Begins Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026

Class will meet weekly via Zoom on Wednesdays, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM ET

🌍 Class Times by Time Zone: Los Angeles (PT): 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM / Chicago (CT): 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM / New York (ET): 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Any questions about this class? Use the Chat Button to talk with us. 

Instructor Rosalie Morales Kearns is the author of the novel Kingdom of Women (Jaded Ibis, 2017), and the story collection Virgins and Tricksters (Aqueous, 2012). Her short fiction, creative nonfiction, and poems have been published widely. Her scholarly article "Voice of Authority," on power dynamics and white privilege in creative writing pedagogy, has been widely cited and is included in the Antiracist Praxis Guide at the American University Library. Kearns has an MFA in creative writing from the University of Illinois and has taught creative writing at the University of Illinois, the University at Albany, and other adult education venues. In 2014, she founded Shade Mountain Press, whose titles were named to NPR's Best Books of the Year and selected as winners and finalists for the William Saroyan International Prize for Writing, the CLMP Firecracker Award, the Thurber Prize, the International Latino Book Award, and Foreword INDIES awards.

Meet the Teaching Artist

Rosalie Morales Kearns on the Joy of Poetry for Prose Writers

Who is this class for?

This online poetry workshop is for anyone who is poetry-curious—or even poetry-resistant. It's especially designed for fiction writers who would like to explore poetry writing in a fun, low-pressure environment. All levels are welcome; no prior poetry experience is required.

What to expect:

Have you wanted to write poetry but didn't know how to start? Do you like the idea of aiming for a word count of 100 instead of 100,000? Come join us for an opportunity to dabble in poetry and have fun with it. We'll work with prompts that you can take in any direction you like. We'll read poems in a range of styles, and discuss techniques you can use, or not (off-rhyme, metrical forms, etc.), but there definitely won't be quizzes.

This generative writing workshop is a judgment-free zone, where your first drafts will meet with raucous applause instead of fault-finding. You'll discover how poetic devices—compression, sound, white space, imagery—can enhance your prose and give you new tools for your fiction. Most of all, you'll discover the joy of poetry: Play with sound! Break those lines! Don't explain!

In this online writing class, we share and appreciate each other's work without formal critique, creating a supportive space where creativity can flourish.

What are the writing goals?

In this course, students will generate four or more poem drafts using a variety of forms and techniques. No prior poetry experience required—just a willingness to play. Students will have the option of revising any drafts that appeal to them.

Readings

Readings may include individual poems for inspiration and to help jump-start writing exercises. Poets on our list include Patricia Smith, Yusef Komunyakaa, Louise Glück, Theodore Roethke, Emily Dickinson, Sappho, and more.

COURSE OUTLINE

Week 1: Repeat Yourself. All the stuff that can be repeated in a poem: individual sounds, words, phrases, stresses, concepts, images.

Week 2: Don't Explain: Prose into Poetry. Expressing fairy tales or our own prose work in poetic form.

Week 3: Tell a Story: Poetry into Prose. Use poetic techniques in prose writing exercises.

Week 4: "I Hereby Declare." Bring something into being with words: chants, blessings, proclamations, spells.

COURSE TAKEAWAYS:

• Produce drafts of poems in any forms and using any techniques that appeal to you
• Get more comfortable using poetic devices and forms and expressing yourself in poetry
• Appreciate the possibility of using poetic devices in your prose
• Gain insight into your fiction writing by thinking about it in poetic terms
• Discover the joy of playful, low-pressure creative exploration

PAYMENT OPTIONS: