Poetry
Adult Class | Available
Creative Writing: Poetry. In this workshop, we will study works by American masters, including Elizabeth Bishop, Louise Gluck, Lucille Clifton and Jericho Brown —-using their poems as generative models. Close attention will be paid to issues of craft, including voice, tone, diction and the uses of refrain. We will experiment with forms such as the sonnet, prose poem, and ghazal as well as work prompted by music and art. All levels are welcome: assignments, exercises and prompts tailored to individual needs.
What You Will Learn:
- Generative poetry workshop inspired by American masters
- Focus on craft: voice, tone, diction, and refrain
- Experiments with sonnets, prose poems, and ghazals
- Writing prompted by music and visual art
- Assignments tailored to individual skill levels
- Open to beginners and experienced poets alike
- - Notebook or writing journal
- Pens and/or pencils
Lesley Valdes
Lesley Valdes comes to poetry following a career as a print and broadcast arts journalist following posts as classical music critic of the Philadelphia Inquirer; chief critic of the San Jose Mercury News and WTMI, Temple Radio. She holds a degree in piano from the Peabody Conservatory of Music and MFA from the Program for Writers of Warren Wilson College. Awards from the National Arts Journalism Program of the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Institute Ramon LLull of Barcelona, Spain, the New York State Writers Institute. The author of The Starlight Room (Finishing Line Press, 2025). Other poems can be found in Women’s Voices for Change, Janus, Inverness Poetry Journal, Glint, Shadowgraph and the Curator, among others. A native of Miami, FL, she lives in Philadelphia where she is also an instructor of piano, and guest speaker for the Chamber Music Society of Philadelphia.