Writing Persona Poems

What are persona poems, and how can they expand our poetic voice and subject matter? Persona poems open us to a huge range of opportunities to take on the voices of other people, animals, and even objects. Imagine writing a poem from the point of view of a pebble on the side of a highway! In this workshop, we will read and discuss several persona poems, gaining an understanding of how these poems are constructed. We will then use visual prompts to create our own persona poems. All levels of experience welcome!

By the end of this class, you'll:

• Learn about persona poems
• Gain a practical understanding of how persona poems can be a useful tool for expanding our poetic voices
• Read and discuss a range of persona poems
• Write at least two persona poems using instructor-provided visual prompts