy and attention in a longer poem or through a book of poems? We will explore how poets use links, leaps, and leitmotifs:
Links create a chain of connections from one idea or image to another and another. Leaps place ideas or images in opposition in a way that leaves room for meaning. Leitmotifs repeat themes or images at key points in the text.
In this generative session we will look at Ross Gay's Be Holding and work by other poets. We will talk about our experiences with reading and writing longer work and will play with using these ideas to begin a new piece or revise a draft. While we will focus on poetry, prose writers are welcome!
Planting Poem Seeds
Like many writers, for many years I kept a random notes file. This spring, I started a new practice which I call poem seeds. I keep a journal of small thoughts: an image, a comment overheard on the street, wordplay, or anything that might serve in a poem. Calling these seeds gives them more power. Instead of something random I might go back to, I see them as something planted in the soil of my unconscious. In this generative session we will talk about using poem seeds and also brainstorm other poetry practices participants have found helpful. We will take time to write and develop seeds. Participants are welcome to bring their own and I will share some of mine to use as prompts.
Delco Writers & Friends
Celebrate our vibrant local literary community at Delco Writers and Friends. This reading features poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and hybrid works by writers Jeannine Osayande, Misty Sol, Julian Shendelman, Alison Lubar, Raima Evan and Amy Beth Sisson.
Join us in the CommuniTEA Room at the Park Avenue Community Center (129 Park Ave, Swarthmore), on September 9 from 8:00-9:30pm. We plan to start on time, so don’t be late!
Masks are required during the reading. Unmasked reception to follow. This event is geared toward adults and may not be suited for younger listeners. Donations welcomed (but not required) at the door.
A Poem is a Room You May Enter With an Open Heart
This is a working session for people curious about reading and writing poetry and those who want to deepen their practice. The word "stanza" means room. We will explore the idea that a poem is not a puzzle to be solved but a place to abide in. Together, we will read poems and explore concepts useful for connecting more deeply with poetry. During the session, participants will have a choice of drafting a poem or writing about their experience with a poem.
Delco Writers Read
Celebrate the vibrant Delco literary scene at Delco Writers Read. Come hear poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, hybrid and even horror from writers with ties to Delaware County.
Join us in the CommuniTEA Room at the Park Avenue Community Center, April 1. Readings begin at 7 P.M. 129 Park Ave, Swarthmore, PA 19081
Masks required for the reading. Unmasked reception to follow. Donations accepted at the door
Amy Beth Sisson will present the stellar lineup: Angela Shaw, Ben Yagoda, Darla Himeles, Elizabeth Kim, Laura Parnam, Nathalie F Anderson, Nicole Wolverton, Rachel Pastan, Sibelan Forrester, and Zach Ozma
This event is a part of the First Friday Art Loop in Swarthmore.
Discovering Your Genre: Prose, Poetry, or In Between
Ann de Forest and I will look at the lyric essay, poem, prose poem, and flash non-fiction as potential paths for exploration and expression. How do you decide which form best suits what you want to say? This workshop will be both practical and playful.
Revision and the Multi-Faceted Self
Many writers recommend putting a manuscript in a drawer for some period of time between drafting and revising. This is great advice but what can a writer do who doesn't have that luxury? Bring your rough draft (any genre) and we will briefly explore some techniques to get you in touch with your revising self. The part of you who can stand-in for your ideal imagined reader. To shift your mind from the wildly creative to the place where you have empathy for the reader's needs.
A free Wednesdays on the Stoop workshop.
Collingswood Book Festival
The Night Heron Barks Reads @ The Collingswood Book Festival 2021
Lineup: Elizabeth Catanese, Darla Himeles, Amy Beth Sisson, Reet Starwind, J. C. Todd, BJ Ward
Lansdowne Open Stage Reading
Open Sound on Thursday, 9/30. An evening of free, auditory entertainment: live music by 2nd Grade and Paper Bee, and an autumnal reading by 6 local writers, Louise Bierig, Eli Aharon, Alison Lubar, Melanie Moyer, Amy Beth Sisson, and Autumn McClintock. Masks encouraged but not required. The show will take place outdoors at Lansdowne Landing, a community space across from the historic Lansdowne Theater. BYOB. Wheelchair accessible.
"Doors" at 7pm, show at 7:30. The literary reading will take place between bands' sets, around 8pm, and last for approximately 40 minutes.