Workshop Review

Workshop Review by Deanna

I have never been apart of a workshop before much less for poetry, which ironically happens to be my least favorite form of writing. I was really glad my poem wasn’t chosen to go first because I wanted an opportunity to see how the process works on someone else before it was my turn. I was overall pleased with the outcome for the first week of workshopping. Everyone who participated brought to light very good points about each poem and the individuality of each person gave for a diverse array of opinions on each person's poem.  I thought it was really helpful to have read the poems before we came to class ready to workshop it.  I already had an idea of what I wanted to say/ review prepared before the person read their poem so it was overall a really efficient process.

As I read my poem to the class I felt very exposed and vulnerable. I am glad that I one of my  lighthearted, wittier pieces to workshop rather than something really deep and personal. I was overwhelmed with satisfaction as I read the reviews I received on my poem. Everyone in the class, not just for me but for everyone else, was good at giving constructive criticism as well as commending someone's work.  I found my critiques very helpful and encouraging. Initially I was really scared everyone was going to tear my poem to pieces but there was a very good balance of critique and compliment. Kudos to the class. Everyone was fairly honest but gentle. I also liked that we didn’t rush any critiques. They took as long as they took. I appreciated the time everyone put into the workshop.

The only thing I would’ve liked to see more of, which may not be possible and that's okay, is to have more participation of the poet with the class with more interaction. During my critique I tried to stay quiet as best as I can, but I did have specific questions and commentary to make that I wanted to bring up during my workshop session but I refrained from saying them.

I’m glad I finally got to experience what its like to be a part of a workshop and I regret not doing something like this before in my other english classes. It would’ve been extremely helpful.