NWS is collaborating with Mouthy Poets to present two talented poets from the United States, who will be running a workshop in Nottingham on Friday 24 February, 2–4pm. Tickets are £15 full price and £10 for NWS members and concessions (cash on the day). Call 0115 959 7947 or email admin@nottinghamwritersstudio.co.uk to book.

About the Workshop

When our life experience suggests that celebration always comes laced with a hint of melancholy, and joy is a border that surrounds sorrow, how can we construct poems that acknowledge a complicated and dynamic world? How do we avoid writing that only does one thing, and performances that transform us into caricatures? How can we guide an audience into the experience of what it actually feels like to be us? In this workshop, we will explore tangible ways to reveal a 3-dimensional view of our poems. Bring a notebook, pen, and a sense of adventure as we take our art to the edge of the universe, and bring back proof that we’ve been there.

About the Poets

Jon Sands (www.jonsands.com) is a Brooklyn-based author and performer known for electrifying readings. His first full collection,The New Clean, was released throughout the US and internationally in 2011 from Write Bloody Publishing. He heads three separate writing programs at Syringe Exchange and HIV/AIDS treatment centers throughout New York, is an adjunct with NY City University, and a youth mentor with Urban Word NYC. He starred in the 2011 web-series Verse: A Murder Mystery from Rattapallax Films, featured on cable nationwide through the show Koldcast Presents. He has represented New York City multiple times at the National Poetry Slam, tours internationally, and makes better tuna salad than anyone you know. 

Ken Arkind is a US National Poetry Slam Champion, Nuyorican Poets' Cafe Grand Slam Champion and full-time touring artist. He has been featured on HBO, CBS, NBC and Borders.com’s Open Door Poetry series alongside former US Poet Laureate Billy Collins.