Poetry Writing Workshop at Morocco Bound

Contact: @ruthbeddow - Twitter/ Instagram

Website: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/poetry-writing-workshop-with-ruth-beddow-week-1-poetry-travel-tickets-655804357487

This popular workshop series offers a space for poets of all levels to connect, discuss, write, get feedback and surprise themselves in a supportive environment.

We will explore a different theme each week, taking inspiration from a variety of media including photography, painting, architecture, articles and, of course, poetry. Everyone should leave the session with the beginnings of at least one poem and plenty of prompts to develop further. For those booking all 7 workshops, there will be an opportunity for in-depth workshopping of your writing at least once.

Join us in the cosy, inspiring setting of Morocco Bound where delicious tea, wine, beer and soft drinks are available from the bar while you write. As this is an evening class, please feel free to bring a snack if you are on-the-go.

Workshop Schedule

Each workshop will roughly consist of:
6:30-6:45pm - Welcome and time to grab a drink
6:45-7:00pm - Warm up exercise and discussion
7:00-7:45pm - Analysis poems and writing exercise(s)
7:45-8:00pm - Break
8:00-8:40pm - Individual workshopping
8:40-9:00pm - Final writing exercise and sharing

What to expect

26th June - Poetry and Travel
In this session we will explore and write poetry that travels - far, wide and close to home. We will interrogate how travel can enrich, enliven and infuriate us, covering daily commutes, modes of transport, far-flung adventures, culture clashes and language barriers.

10th July - Poetry and the Body
Poets and writers have long explored the human body in terms of identity, sickness, beauty, weaponisation and pleasure. In this workshop we will seek to break taboos and bring new, diverse perspectives to the topic, exploring how the form on the page, metaphor, personification and humour can all be used to represent our bodies.

24th July - Poetry and Art
Many poems take a painting, song, dance or building as their inspiration - and sometimes vice versa. When inspiration is lacking, uncovering or inventing a new story within a work of art can be a great starting point. We will be imaginative in our definition of art and perfect our use of ekphrasis.

7 August - Poetry and Time
Time is a fundamental subject of lyric and confessional poetry. Not only is poetry often philosophical and contemplative - a window to another time or a lesson learned - but even deciding what tense or grammatical person to write in has an impact on the poem’s meaning. In this workshop we will play around with these devices and themes with creativity, perhaps even breaking some rules!

21 August - Poetry and Politics
Poetry is and always has been inherently political. Many poets have also been ardent advocates of women’s, LGBTQ+, workers or global majority rights. Looking to past examples and present problems, we will seek to write poems that are angry, playful, critical and hopeful about politics in the broadest sense of the word.

4 September - Poetry and the Planet
Nature and the cosmos have long inspired poets all over the world, but ‘ecopoetry’ is a growing field which responds to the climate and ecological emergency our planet is facing. In this session we will explore the relationship between the environment, human beings, culture and politics to write a poem on a theme that is important to us.

18 September - Poetry and People
Perhaps this theme seems a little lazy, or perhaps it is quite complex… This week we will take people as our inspiration for poetry - from portraits to people-watching; body language and gesture to recounting phrases and conversations. We will explore the use of direct address (or second person), dedicating poems and writing poems ‘after’ others.

Booking

You can now book this workshop series as a whole (7 fortnightly sessions) or on a stand-alone basis. This way you can attend the entire series from start to finish, without worrying about booking every time. If you have a busy or unpredictable schedule, you are still able to book single workshops for £7.
If you book the class pack, you get a £2 discount on each session and the opportunity to bring at least one poem for in-depth workshopping during the 7 weeks. You will be able to hone and critique your own poem ready for publication or sharing at an open mic, and learn through the process of critiquing others’ work.

About the tutor

Ruth is a London-based poet originally from the Birmingham suburbs. She works in local government and writes poems about women, bodies, brains, travel, buildings and everything in between.

Ruth’s first pamphlet ‘The Thought Sits With Me’ was published by Nine Pens in 2022. She has been shortlisted for several prizes in the last few years, including the Poetry Business New Poet’s Prize and Plough Prize. Her work has featured in journals such as Wild Court, Prole, The Poetry Village, and Ink, Sweat and Tears.

Ruth has delivered creative writing workshops at museums and cultural institutions across London, as well as at Morocco Bound since 2023. She believes everyone can write poetry and is passionate about making the community more inclusive and accessible.

Price: £7.00. (£7 per session; £35 for 7 class pack)

Time: 6:30pm (18:30-21:00)