Writing Therapy

Introduction

You may have always thought you couldn't write a poem if your life depended on it. It turns out you can and you'll find out how. It may also turn out that it will improve your health. It's certainly more fun than visiting doctors. Or maybe you've always wanted to write poetry but have never done it.

This course will help get you started writing a poem or two. It will also teach you to play with forms so you learn how to write what they call "experimental" poetry since playing, action, and expression are important in "experimenting" or trying to write a poem.

While there has always been speculation that writing has health benefits, it is only recently that a solid body of good psychological evidence has appeared which is starting to document how / why this is true! You will get an introduction to this growing body of research and some thoughts on what health issues it affects.

In brief, you'll get a few tools and prompts. You'll get a chance to play with words and feelings and come up with a poem. You then can (if you like) share it with the instructor and other students for feedback. If you like you'll have a chance to comment on others' -- and the instructor's -- work. You might want to revise it or try another. If you like, you also have the option of keeping a journal.

Your poems may not get 'published' but there is a good chance at the end you'll have some that you've done, along with an appetite for doing more.

Lessons

Click here to see course syllabus