Peterson's poetry workshop

On Friday, November 13, the Northwest Viticulture Center in West Salem hosts a day long poetry workshop featuring Northwest poet Paulann Petersen. Petersen’s is the author of four published collections of poetry, including Blood-silk and Kindle.

The workshop uses well-noted poems that Petersen describes as both “accessible and evocative” to encourage participants'creative flow. Petersen expresses her approach to workshop instruction and the use of poetry as a catalyst.

“My hope is to fashion a day of community and creation, a time in which writers can follow the impulses of language into whatever new territory those impulses might take them," she said. “We'll do a series of springboards. For each springboard, I'll guide the group through some "priming" and then give us a period of quiet time for writing, for letting what we're generating pour out.”

The day is a mix of learning, creating, and optional feedback.

“We'll be delving into memory, searching for powerful memories and images," Petersen said. "Then we'll look at the poem, using it for more inspiration. Then we write and that's the exhilarating part.”

Petersen is a fan of the workshop venue, and looks forward to the relationship and creativity it engenders.

“These workshops create a wonderful sense of community, and the outpouring of work is always - for me - inspiring and delightful,” she said.

Cost of attendance is $120, which includes a light breakfast, a buffet lunch and evening wine and hors d'oeuvres. To register call 503-399-5181 or contact Alan Koch at the Lifelong Learning Institute at 503-399-2520.