Classes and Workshops
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For 35 years, I've taught a wide variety of creative writing, composition, and literature classes to adults, children, college students, and incarcerated adults and teens.
I am an encouraging, practical, and inspiring teacher. I love watching students get that "aha moment" as they discover something gorgeous in a poem we are studying, or as they see a way to revise their work and more fully realize their vision for the reader. I have received awards for Excellence in Teaching from The Loft Literary Center, the University of Utah, and the Jerome Foundation. I currently teach at a variety of literary arts centers across the country - as well as at regional book festivals and conferences and in private homes in the Washington, DC area. |
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Upcoming Online Classes
Poetry Workshop: Revising our Work for Clarity & Power
4 Wednesdays, every other week on Zoom
March 12, 26 and April 9, 23, 2025
7-9pm ET; $250
Limited to 6 poets who see their work as intermediate/advanced
Interested? Poets will be asked to send me 3 pages of their poetry prior to acceptance so that I can make sure that all participants are in a group of their peers. Contact me now!
For this workshop, we’ll focus on revising earlier drafts, and offering feedback to each other that is encouraging, specific, and addresses the concerns of the poet. We’ll be committed to helping each other get to the next draft. With revision at top-of-mind, we’ll use readings from a wonderful online magazine, underbelly. underbelly showcases a poet’s earlier draft, final draft, and a short essay about their revision process. It is the only magazine out there that I know of that is determined to demystify and explore the craft of revision. I will facilitate the workshop using a format that prioritizes the needs of the poet being workshopped, reins in opinions, and honors the creative process.
· Each session we will workshop 3 poets (30 minutes each)
· Each session we will discuss the assigned underbelly poet(s), and discuss how their revision strategies might inform our own revisions
· With the small size, each poet will be able to be workshopped at least 2/4 sessions.
· Each poet is committed to thoughtfully reading the work of their peers and providing respectful feedback
· Poets will be encouraged to revise a poem for each session, regardless of whether they will have a poem workshopped that week.
Golden Shovels!
Sponsored by The Loft Literary Center
Saturday, March 22, 2025; 10am - 1pm ET on Zoom
Register now!
In this generative class, we’ll read and discuss Golden Shovels: a fun, flexible form invented by Terrence Hayes in tribute to Gwendolyn Brooks. Then we'll take time to begin our own Golden Shovels - and learn how writing out to a word waiting at the end of the line can build our writing muscles, and just be a really fun "word problem" to figure out. We’ll write during class, and discuss revision. Come ready to write and have fun.
Poetic Forms: 8 Forms in 6 Weeks
Sponsored by The Writers Center
6 Thursdays, May 1 - June 5, 2025; 7-9pm ET on Zoom
Registration opens soon
Writing formal poetry requires just enough rules to engage your inner word nerd and set your imagination free. We’ll study poems by accomplished poets for inspiration and guidance as we write our own. Build your literary muscles by practicing two traditional forms (the Ghazal and Villanelle), two forms created by American poets (Terrance Hayes’ Golden Shovel and Victoria Chang's OBIT), and a variety of fun found forms (erasures, lists, abecedarians, instructions). Classes are a mix of instruction, tips, close reading, Q&A, and sharing work (optional, but encouraged). The instructor will offer feedback on a chosen draft; final class focuses on revision.
4 Wednesdays, every other week on Zoom
March 12, 26 and April 9, 23, 2025
7-9pm ET; $250
Limited to 6 poets who see their work as intermediate/advanced
Interested? Poets will be asked to send me 3 pages of their poetry prior to acceptance so that I can make sure that all participants are in a group of their peers. Contact me now!
For this workshop, we’ll focus on revising earlier drafts, and offering feedback to each other that is encouraging, specific, and addresses the concerns of the poet. We’ll be committed to helping each other get to the next draft. With revision at top-of-mind, we’ll use readings from a wonderful online magazine, underbelly. underbelly showcases a poet’s earlier draft, final draft, and a short essay about their revision process. It is the only magazine out there that I know of that is determined to demystify and explore the craft of revision. I will facilitate the workshop using a format that prioritizes the needs of the poet being workshopped, reins in opinions, and honors the creative process.
· Each session we will workshop 3 poets (30 minutes each)
· Each session we will discuss the assigned underbelly poet(s), and discuss how their revision strategies might inform our own revisions
· With the small size, each poet will be able to be workshopped at least 2/4 sessions.
· Each poet is committed to thoughtfully reading the work of their peers and providing respectful feedback
· Poets will be encouraged to revise a poem for each session, regardless of whether they will have a poem workshopped that week.
Golden Shovels!
Sponsored by The Loft Literary Center
Saturday, March 22, 2025; 10am - 1pm ET on Zoom
Register now!
In this generative class, we’ll read and discuss Golden Shovels: a fun, flexible form invented by Terrence Hayes in tribute to Gwendolyn Brooks. Then we'll take time to begin our own Golden Shovels - and learn how writing out to a word waiting at the end of the line can build our writing muscles, and just be a really fun "word problem" to figure out. We’ll write during class, and discuss revision. Come ready to write and have fun.
Poetic Forms: 8 Forms in 6 Weeks
Sponsored by The Writers Center
6 Thursdays, May 1 - June 5, 2025; 7-9pm ET on Zoom
Registration opens soon
Writing formal poetry requires just enough rules to engage your inner word nerd and set your imagination free. We’ll study poems by accomplished poets for inspiration and guidance as we write our own. Build your literary muscles by practicing two traditional forms (the Ghazal and Villanelle), two forms created by American poets (Terrance Hayes’ Golden Shovel and Victoria Chang's OBIT), and a variety of fun found forms (erasures, lists, abecedarians, instructions). Classes are a mix of instruction, tips, close reading, Q&A, and sharing work (optional, but encouraged). The instructor will offer feedback on a chosen draft; final class focuses on revision.
Feedback from Recent Participants
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Voice & Tone in Persona Poems
"I am loving your class so much. Just soaking up as much as I can. Your teaching style is a really good fit for me and the selection of poems you chose for this class - i want to eat them!! Building a Poetry Chapbook
"Your class has been tremendously insightful to me and helped me think of my work differently already." "Thank you for the well structured and insightful course." Traditional & Contemporary
Poetic Forms "Thank you for the reminder to be OK with being messy and imperfect. What kind and generous words you gave us this morning. I'll take them to heart." Create a Writing Routine That Works
"The handouts were very helpful as takeaways from the class, and Melanie was super awesome." "Practical information that I can implement." "The pacing of class was perfect." |
Line Breaks: Tools of Musical Notation
"This class is fabulous! You are blowing my mind. I should have taken it long ago." Starting a Memoir
"Thank you so much-yesterday was invaluable and far exceeded already high expectations." Revision as Discovery
"I'm looking at revision in a whole new way. The exercises you shared are a game-changer for me!" Writing for Procrastinators
"You are a fantastic instructor! You are very creative in pulling the class together with small discussions and what not. And, I love the reading assignments." "I appreciate your judgment-free class." "Your course has helped me to get started with my writing again, every day, and revitalized my passion for my book. I'm very grateful for what you've given us." Exploring Memoir
"Thank you for this class! Very motivating!" "Many thanks -- very helpful!" " Great class!" Submit Your Stuff to Literary Magazines
"Your class on submitting work was really, really great. I've taken a class in submitting work a few years ago and I have to say, yours was much more thorough." Sestinas!
"Thanks for class today. I just wanted to say, this was by far the best Loft class I've taken. I'll hope to take more from you in the future." |
Reviving Stuck Poems
"Your workshop yesterday was fantastic. It has really opened up my thinking about the poems I revised during the session. A new direction in one and a connection I hadn't totally grasped in the other. I plan to use the activities in the future. Thank you for giving me these most helpful tools. I feel liberated." Write Stronger Poetry Titles
"Thank you for this workshop. You’ve given me great ideas for revision and I appreciate your worksheets; very useful and helpful!" "I really enjoyed your class this morning. I appreciate your organization and excellent teaching style. I learned so much and feel like I have new tools at my disposal to not only create better titles but to improve my poems! Thank you so much." Poetry II: Re-imagining Critique
"Thank you for leading a great workshop. It has helped me be a better reader for others and a better judge of what feedback I would like for my work." Starting a Large Writing Project
"So useful and encouraging! The principles you covered are going to stay with me!" |
Praise
- "Thank you for your class on Submitting Your Poems. I followed your excellent advice and voila! I had 3 poems accepted. This is my first publication in over 10 years. Now I'm ready to keep trying to get my work out into the world - all thanks to you."
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- "Melanie is a treasure—a quirky, committed, talented treasure. She was/is as good or better than anyone I had at my Ivy League university. Most notable, she cares.”
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