Aimee Nezhukumatathil

DELVE FOR WRITERS: An occasional Delve series that offers seminars that focus on close readings of narrative, form, and stylistic choices that writers can incorporate into their own writing practice.

Contemporary poetry and prose-poetry is a fabulous place to find rich, novel ideas about both form and content. This year’s final Portland Arts & Lectures speaker, Aimee Nezhukumatathil – who we will have an opportunity to hear from at her lecture just after kicking off this seminar – brings a wealth of different genres and perspectives to consider. A poet, essayist, and epistolary correspondent plumbing deep connections to the natural world in everything she writes, Nezhukumatathil offers craft lessons in authenticity, unique genre mashups, literary citizenship and how to think about the rich potential of our contemporary world. In this Delve for Writers, we’ll look carefully at the craft of what we’ve read with close readings of style, form, mechanics, and conceptual and narrative choices.

This DELVE FOR WRITERS seminar will focus on what we can learn from how Nezhukumatathil’s work is written as much as what it is about. We’ll spend time in each session looking carefully at the craft of what we’ve read with close readings to uncover Nezhukumatathil’s unique story of contemporary poetics and memoir. As time permits, we may try a few prompts and exercises to help us apply craft lessons to our own work. An active writing practice is not needed and everyone is welcome.

Texts:
World of Wonders by Aimee Nezhukumatathil
Oceanic by Aimee Nezhukumatathil
*Lace & Pyrite: Letters from Two Gardens, Ross Gay and Aimee Nezhukumatathil *this is a limited edition chapbook and if it proves difficult to acquire, this text will be provided via xerox packet in week #2 of the seminar

To read before the first meeting:
Choose any three chapters from World of Wonders that interest you. Read them and come prepared to talk about what drew you to them and what you found.
Access Program
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