Autobio(myth)ography & Collaboration

January 24, 2017 - 5:30pm to 7:30pm

The poet Audre Lorde is herself the protagonist of her book Zami: A New Spelling of My Name, described by its publishers as a “biomythography, combining elements of history, biography and myth.” The fiction writer John Cheever is widely quoted as saying, “I lie, in order to tell a more significant truth.” How do we write out of our own lives and experiences, embracing personal mythmaking, associative leaps, and shifting memories to arrive at a “more significant truth” than strict adherence to the facts would allow? And how can collaborative activities that invite others into our stories help us make the transition from life into art? In this two-hour interactive workshop, we will look at a few published poems that push the autobiographical into unforeseen territory, and then we’ll use individual and collaborative writing activities to embark on our own autobiomythographical writing.

This workshop is open to everyone—whether you have been writing poetry for decades or do not consider yourself a writer at all.

FREE RSVP AT http://www.alphabetcity.org/events/autobiomythography-and-collaboration-an-interactive-poetry-workshop/

 

Location and Address

City of Asylum @ Alphabet City:

40 W. North Avenue 

Pittsburgh, PA 15212