Nobel Prize-winning writer Toni Morrison, born and raised in Northeast Ohio, is not thought of as a “nature writer,” yet as a known gardener, birder, and green thumb, she embedded many deep lessons about the natural world in her work.
In a 1981 interview with The New Republic, Morrison said, “I must confess…that I sometimes lose interest in the characters and get much more interested in the trees and animals. I think I exercise tremendous restraint in this, but my editor says, ‘Would you stop this beauty business.’ And I say, ‘Wait, wait until I tell you about these ants.’”
According to writer Paige Curtis, you can learn three ecological lessons from Morrison’s writing:
Timely lessons that can inform us as nature lovers and protectors and writers of our own work.
In this workshop, we will tie together Morrison’s lessons with those gifted in the poetry from The Nature of Our Times: Poems on America’s Lands, Waters, Wildlife, and Other Natural Wonders anthology, compiled by the Poets for Science, United By Nature, and Wick Poetry Center, to create new, original pieces of our own that are take up the ‘beauty business’ of nature and poetry writing.
Join us for an in-person session on Saturday, March 14 from 11am-1pm at Cleveland Public Library - West Park Branch (3805 W 157th St, Cleveland, OH 44111) or a virtual session on Monday, March 23 from 6:30-8:30pm remotely online via Zoom led by poets Julia Cilano and Siaara Freeman.
Presented in partnership with Wick Poetry Center and Cleveland Public Library.
Nobel Prize-winning writer Toni Morrison, born and raised in Northeast Ohio, is not thought of as a “nature writer,” yet as a known gardener, birder, and green thumb, she embedded many deep lessons about the natural world in her work.
In a 1981 interview with The New Republic, Morrison said, “I must confess…that I sometimes lose interest in the characters and get much more interested in the trees and animals. I think I exercise tremendous restraint in this, but my editor says, ‘Would you stop this beauty business.’ And I say, ‘Wait, wait until I tell you about these ants.’”
According to writer Paige Curtis, you can learn three ecological lessons from Morrison’s writing:
Timely lessons that can inform us as nature lovers and protectors and writers of our own work.
In this workshop, we will tie together Morrison’s lessons with those gifted in the poetry from The Nature of Our Times: Poems on America’s Lands, Waters, Wildlife, and Other Natural Wonders anthology, compiled by the Poets for Science, United By Nature, and Wick Poetry Center, to create new, original pieces of our own that are take up the ‘beauty business’ of nature and poetry writing.
Join us for an in-person session on Saturday, March 14 from 11am-1pm at Cleveland Public Library - West Park Branch (3805 W 157th St, Cleveland, OH 44111) or a virtual session on Monday, March 23 from 6:30-8:30pm remotely online via Zoom led by poets Julia Cilano and Siaara Freeman.
Presented in partnership with Wick Poetry Center and Cleveland Public Library.
Julia Cilano (any pronouns) is a first-year in the Northeast Ohio MFA program, where she studies poetry. Julia graduated from Hobart and William Smith Colleges in the spring of 2023, where she majored in French, English, and Critical Sexuality and Queer Studies. Julia’s poetry has been published by Moss Puppy Magazine and will soon be published in CrayfishMag. Julia is sprung from the Great Lakes region.
Siaara Freeman is the former Poet Laureate for Cleveland Heights and University Heights; she is also the unofficial Lake Erie Siren.
