Tension, Anchors and Leaps - writing the intense poem.

with Edgar Silex

This workshop examines the weight of words, the rise and drop of stress, the balance of each line in a poem. We discuss various approaches to writing intense, resonant poems. Through the use of various tropes, convergent and divergent angles, concrete figurative anchors, and declarative leaps, and other techniques we'll examine how the poet gains control of the emotive force in an intense poem that holds a reader in it's grasp.

Edgar Silex is the author of two poetry collections from Northwestern University Press, as well as a chapbook from New Sins Press. His first poetry book, Through All The Displacements was a nominee for the National Book Award, his second book, Acts of Love was a finalist for the National Poetry Series. He has received 11 nominations to the Pushcart Prize, fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and grants from the Maryland State Arts Council and the Artist District program in Baltimore. Mr. Silex’s work has appeared in Rattle, Callaloo, Slipstream, Chiron Review, The Café Review, The Delaware Review, Gargoyle, The New American Poets, among many others. He lives in Baltimore, Maryland. Mr. Silex's Indigenous ancestors are Texcuexe, Nicarao, and Yaqui. He is in the process of learning Nahuatl, his Indigenous language.