
Whatever happens in a poem, it's happening in the context of the line. Just as we have yards to measure distance, we have the line as a unit of measure in poetry. We want our lines to be engaging, to match the energy of our writing, and we want the reader to accept the invitation to enter our poem with curiosity and to stay engaged the whole way through. Line-making (and breaking) can be one of the more challenging choice points we navigate as we write poems.
In this workshop I will offer a deep dive into how lines can:
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Foster intimacy with (or create distance from) our reader
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Add complexity and layers to our work
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Generate delight and surprise
Sundays, November 2nd-23rd
4pm to 5pm Pacific Time
Cost: $250
Live Zoom Class
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this a live online class? What if I can't attend a class?
What can I expect from the class?
Will Danusha give feedback on my poems?
How do I access the class?
Are there scholarships?
How can I get help?
What is your reimbursement policy?
About Danusha
Danusha Laméris, a poet and essayist, was raised in Northern California and born to a Dutch father and a Barbadian mother.
She is a recipient of a Pushcart Prize and was honored with the 2020 Lucille Clifton Legacy Award. Laméris also served as the 2018–2020 Poet Laureate of Santa Cruz County, California.
Her work has appeared in The Best American Poetry, The New York Times, Orion, The American Poetry Review, The Kenyon Review, Ploughshares, Poetry, and Prairie Schooner. Her widely shared poem “Small Kindnesses” has been translated into multiple languages, quoted in O Magazine, turned into a short film, and recently read by actress Helena Bonham Carter.
Her debut collection, The Moons of August (2014), was chosen by Naomi Shihab Nye as the winner of the Autumn House Press Poetry Prize and was a finalist for the Milt Kessler Book Award.
Laméris’s second book, Bonfire Opera (University of Pittsburgh Press, Pitt Poetry Series), was a finalist for the 2021 Paterson Poetry Award and the recipient of the 2021 Northern California Book Award in Poetry.
Her most recent collection, Blade by Blade (2024), is now available from Copper Canyon Press.
She is currently on the faculty of Pacific University’s low-residency MFA program.
