Welcome back! This is our last week of the workshop. You have one last set of exercises and writing assignment to complete. We will keep the reading assignments to 3 so that you get to the writing sooner. The last theme is Blood|Lines. By this I do not means your genetic lineage; I mean who and what makes up your poetic ancestry? Which poets’ blood pours into your lines? What were some of your first poems about? (Bonus points if you can recall any or all of the first poem you wrote.) In essence, to whom do you look back on as the godparents/begetter/guiding stars of your work?

Reading Assignment:

“Writers and Mentors” by Rick Moody

Writing Exercises

(1) Select a story that influenced you early in your writing career. (I know it’s hard, but please limit to one.)

(2) In 2-3 sentences, recall why this particular work inspired you as writer. Try to remember details about your own life: how old you were, where you were living, what you were doing (school, work, etc) when you discovered it.

(3) Select 3 lines from the story that strike you as particularly memorable.

Writing Assignment #4

For this assignment, you have 2 options:

(1) Write a letter addressed to your younger poet self, and use at least one of the lines from exercise #3 (feel free to riff on it, change up the words) within the letter. The letter can be advice to your younger self, or simply reflection about the changes you’ve undergone since you’ve started writing. How have you changed? Where are you headed now? Whatever you like.

(2) Write a poem addressed to your writer mentor, meaning the author of the original story. Again, as with option (1), use at least one of the lines from exercise #3 (feel free to riff on it, change up the words) within the poem. What would you like to say to her or him? Again, this is an open assignment in terms of content.

End of Course Questionnaire

Please complete the End of Course Questionnaire. We will use this information to understand what is working for you in the course; what can be improved; know what courses to add to our schedule; and understand how you came to find us. Thank you for sharing your words and talents with us this month. We hope you’ll join us again. Make sure to check out the upcoming course listings and let me know if you have any questions. I’ll be happy to make recommendations.

Free Alumni Promotions

As an Eckleburg Workshops Alumni, you now have free access to our listservs in quick and easy to complete forms with automatic distribution to students, alumni and faculty of The Eckleburg Workshops, readers at The Doctor T. J. Eckleburg Review, Eckleburg Facebook friends, Twitter followers and Tumblr followers. See below:

The Doctor T. J. Eckleburg Spotlight: In this spotlight you will not only speak about your workshop inspiration, but also about what the writing process means to you and your work. You will also let Eckleburg readers know about your current writing projects and focuses.
Tell Us About Your Eckleburg Works! This distribution is for works you wrote and/or critiqued here at The Eckleburg Workshops, either in part or whole.
Alumni Publications Shout Out! This distribution is for an alumni works published, whether they were workshopped at Eckleburg or not.
Recommended Reading: What veteran writers know, and new writers sometimes do not, is that the literary community and markets are not only about talent and craft but also about the karma. The generosity you show other talented writers who have inspired you will come back to you. Start the good karma on your upcoming publication by sharing with us a work that grips you. This distribution is to spread the word about works you are currently reading and feel others should be too. This can be a book, a short story, a poem, etc.

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Guidelines, Submissions & Formatting for Lesson 4

Due Date: Sunday, February 21st, 6 pm.
Submission Link: Submit to the FORUM (see below).
Submission Format: Attach an MS Word document. Please put your name, address, email, website (if applicable), and phone number on page one in the top right corner. Page two and forward should have in the top right corner your last name and page number.
Forum: Upload your course-created work to your course and month forum so that the other students and I can read your work and give you feedback on your answers. Make sure to leave feedback for other students– you can leave questions, comments, suggestions, whatever you like. MAKE SURE YOU ARE UPLOADING YOUR WORK TO THE CORRECT FORUM AND COURSE.
Please make sure to contact me directly with any questions regarding assignments and technology. Contact me at newyorkrosebud@gmail.com

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