Workshop: Writing Political Poetry with Ed Werstein

Sat. Apr. 11 | 1–5 pm CDT

Writing Political Poetry with Ed Werstein

Sliding Scale fee of $20–$150 ($Give What You Can)

Writing poetry is a political act, but some poems are more political than others. They can address a news story, respond to a crisis like climate change, advocate for peace, or inspire the reader to action. In this workshop participants will discuss an article by Marilyn Taylor titled “Twelve Pitfalls of Writing Protest Poetry,” then read and discuss several examples of political poetry that will be provided in advance. After taking time for writing our own poems, we will read and discuss the poems of those willing to share their work. Participants will be encouraged (but not required) to choose a news headline from the week prior to the workshop, and draft a poem in response to bring to the workshop.

Ed Werstein, Milwaukee, WI, spent over forty years working in manufacturing and workforce development. He was active in the labor movement, and held several union positions during his working career. He began writing poetry in his late fifties when his muse awoke and dragged herself out of bed. Since then he has published over two hundred poems in various journals and anthologies, and is working on his fifth collection of poetry. A lifetime member of the Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets, Ed meets regularly with a critique group called The Hartford Avenue Poets, and is grateful for the improvement to his poetry resulting from those meetings. In 2018 he won the Lorine Niedecker Poetry Prize awarded by the Council for Wisconsin Writers, and judged by Nickole Brown. A lifelong peace activist, Ed still regularly attends rallies and protests against wars, and more recently against the threats to our democracy. Email him at [email protected].

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