Budding poets in the Riverina and South West Slopes can sign up for a free seven-week poetry course which offers mentoring from published authors. Photo: Supplied.
If you have a knack for words, plenty of rhyme and rhythm, are aged between 13-18 years, and live in the Riverina and South West Slopes, this might be the ticket to greatness.
Just access to a computer and seven weeks of your time is all that stands between you and a possible future as a poet.
Free workshops are being offered to budding young poets as part of the Eastern Riverina Arts and Southern Tablelands Arts’ Virtual to Actual Performance Poetry project.
People who sign up for the project will have the opportunity to work with performance poet Jackie Okot for a series of online weekly Zoom poetry sessions.
Participating poets will also be afforded the opportunity to connect with practicing and published writers involved with the Jugiong Writers’ Festival in a mentoring relationship.
This unique biennial writers’ festival, usually held in March, celebrates ‘Reading, Writing & Really Good Fun’ in the picturesque village of Jugiong, in the NSW South West Slopes.
READ ALSO: Jugiong Writers’ Festival gathers friends, ideas and community spirit
Eastern Riverina Arts executive director Dr Tim Kurylowicz is encouraging budding poets and ‘slam poetry’ fans from local government areas of Bland, Hilltops, Coolamon, Cootamundra-Gundagai, Junee, Lockhart, Temora, Snowy Valleys and Wagga Wagga to participate.
“It has always been the case that young writers manage to capture their times in fresh ways that fuel the imagination,” said Dr Kurylowicz. “Performance poetry is a great way to express your creativity and your views, crafting your words and adding a performance element that can bring your poem to life.”
“We want to empower that next generation of writers, thinkers and performers to step up and speak out.”
Each young Eastern Riverina poet will be supported to attend the 2021 Jugiong Writers’ Festival to watch their mentors perform live. Next year’s festival has been postponed from March until May 22-23 due to COVID-19.
Dr Kurylowicz said the workshops will provide a chance for poets to work on their writing, performance techniques and develop live and online poetry events such as poetry slams and open mic sessions.
Workshops start on 27 October and run for seven weeks. A second term of workshops will also be offered in early 2021, after which organisers hope a face-to-face workshop may be possible.
For more information, visit Eastern Riverina Arts.
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