Britain’s first female and first openly LGBTQ+ Poet Laureate, Carol Ann Duffy, shares how to unlock your creativity and find your voice in BBC Maestro’s latest course, Writing Poetry.
This January, rediscover the simple pleasure of writing with pen and paper while learning to capture complex moments through clear, effective language with Carol Ann Duffy. Recognised as the ‘most accessible poet of our time’, Carol Ann explores the collaborative relationship between poem and poet in this exclusive online course for BBC Maestro.
Carol Ann was the first female and first openly LGBTQ+ Poet Laureate in the UK, holding the position from 2009 to 2019. Her critically acclaimed and award-winning collections include Mean Time, The World’s Wife, Rapture, The Bees, and Standing Female Nude. Lessons include Memory as Imagination, Choosing a Form, Drafting and Redrafting, Children’s Poetry, and the vital Building a Collection.
“A common mistake in poetry is to think that there are poetic words. I think words need to be living and not decorative. We mustn’t think streetwise language is inferior, or it isn’t poetic. Of course, it is. This is your raw material. This is your paint. You will make your poem out of whatever language you choose to put on that page going forwards.”
The latest addition to BBC Maestro’s selection of world-class courses, Writing Poetry is the ideal supplement to any writer’s toolkit. Across her lessons, Carol Ann champions the complementary acts of reading and writing poetry. “Poetry to me is often like a baton that’s passed on through the centuries. We not only learn the shapes and the experiments that others have done, but surely it must teach us that we too must be inventive.” Her course consists of 25 lessons designed for viewers to learn at their own pace. Classes are accompanied by extensive course notes filled with expert advice for all those hoping to assemble their own collection of poetry. By the end of Writing Poetry, viewers will come away with defined subject ideas and clear methods on how to assemble these into a small collection of poems.
“All you need to bring to this course is your memory, your interests, the way you talk, stories that you grew up with, the recollection of a love affair, bereavement or celebration. All these are within you. The only actual thing you need to have in your hand is a good pen and a new notebook.“
Writing Poetry will be available from 12 January on www.bbcmaestro.com.
The course costs £80 for lifetime access to Carol Ann’s 25 lessons and comprehensive downloadable notes.
