The Lanier Library’s Poetry Festival on Saturday, April 26, will feature several renowned poets holding workshops, as well as reading and signing their works.
Among them are Polk County’s own Cathy Smith Bowers, North Carolina’s Poet Laureate from 2010 until 2012. Bowers’ workshop is titled “The Abiding Image: An Invitation to Poetry,” and will explore ways to “tap into abiding images from (personal) experiences” and turn those images into poems. Bowers describes it as being “for anyone who longs to articulate thought, experience and emotion through poetry.” The workshop is limited to 30 participants.
Bowers has written five collections of poetry, including her latest, Like Shining from Shook Foil. Her poems have been published widely in many literary publications. She teaches at Queens College in Charlotte, N.C. and Wofford College in Spartanburg, S.C.
George Bilgere’s workshop, “Writing Your Way into the Poem,” will be a discussion and work session on getting the writing process started, revising poems and getting them published. The class will include writing exercises based on instructor’s prompts. This workshop is recommended for those with writing experience and will be limited to 15 participants.
Bilgere’s latest book of poetry is titled Imperial. His poems and essays have appeared in many publications around the country, with his poetry often read on Garrison Keillor’s “The Writer’s Almanac,” heard locally on WEPR-FM (90.1)/Greenville and online. Bilgere is an associate professor of English at John Carroll University in Ohio.
Bowers and Bilgere will also hold readings and signings, along with fellow poet Elizabeth Cox, at 3 p.m. at the Melrose Inn. Books will be available for purchase, and this event is free and open to the public.
Bowers and Bilgere are among six poets holding workshops on various aspects of poetry writing during the library’s first Poetry Festival being held in conjunction with the 6th Annual Sidney Lanier Poetry Competition and with National Poetry Month. These workshops have limited space and will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
For more information about signing up for a workshop, see lanierlib.org, call 828-859-9535 or visit the library during open hours.
– article submitted
by Gina Malone