In this generative workshop, we’ll explore the ways that documentary poetics can be used to crack open, broaden, or crumble official narratives—especially in situations of injustice. When systems and institutions tell one type of story, what power can poetry claim? What unique roles can poetry play? Guided by the work of poets such as Solmaz Sharif, Layli Long Soldier, and Jenny Molberg, we’ll experiment with different approaches to documentary poetics and write our own poems of fuller and richer truth.

If you have an idea of a document you might like to work with (news articles, court filings, political speeches, police statements, etc.), please feel free to bring it to the workshop (physical copies are fantastic, but digital is good too). If not, come with thoughts about an issue or situation you’d like to explore in your work.