Saturday, September 19th, 2026

Class will meet once via Zoom from 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM EST

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

The session will be recorded and available to watch after the seminar concludes.

Instructor Bio

Instructor John Sibley Williams is the author of nine poetry collections, including Scale Model of a Country at Dawn (Cider Press Review Poetry Award), The Drowning House (Elixir Press Poetry Award), As One Fire Consumes Another (Orison Poetry Prize), Skin Memory (Backwaters Prize, University of Nebraska Press), skycrape (WaterSedge Poetry Chapbook Contest), and Summon (JuxtaProse Chapbook Prize). His book Sky Burial: New & Selected Poems is forthcoming in translation from the Portuguese press do lado esquerdo. A thirty-five-time Pushcart nominee, John serves as editor of The Inflectionist Review and Poetry Editor at Kelson Books. Previous publishing credits include Best American Poetry, Yale Review, Verse Daily, North American Review, Prairie Schooner, and TriQuarterly.

Who is this class for?

This online poetry workshop is for poets interested in exploring the personal, emotionally rich ode form. Whether you're drawn to celebrating grand themes like love or smaller pleasures like ripe plums, this class welcomes writers at all levels who want to deepen their practice of praise poetry.

What to expect:

Most poets turn to writing odes at some point in their careers. Odes offer an opportunity to praise and offer appreciation for life's huge experiences, like love, but also for life's smaller pleasures, like ripe plums. But odes are more than thoughtless happiness—they provide an opportunity for careful thought and examination of what makes life worth living.

In this intensive generative poetry workshop, you will explore the many facets of writing odes through poetry analysis, active discussion, and a progressively challenging set of writing activities that touch upon both your internal, personal world and how you interact with the larger world around you.

You will study diverse poems from contemporary poets such as Ross Gay, Sharon Olds, Lucille Clifton, Ocean Vuong, Pablo Neruda, Kevin Young, and many more to see how they successfully explore themselves and the world through odes. This creative writing workshop balances close reading with hands-on writing exercises designed to help you find your own voice within this celebrated poetic form.

What are the writing goals?

In this course, students will draft at least two new poems while also enjoying a variety of short prompt-based exercises. Students will engage directly with model odes and use them as launching points for their own generative work. All materials will be provided in a course workbook—no outside reading required.

Readings

Readings may include excerpts from contemporary poets such as Ross Gay, Sharon Olds, Lucille Clifton, Ocean Vuong, Pablo Neruda, Kevin Young, and others. All readings are provided in the course workbook.

COURSE OUTLINE

This is a one-session intensive workshop. During our three hours together, we will explore the many facets of writing odes through poetry analysis, active discussion, and a progressively challenging set of writing activities that touch upon both our internal/personal worlds and how we interact with the larger world around us. We will study diverse poems from contemporary poets such as Ross Gay, Sharon Olds, Lucille Clifton, Ocean Vuong, Pablo Neruda, Kevin Young, and many more to see how they successfully explore themselves and the world through odes.

COURSE TAKEAWAYS:

• Study diverse poetry that explores the deeply personal ode form from a variety of perspectives, including narrative, abstract, and metaphorical approaches
• Learn how to analyze odes and draw from your personal experiences and loves to write fresh, sensory poetry
• Learn and practice how to focus on one specific person or thing, writing deeply personal toward them, in a way that enhances both experimental and non-narrative work
• Draft at least two new poems celebrating the people, places, and moments that matter to you
• Walk away with new techniques for transforming appreciation into artful, compelling verse

TESTIMONIALS:

“I feel so grateful to John for keeping his top-notch editing/critique and workshop rates quite affordable because it’s allowed me to make such remarkable improvements over just the last year. One major breakthrough I’ve made under his tutelage is to more keenly and instinctively write from the basis of image as opposed to the abstract questionings I would previously use to launch my poetic explorations. John’s feedback often includes suggestions for mini-exercises to help hone my weaker grasp on certain elements of craft, and his vast, wide-ranging knowledge of (and awe-inspiring passion for) all things poetry-related always ensured that there was never a shortage of new suggestions or approaches to try. John has that rare, all-inclusive teaching talent for being able to show not only the what and the why, but mostly importantly, the how. I can’t thank John enough for all his generosity with his skills and expertise. ” — Abigail Licad

“Over the past couple of years working together, I’ve found John Sibley Williams to be a careful reader/editor who is willing to push me out of longstanding habits. His critiques are straightforward, and his suggestions are clear and thought-provoking. John does not hesitate to push back strongly on pieces which are skeletal or merely musings without a center. That said he is also honest about his personal preferences. This provides room for my own instincts while alerting me to various untethered spots in the poems. I’m so grateful for John’s guidance which has deepened my thinking around process and craft.” — Greta Nintzel

“John is an exceptional teacher, poet, and editor. He expresses genuine interest in my poetry and progress as a poet, offering honest, insightful critiques and resources. I have taken his inspiring, generative workshops and received detailed feedback on individual poems as well as a thorough critique of a full-length manuscript. More than anything, John helps me deepen my understanding of my own aesthetic and draws out my poetic voice more fully.” — Sandra Fees

“I call John Sibley Williams trusted friend and reader now. When I shared my most recent manuscript with him, his responses were extremely thorough and sensitive. John deeply respected my poems and my intent, even when he had thoughtful and honest suggestions to offer. He was always cognizant of his approach versus my own, a rare gift.” — Amy Small-McKinney

“I have never received such detailed and genuine feedback of my poetry. Prompt in his turnaround and constructive at every level, John’s edits not only showed me a pathway out from the muddle I’d found myself in, but also key tactics to use in making myself a better poet. With a keen perception for theme and style, he understood completely the purpose and intended message of my manuscript. His feedback that was both holistic with a general overview and specific with line edits where needed. I will return to his editing services time and time again.” — Daniel Lassell

“I had an exceptionally positive experience working with John. He is a careful, thoughtful reader who can see what’s working well in a poem, and what needs a new approach. In my case, I had a few long poems that I could never seem to whip into shape. He helped me find the form that worked best for my material, and to find the sweet spot between providing enough information to a reader to follow along and maintaining the mystery in a poem that a reader wants to discover for themselves.” — Maximilian Heinegg

“Working with John Sibley Williams was a phenomenal experience that far exceeded my expectations. He provided nuanced readings of each one of my poems and attended to the larger themes in my collection. A generous editor, he saw what each poem was doing (or tried to do), then pinpointed ways to make it stronger. Through discerning and exacting feedback, he is also deeply respectful. His aesthetic range facilitates incisive feedback about how to maximize each poem’s effect on a potential reader. He also provided comments on my collection as a whole, including the sequencing of poems and the arc of the manuscript. In working with John, I learned so much about myself as a poet, and his feedback made me feel invigorated and ready to revise. Without a doubt, John is now one of my most important readers. I’ll definitely be sending him more work in the future!” — Shannon Winston

“For the price of a weekend writing workshop John provided personal feedback on my first collection of poems. He brought his experience, skill, and attention to each line. He helped me clarify what was working and what needed to be reworked, or cut, both on a particular and large scale. It was exactly what the book needed and well worth the price. His suggestions were insightful and improved the individual poems which made the whole collection feel ready! I highly recommend his editorial service to anyone who is preparing a manuscript.” — Twila Newey

“I met John at a time I was seeking to re-energize my poetry writing after a long hiatus. I started my collaboration with John by sending him 4 poems for his review—some new, some stuck in limbo for many years. I have found John’s review and commentary on my work to be very helpful, encouraging, and honest. He provides both big picture and detailed observations and, while my style is much different from his, I feel John respects and hears my voice. I look forward to continuing my work with him.” — Connie Soper

“I enjoyed the process and appreciate John’s careful eye. I really needed an objective viewpoint, which others hadn’t given me. John provided detailed responses and thorough line edits. He also has a great “bedside” manner, meaning that I asked for hard criticism and the truth and he provided those while being eager and encouraging, hard-nosed and exacting. I really appreciate this experience and want more of it.” — David Lohrey

“I worked with John Sibley Williams on two batches of poems and found his critique to be invaluable in my revision process. He is a very careful and thoughtful reader. He provided thorough and detailed responses to the poems as well as an overview response for each poem. He is able to critique work that is outside of his own aesthetic and his critique is offered in the spirit of making better poems. I highly recommend his services.” — Feral Willcox

PAYMENT OPTIONS:

• Instructor: John Sibley Williams
  
• Begins Saturday, September 19, 2026
  
• Class will meet once via Zoom from 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM EST
  
• Tuition is $99 USD.