FALL WORKSHOP with JUDITH CHALMER

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2023 (11:30 am – 4:00 pm)
LOCATION: Zoom & UU Fellowship of Bennington, 108 School St, Bennington, VT 05201

Judith Chalmer will join us as PSOV Workshop Guide. Judith Chalmer lives with her wife in Burlington, Vermont. Her poems have been published in anthologies and journals, most recently, Birchsong, Stone Canoe, Apex, Goblin Fruit and Quiddity. She is co-translator of 2 books of haiku and tanka with poet, Michiko Oishi, Deepening Snow (Plowboy Press, East Burke, VT 2012) and Red Fish Alphabet (Honami Syoten, Tokyo, 2008). Her first collection of poems, Out of History’s Junk Jar, was published in 2015 (Time Begin Books, St. Louis).

Judith describes her meditative approach to writing as follows: “My meditative practice begins in the natural world while walking, and is continued, in a different way, when I am indoors, seated, and open to tracking my internal wandering. Both of those forms of meditation contribute to my writing, which begins in close observation, and continues with attention to the musical qualities of language.” 

SCHEDULE:

• 11:30 am: Arrival & Settling In with light refreshments
• 11:45 am: Welcome & Group Introductions
• 12:00 pm: Workshop Part I
• 1:15 pm: Lunch & Mingling (Books for sale!)
• 2:00/2:15 pm: Workshop Part II
• 3:45 pm: Closing

POTLUCK STYLE LUNCH. PSOV will provide some basics, and we invite you to bring a dish to share. There will be a fridge & kitchen available. Also, bring your reusable water bottle!

RSVP REQUIRED. DEADLINE TO RSVP FOR WORKSHOP: SEPTEMBER 30, 2023

Please register through this Google Form. We are requiring registration to help with set-up.

•       Member Workshop Fee: $25
•       Not-Yet-Member Fee / Guests: $40

Please PAY IN PERSON on site at the event: Bring a check or exact cash.

*Checks can be made out to Poetry Society of Vermont.

*If you attend this workshop virtually, you’ll note this on the registration form, and we will be in touch regarding receiving payment.

For this workshop, we prefer payment at the workshop, but registration ahead of time is online through the Google Form

If payment presents any hardship, please contact in**@po********************.org in order to inquire about available scholarships and to register. No one will be turned away due to lack of funds.  

If you have books to sell, you’re welcome to bring them. We’ll have a table set up for sales.

 PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR POEM—DEADLINE: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2023

• Members only. (become a member and submit your poem)
• Submit one poem, any style, any topic, of reasonable line length.
• Times New Roman 12, single spaced.
• The shorter the poem, the fairer we can be to all poets receiving feedback, as we have under three hours to workshop them.
• No previously published poems.
• Please do not include your name on the document.
• Document should be Microsoft Word or PDF only.

Submit your poem through Submittable. If you prefer to submit your poem via email, this is an option only for folks who do not use Submittable. For email submissions, please include “Your Name – Fall 2023” in the subject line, and send to: wo******@po********************.org

Members will vote online for poems, and the five winners will be published in the 2024 Mountain Troubadour. You do not need to attend the workshop to submit a poem for the contest / for feedback from Judith Chalmer. You may attend the workshop either in person or virtually (we aim to provide hybrid event options for accessibility).

 So, you want to come to the Fall Workshop/submit a poem? Here are your next steps:

1.   Invite a friend to come with you!
2.   RSVP on the Google Form by Sept 30.
3.   Submit your poem on Submittable by Sept 30.
4.   Vote on member poems ahead of October 14.
5.   Make a dish for the potluck lunch, or BYO lunch!
6.   On Oct 14, drive to UU Bennington (bring payment with you) or attend virtually.
7.   Enjoy the workshop and your poet friends!

We look forward to seeing you and reading your poems,

• Bianca Amira Zanella, President
• Erika Nichols-Frazer, Nominating Executive Secretary