Writers Studio: Desire in Poetry with Ellen van Neerven

When?

March 4th, 2023 1:00 PM — March 4th, 2023 4:00 PM

Where?

When?

March 4th, 2023 1:00 PM — March 4th, 2023 4:00 PM

Where?

This intimate masterclass with award-winning author of Heat and Light, and poetry collections Throat and Comfort Food, Ellen van Neerven, is designed to help poets extend and deepen their practice.

It will focus on different types of desire, including the desire to connect, to look after environment, the desire for a future and for better health. Participants will consider desire in a way that gives power to female and genderqueer bodies, the bodies that are often forgotten in mainstream discourse, and heighten the confidence of participants of all levels to write about desire.

Drawing on Ellen’s experience as a poet and author, you will deep-dive into the archive of desire in poetry, using examples from a diverse range of Australian and international poets, and perform a series of writing experiments to draft poems or rework a piece that isn’t flowing.

Each participant is asked to bring:

  • a poem by another poet they immensely admire, to share with the group
  • a poem of their own, old or new, to share with the group and focus rewriting

 

The masterclass assumes participants have a fundamental understanding of poetry.

 

This special masterclass, presented in association with Adelaide Writers Week, provides rare insight and practical writing guidance with an unparalleled Australian author.

About Ellen van Neerven

Ellen van Neerven (they/them) is an award-winning author, editor and educator of Mununjali (Yugambeh language group) and Dutch heritage. They write fiction, poetry, and non-fiction on unceded Turrbal and Yuggera land. van Neerven’s first book, Heat and Light (UQP, 2014), a novel-in-stories, was the recipient of the David Unaipon Award, the Dobbie Literary Award and the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards Indigenous Writers Prize. van Neerven’s poetry collection Comfort Food (UQP, 2016) won the Tina Kane Emergent Award and was shortlisted for the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards Kenneth Slessor Prize. Throat (UQP, 2020), the recipient of Book of the Year, the Kenneth Slessor Prize and the Multicultural Award at 2021 NSW Literary Awards and the inaugural Quentin Bryce Award, is available now.

 

Venue: The State Library, North Terrace, Adelaide SA

Members $88 / Non-members $140

 

—Not yet a Writers SA member? Join here for as little as $60!

—We strongly recommend all staff, speakers, and attendees of in-person events be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. You cannot attend if you or a household contact has tested positive within 7 days of the event or if you are ill.

—Writers SA members must be logged in to receive the member discount. If you would like to use a workshop credit to book in, please contact [email protected] at least five working days before the workshop commencement date. Our staff don’t work full time and we don’t want you to miss out! Members of other state based writers centres can access the Writers SA member price by emailing [email protected].

 

Registration Details

Registration for this event ended on March 4th, 2023 10:00 AM

Are you a member?

Not yet a Writers SA member? Join here for as little as $60!

Writers SA members receive

  • 30% discount on all workshops and services (excluding Teen Writers Club)
  • a free 20-minute consultation upon sign up
  • advice, information and support in your writing activities
  • career pathway support and opportunities
  • access to a community of writers
  • opportunities to meet industry professionals
  • opportunities for publication and promotion

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