Poetry as a Way of Life
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ABOUT POETRY FORGE
Founded in 2013 by Holly Wren Spaulding, Poetry Forge offers poetry workshops, writing retreats, and creative programming for poets—and secret poets—seeking serious engagement with the art of writing.
Through online and in-person workshops and retreats, practice periods, creative mentorship, and an annual manuscript incubator called A Body of Work, Poetry Forge supports generous community and ongoing creative practice within a warm, inclusive setting that respects diverse experiences and abilities.
How it began
It all began at a wooden table in an artist studio beside an urban creek in Traverse City, Michigan. There was red wine, enough chairs, and mutual fondness. For two years, we met every Tuesday night for Poetry Boot Camp—an outgrowth of Holly Wren Spaulding’s teaching at a nearby community college, where many of her students had been asking if she would offer a complement to her popular Apprentice Poetry Workshop.
We read and discussed and wrote poems together. Manuscripts emerged. Collections were published. We laughed, and noticed how much happier we were in the company of fellow poets.
What Poetry Forge is now
More than a decade into the experiment, Holly’s vision for a warm and inclusive gathering place—one that celebrates the imagination, offers accessible instruction in the art and craft of poetry, and deepens our shared humanity—has taken the form of a year-round poetry school now known as Poetry Forge.
Poetry Forge serves writers seeking a creative writing education outside of academia. Classes are immersive, flexible, and welcoming, designed to support both emerging and experienced poets in sustained relationship with their work.
Community & ongoing practice
At the heart of Poetry Forge is The Casual Union of Working Poets, a membership community for poets who want to stay close to their practice over time. Through shared reading, writing, conversation, and seasonal rhythms of attention, the Casual Union offers continuity, companionship, and space for creative work to unfold—whatever form it takes.
Where we’re rooted
Based in southern Maine, in a small wooden writing studio near the sea, Poetry Forge serves a geographically diverse community of writers. Our students hail from many backgrounds, though we seem to share a belief in the power of poetry—and in the importance of making space for this essential part of our human experience.
To date, Holly has worked with thousands of writers—some highly accomplished, others just beginning—through online offerings and in workshops and retreats held in places such as Maine, Michigan, New York’s Hudson Valley, and Scotland.
All are welcome.
All Are Welcome
Imagine
Reading, writing, drafting, refining, and being together in a creative community has a way of shifting how the world looks—and what we want from our lives.
At Poetry Forge, we believe in creating pockets of culture where people feel welcome and honored, regardless of background, experience, or ability—and in the quiet, lasting ways such spaces can shape our sense of purpose, attention, and belonging.
Through the practices of poetry, we imagine what’s possible.
Workshops
& Classes
Now enrolling
Here
We embrace experimentation as a method, process as a portal, and poetic practice as a way of being in the world.
There is a poem for you hiding in the cleft of a rock.
Water laps about its edges.
Written by no one, written just for you.
—Sarah Ruhl, “Tertön”
Write Where You Are
Much of our programming occurs online, enabling folks to join us from wherever they live, for pop-up writing workshops, summer practice periods, generative courses, a manuscript incubator, or the Casual Union of Working Poets, our alumni club for past and current students.
TELL EVERYONE
Now, today, I shall
sing beautifully for
my friends’ pleasure
—Sappho, Translated by Mary Barnard
We Are Moved
We are moved to write by so many things: the wonder and ache of being alive; small moments, unseen by anyone else; our wish to understand our place and purpose at this time in human history; our human longing to make something tangible, even beautiful, in the process. We wrestle with the Why and devote ourselves to the How because this is who we are. We won’t give up.
In Our Time
Poetry Forge provides instruction, community, and refuge to writers wishing to deepen their practice, hone their craft, and devote more energy to being in the world in a poetic way. We welcome you to join us.
Poetry Forge is based in southern Maine near the Atlantic ocean on the traditional homelands of the Maliseet, Micmac, Penobscot, and Passamaquoddy tribes who are collectively known as Wabanaki, or "People of the Dawnland."
Perhaps one day you touch the young branch
of something beautiful. & it grows & grows
—Aracelis Girmay, “Elegy”
Guiding Principles
Begin anywhere.—John Cage
Work with what you have.
You are not alone.
Unseen forces assist you.
Nothing is wasted.
Befriend your own process.
Slow and steady.
Softly, softly.
Practice being free.
There is room for all of us.
Our Students
Poetry Forge students are people who have noticed how good it feels to slow down and write, especially among other’s of their ilk. They are parents, teachers, editors, painters, therapists, activists, health care workers, diplomats, herbalists, landscapers, cooks, survivors, gardeners, ministers, professors, and librarians. They are finding ways to weave attention, slowness, contemplation, and the craft of poetry into daily life.