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Start writing poetry, today

Join us in reading, writing, editing and translating poetry, in year-long courses, short courses, workshops, one-day sessions, seminars, tutorials and every variety of learning in between – in our classrooms, off site and online.

For more information and FAQs about how our courses work, please go to our In-Person Courses, Video Courses and Online Courses pages.

All our Courses

£265.00 *

Tutor: Wayne Holloway-Smith

Wayne Holloway-Smith Seminar 2021

Intimate monthly seminars with Wayne Holloway-Smith.

Start Date: October 2, 2021 11am
End Date: May 15, 2021
Type: Seminar, Video

£265.00 *

Tutor: Antony Dunn

Antony Dunn Seminars 2021

Intimate monthly seminars with Antony Dunn.

Start Date: October 5, 2021 6.15pm
End Date: May 12, 2022 ( 220 Days )
Type: Seminar, Video

£195.00 *

Tutor: Chrissy Williams

Writing After David Lynch

A week-by-week exploration of Lynch’s films as a source of poetic inspiration.

Start Date: October 12, 2021 7pm
End Date: December 14, 2021 ( 64 Days )
Type: Video

£265.00 *

Tutor: Greta Stoddart

Greta Stoddart Exeter Seminars 2021

Intimate monthly seminars with Greta Stoddart in Exeter.

Start Date: October 13, 2021 12 & 3.30pm
End Date: May 18, 2022 ( 218 Days )
Type: Seminar • Location: Exeter Community Centre, Exeter

The Poetics of Reticence: A Reading & Writing Workshop

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Tutor: Eve Grubin

The Poetics of Reticence: A Reading & Writing Workshop

Investigate the power of blank space in poetry.

Start Date: October 14, 2021 7pm
End Date: December 9, 2021 ( 57 Days )
Type: Video

£265.00 *

Tutor: Shazea Quraishi

Shazea Quraishi Seminars 2021

Intimate monthly seminars with Shazea Quraishi.

Start Date: October 14, 2021 6.30pm
End Date: May 19, 2022 ( 218 Days )
Type: Seminar, Video

The Language of Recovery: Poems of Hope & Healing

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Tutor: Carmen Bugan

The Language of Recovery: Poems of Hope & Healing

Explore poems of healing, recovery, and hope as we emerge into a changed world.

Start Date: October 16, 2021 2.30pm
End Date: October 30, 2021 ( 15 Days )
Type: Video

Sold Out!

Tutor: Heidi Williamson

Heidi Williamson Wymondham Seminar 2021

Intimate monthly seminars with Heidi Williamson in Wymondham.

Start Date: October 16, 2021 1.15pm
End Date: May 21, 2022 ( 218 Days )
Type: Seminar • Location: Wymondham Heritage Museum, Norfolk

Sold Out!

Tutor: Kathryn Simmonds

Kathryn Simmonds Seminar 2021

Intimate monthly seminars with Kathryn Simmonds.

Start Date: October 18, 2021 10.00am
End Date: May 16, 2022 ( 211 Days )
Type: Seminar, Video

£265.00 *

Tutor: Phoebe Power

Phoebe Power Seminar 2021

Intimate monthly seminars with Phoebe Power.

Start Date: October 19, 2021 6.30pm
End Date: May 17, 2022 ( 211 Days )
Type: Seminar, Video

Sold Out!

Tutor: Fiona Sampson

Poetry Surgery with Fiona Sampson

In-depth 1-2-1 discussion on your poetry with Fiona Sampson.

Start Date: October 21, 2021 10.30am
End Date: October 21, 2021 ( 1 Day )
Type: Video

Tension, Tenderness, & Truth: Reading Elaine Feinstein

£118.00 *

Tutor: Adam Feinstein

Tension, Tenderness, & Truth: Reading Elaine Feinstein

Explore the work of renowned poet Elaine Feinstein, under the expert guide of poet, critic, and her son, Adam Feinstein!

Start Date: October 21, 2021 7pm
End Date: December 16, 2021 ( 57 Days )
Type: Video

£84.00 *

Comedy for Poets!

Put some comedy into your poetry with award-winning comedian and poet Angie Belcher.

Start Date: October 23, 2021 2pm
End Date: October 30, 2021 ( 8 Days )
Type: Video

Sold Out!

Tutor: Vanessa Kisuule

Poetry & Mistranslation Studio

Play with, and question, the notion of mistranslation to rethink what it means to communicate through poetry.

Start Date: November 3, 2021
End Date: December 1, 2021 ( 29 Days )
Type: Online • Location: Polish Millennium House, Birmingham

The Art of Desire Studio, or “I want I want I want!” (Autumn 2021)

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Tutor: Rachel Long

The Art of Desire Studio, or “I want I want I want!” (Autumn 2021)

‘I want it all. I want it all. And I want it now’. Delve into desire with Rachel Long.

Start Date: November 8, 2021
End Date: December 6, 2021 ( 29 Days )
Type: Online

£265.00 *

Tutor: AngelaFrance

Angela France Ledbury Seminar 2021

Intimate monthly seminars with Angela France, organised in partnership with Ledbury Poetry Festival.

Start Date: November 9, 2021 6pm
End Date: June 14, 2022 ( 218 Days )
Type: Seminar • Location: Barrett Browning Institute, Ledbury

Sold Out!

Tutor: Katrina Naomi

Rewilding Ecopoetry

Take an inclusive trip into Ecopoetry to explore the many different ways of writing the environment.

Start Date: November 13, 2021 10.30am
End Date: November 13, 2021 ( 1 Day )
Type: Video

£265.00 *

Tutor: Stav Poleg

Stav Poleg Cambridge Seminar 2021

Intimate monthly seminars with Stav Poleg in Cambridge.

Start Date: November 20, 2021 10.30am
End Date: June 18, 2022 ( 211 Days )
Type: Seminar • Location: Rock Road Library, Cambridge

Experiments in Transatlantic Translation

£84.00 *

Tutor: Zoe Skoulding

Experiments in Transatlantic Translation

Consider how poetry in English can refract other languages and explore the Atlantic as a space of exchange and translation.

Start Date: December 4, 2021 10.30am
End Date: December 11, 2021 ( 8 Days )
Type: Video

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How it works

The Poetry School’s teaching year runs over three ‘terms’ – Autumn, Spring and Summer. Each term we offer around 40-50 courses and workshops that cater to a variety of levels, varying in length and subject matter. The course programme changes every term with more new courses, workshops and tutors, but often includes courses that run over three terms and popular repeats.

We offer both ‘classroom’ teaching (UK) and ‘virtual’ teaching (international). You can visit our In-Person Courses, Video Courses and Online Courses pages for more detailed information about course structures, process and what to expect.

Finding the right Course

Most of our courses and workshops accommodate writers with a wide range of experience, but some are specifically designed for beginners or more practicised poets.

Here are our definitions:

Beginner – Learning the ropes: beginning to write poetry.
Intermediate – Starting to develop your voice, generate more work and grow confident on the page.
Advanced – Able to confidently edit, hone, discuss and critique your poetry.

Our programme is developed around these three teaching levels, although we also offer many courses that are Open to all – courses aimed at all levels, often focusing on a specific theme or inspirational subject matter.

FAQ

What is poetry?

There is no one answer, and many, many people have their own ideas. Here are some definitions we like:

‘Literary work in which the expression of feelings and ideas is given intensity by the use of distinctive style and rhythm’ – OED

‘Poetry is a heightened imagistic use of language that does things to the heart and head’ – Grace Nichols

‘A made thing, a verbal construct, an event in language’ – Edward Hirsch

‘Poetry is memorable speech’ – W H Auden

‘Poetry does not explain life. It gives life to feeling and seeing’ – Sarah Stetie

‘Why, Sir, it is much easier to say what it is not’ – Samuel Johnson

I’m already publishing and performing poetry – what can you do to help me?

We have an expanding programme of projects and activities which seek to address the continuing professional development needs of practising poets, from residencies to enhanced publishing, editing and performance opportunities and beyond. Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest details.

Will the Poetry School help me become a poet?

Since 1997, when the Poetry School was founded, our students have gone on to publish in magazines and online; they've produced pamphlets and books as poets and editors with publishers from the smallest independents to the largest commercial houses; they've won multiple prizes and awards; they've become poetry tutors themselves; they've moved on to take poetry MAs and PhDs.; they’ve set up performance nights, magazines, shows and events. While we can't guarantee that all students will go on to get published; serious engagement with the art and craft of poetry in the company of tutors and fellow students who are as passionate about the form as you are can only ever improve your chances of getting your work out to a wider audience.

Join us in reading, writing, editing and translating poetry, in year-long courses, short courses, workshops, one-day sessions, seminars, tutorials and every variety of learning in between – in our classrooms, off site and online.

All our Courses

Find a Course

How it works

Finding the right Course

FAQ

What is poetry?

I’m already publishing and performing poetry – what can you do to help me?

Will the Poetry School help me become a poet?