Loved the course. Douglas Kearney is amazing as an instructor. I love poetry and this workshop has made me happy during the times of COVID 19. I thank CalArts for the encouragement and appreciation.
This was a superb workshop. I enjoyed myself thoroughly and learned a lot that came in my way. Grasping poetry devices taught in such an fun way was really awesome. The mentors were very supportive.
By Maryann L
•An excellent course. This is a great introduction to writing poetry. Easy to follow. Lots of assignments, interesting presentation. This course gave me an opportunity to explore the basic elements of poetry in a way I have not done before. Recommend.
By Pamela O
•This is a great course. I learned so many new things about writing poetry both from the professor and the peer reviews. In the revision section I learned the difference between editing and revision. This one thing cleared up a great mystery for me.
By stephanie r
•It gives an easily digestible engaging and inspirational overview of the craft of writing poetry using interesting contemporary poems. I got a lot more out of the course than i thought I would; i think the course is like a great poem in that way.
By Isha G
•It is a brilliant workshop which can alter your writing skills for the better, and while working on the prompts, you yourself will notice a difference in your style of poetry writing after learning everything in this workshop from start to end.
By Karena A
•This course has some very interesting exercises and plenty of information I did not know. The instructor is highly entertaining too. The people here are very nice and talented. The mentors are really good. More than anything it primes the pump.
By Alycia K
•I enjoyed this course very much. Unfortunately, I didn't finish it because of work obligations. However, I found it very inspiring and fun. I will take it again when I can get my work and life more balanced. I highly recommend this course.
By Luna E
•Great course! The teacher is very enthusiastic and explains everything well and in a structured way, allowing for theory, exemplification and explanation before giving some awesome writing prompts. Recommended if you like poetry and words!
By Lia M
•Great workshop! The video's are super fun and very educational. The prompts are great and I've learned a lot by working on the assignments. Peer assessment is a wonderful way to receive feedback and the discussion forums are very lively.
By Christine C
•This is an excellent course - well designed - very interesting. Strongly recommend it for poets really wanting to improve their skills. The feedback component is useful and the mentors are terrific.
Wish, wish, wish there was a Part 2.!
By Ariel B
•Fantastic course! A great introduction to poetry and workshopping. Also, thanks for bringing Phil Och's version of The Bells to my attention. It's definitely my new favorite song. The Bells has always been one of my most favorite poems.
By Lucy P
•I gained a lot of poetry writing skills from this course. . Douglas is a humorous and easy going teacher who presented a syllabus which helps beginners like me focus on necessary strategies and skill required to write better poetry.
By SANA A
•I stumbled upon this course and I really enjoyed it. The instructor is quite engaging and makes the course very interesting even though poetry is not my forte. Would recommend this course to anyone looking to improve their writing.
By Derek O
•This course was engaging, informative and entertaining. The instructor clearly loves his subject and enjoys teaching. His lectures are insightful and on point. I learned something in every unit. Thank you for this wonderful course.
By Yu J K
•The students giving feedback on my work was impressive, and I certainly learnt a whole load of things during this course. One of the best workshops I've done that gave me the chance to actually develop on my skills! :) Thanks Doug.
By liza m b
•Incredible course! The information I learned was invaluable to my writing practice, understanding of poetry, and revision process. I gained so much confidence in my writing and had fun experimenting with different forms of poetry.
By Kevin G
•Great course overall, and delivered in a fun / non-intimidating way. I had wanted an introduction into reading and writing poetry for a long time, but not felt comfortable with other courses / materials but this was near perfect.
By Misha B
•Great class. I think the rhyme and revision sections were the most helpful for me personally. The professor was extremely knowledge, and the course contents were explained thoughtfully, yet in a concise manner. Highly recommend!
By Ezra E
•I enjoyed this workshop. It has helped me to rethink what poetry is, and it has given me valuable knowledge so I can write better poems. The length of the workshop is ideal. I feel the peer review aspect could be strengthened.
By Eric H R
•This course was a lot of fun and very helpful. Even though I have been involved with poetry for many years, I found the Professor's presentations entertaining and enlightening. I have learned a lot from this course. Thanks.
By Trapper M
•Just what I needed. A fantastic intro to get you thinking about some of the key concepts in your writing. I highly recommend this as a starting point for new poets. The exercises are also motivational to write in new ways.
By Samreen
•The course was informative and provided an enriching learning experience. I loved the instructor's teaching style which made learning fun. I am encouraged to take up more such courses now and enhance my writing skills.
By Siddhi D
•This was an amazing course that made me learn a lot about poem writing and completely changed the way I perceived poems. My skills have improved greatly thanks to this course. It was probably the best I've ever taken.
By Logan R
•Great place to start as some one who has always had an interest in poetry but never really knew where to start. I got a good poem out of this workshop and I have seen my work change over this 6 weeks. Lovely course!
By Maryam S
•A nice refresher course in poetry. Love the prompts given by the instructor. Simple method of teaching, but it covers all aspects of poetry writing. Good pace as well. Highly recommended for new and seasoned poets.
By Sierra C
•I learned a lot about technical details that I hadn't learned/had forgotten about, and I got some really great feedback from the workshops. Definitely turned me into a believer of the revision/editing process. :)