Writing
Writing Workshop with Eric Hyett
Japanese Poetic Forms for Everyone
This all-levels poetry workshop is an opportunity to write some Japanese poetic forms in English. We’ll start with an introduction to haiku and tanka, and move on to a 700-year-old collaborative form called renga that can only be done by a group. We will use the first hour of each morning’s sessions to read a few example poems, as well as to generate fresh language. Next, there is 30 minutes of writing time. And the last 30 minutes of each class session will be a mini reading/workshop where people can share the poems they’ve been writing, and receive some feedback from each other as well as the workshop leader.
Eric E. Hyett is a poet and Japanese translator from Brookline, MA. He is the author of two books of poetry, Aporia (2022), and The Painful Adventures of Pericles (2024) as well as two books of translated contemporary Japanese poetry: Kiriu Minashita’s “Sonic Peace (2017) and Toshiko Hirata’s Is It Poetry? (2024). Eric and his co-translator, Spencer Thurlow, were shortlisted for the 2018 National Translation Award, and won the 2022 Sibley Prize for Japanese Translation from the University of Chicago. Eric’s goal as a workshop leader is to “demystify” Japanese poetry and make it accessible to everyone.
What to bring or wear:
Bring a notebook and pens or pencils.