“Love is not all…” writes Millay in one of her best-known sonnets. Six lines later, starting with the word Yet, she begins a damning rebuttal in defense of love. How do you create that turn, the volta as it is called in the sonnet, the fulcrum on which a poem is balanced? How does the turn work to give both formal and free verse poetry tension and conflict? How can you use it to give an out-for-a-stroll poem the energy of an Olympic wrestling match? In this workshop we will examine the turn: how poets create and use it; where to place it; and how to set it up. We will look at the work of a small, but diverse group of poets. Then—it’s your turn! In an exercise that will put a swerve in your verse, you’ll practice writing your own turns.

That’s all, folks! If only it were that easy. But the end of a poem needs to resonate with the entire poem, not just wrap it up. It can comment on the poem or lift it to a new meaning. It can leave the reader or listener laughing or suddenly somber. How do you write an ending that peels out of the driveway like a doomed lover? That drifts down like fog or gives a final firecracker pop? In this workshop we will look at different kinds of endings and how they make the meaning and mood of the poem. You will learn prompts that will help you revise endings. Bring one of your poems to read and we will workshop it just for the ending. The End.