Writing in the Wild! Black Hawk, CO

Writing can feel like a collaboration with forces beyond ourselves—the ancestral, the divine, the subconscious, and the ecological. In this generative workshop, we will connect with the ecology of the Rocky Mountain region and write poems of place in collaboration with the natural world. We’ll meet at a private residence in the woods of Black Hawk, CO and, together, explore this beautiful, secluded area. After a grounding meditation to open your senses and connect with the land, we will read poems from a selection of wonderful nature poets. We will then spend time individually connecting with our own senses and the embodied environment all around us. At the end of the workshop, students will have an opportunity to read their poems aloud to each other. You will go home with new poems generated, a softened nervous system, and a deeper connection to nature. Open to all genres, sharing is always voluntary. Workshop is a 45 minute drive, just past downtown Nederland, CO.

Please bring everything you need to enjoy an afternoon in nature, including a camping chair or blanket to sit on, and your preferred writing method. We will have access to indoor restrooms. 

Emily Graf is a poet, writer, and editor living in Boulder, CO. She earned her BA in English with a concentration in Creative Writing from Kenyon College. Emily is the acquiring editor at the traditional publishing house, Sentient Publications. She is also an independent editor and helps authors to bring books into the world. She publishes on Substack—mostly lyric essays, self-disclosure, and occasional odes to trees—at emilygraf.substack.com. Learn more about her publications and editing offerings at emilygraf.com. She is an MFA candidate at the Warren Wilson MFA Program for Writers.