We occasionally hold workshops teaching skills, such as Nashira’s “A Crash Course on Black Poetry Forms” – a series of three workshops where she taught fifteen poetic forms invented by Black poets. We plan to hold more teaching workshops in the future exploring subjects such as collage making, spoken word performance, poetic forms, and more. 

We also facilitate “feature” workshops — uniquely crafted interactive events highlighting an author and their work. Created in collaboration between Poetry Orchard, the author, and any representing parties, our feature workshops introduce authors and their work to an engaged, diverse community of bookish creators and consumers. Are you (representing) an author seeking to promote a forthcoming or recently published book? We’d love to work with you – check out our “Connect With Us” page and drop us a line!

Our themed generative workshops are the heart of our community. We host live interactive sessions on Google Meet, though one does not have to attend the live session to reap the creative benefits – all workshops are asynchronous and all materials are received upon registration. After signing up, you are sent a packet including the meeting link, inspirational materials and unique prompts relative to the theme, as well as access to an intimate community in the form of a group “whiteboard” document where you can connect with fellow attendees and read each other’s work. Our typical workshop structure is as follows:

1 – Introduction

The facilitator(s) will introduce themselves and read a synopsis of the workshop. We include an icebreaker question for attendees to type in chat.

2 – Inspiration

We’ll read/play/watch inspirational materials—usually poems, but sometimes comics, prose excerpts, songs, or videos. We ask attendees if they'd like to volunteer to read written materials aloud because we love hearing your voices, and it's a great way to connect with the pieces!

3 – Grounding

We hold a 3 minute break for attendees to stretch, hydrate, and go over the materials to process their thoughts before we jump into discussions.

4 – Discuss

We’ll kick off discussions with a few questions relating to the inspirational materials to start off. Attendees are invited to share their thoughts, critiques, and ask questions. This is the heart of our community, connecting with each other through creative work, like a mini support group. :)

5 – Creation time

The facilitator(s) will read out unique themed prompts, and it's your turn to create if you are inspired to! Some people read the prompts as soon as they register and get to writing immediately, others choose to write after the live session.

6 – Share

You’re invited to share what you’ve created in a group whiteboard document. The floor will be open to anyone who wants to read their piece aloud; writers can ask a facilitator to read their piece or opt to be skipped during read back. This is completely optional and we never require anyone to share their work. 

1. Be Kind: We share personal experiences here! Don’t share other people’s creations without their permission. Assume everyone is trying their best and respect different experiences. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination. 

2. Be Inclusive: Make sure you are muted. To contribute, raise your hand to speak, or type in the chat. We will mute your microphone at our discretion, but we love hearing from you— please finish your point in chat.

3. Be Respectful: This is an international space. Respect potential language barriers! We provide phonetic pronunciations if possible, but if you’re not sure how to pronounce something, ask. Don’t correct anyone unless requested. 

4. Be Safe: Attendees may mute, join, and leave the Workshop at any time. We do not record our events. Be mindful of making space for everyone to contribute. Don’t take others’ behavior (e.g. dropping out of the Workshop) personally.

Poetry Orchard events are 16+ only. Most content will be prefaced with a content warning, look after yourself when you need to. 

Poetry Orchard is a safe, inclusive space that is run by and centers marginalized voices. Consequently, we take security very seriously and have established guidelines for banning individuals who violate our community standards.

Below is an overview of our bannable offenses*. These guidelines extend to our Discord community, live events, and any private communique between a community member and a facilitator or guest host.

Guidelines are also subject to change. It is the responsibility of the user to stay informed about any updates to our community standards.

• Harassment and bullying: Any form of harassment or usage of abusive language toward community members, guest hosts, or facilitators.
  
  This extends to private conversations, though we ask that personal issues not related to Poetry Orchard be discussed and resolved outside of our space. 

• Disregard for event etiquette: This includes repeated interruptions, loud or distracting background noise, inappropriate on-screen activities (e.g. being nude, mocking other attendees), or any other actions that detract from the experience of other participants.

• Hate speech and discrimination: Poetry Orchard has zero tolerance for ableism, LGBTphobia, racism, sexism, religious or cultural-based discrimination.
  
  We ask that event attendees use content warnings to mark reclaimed slurs and other sensitive material as outlined in our guidelines. 

• Inappropriate content: Sharing of any sexually explicit, violent, or illegal content. Please review Discord’s community guidelines to learn more.
  
  Poetry Orchard and its associates will report users to Discord and other legal entities if necessary, as well as warn other communities of this kind of content.

• Spam and unsolicited advertising: Posting repetitive, irrelevant, and/or promotional content not related to the community’s purpose.
  
  Links to social media and creative material generated during the workshops are typically deleted.
  
  Please email hi@poetryorchard.com to discuss if you’d like to share or promote anything!
  
  Likewise, to support and promote content created during our events, please follow our social media’s account where we occasionally re-share or post excerpts from our attendees.

• *Repeated warnings: This primarily extends to spam and unsolicited advertising or poor event etiquette—we have no tolerance for other offenses.

Poetry Orchard and its associates reserve the right to warn community members prior to a ban. There is no definitive warning system (e.g. three strikes) as offenses can vary in magnitude.
Willful continuation misbehavior after multiple warnings will result in a ban.

How to inform Poetry Orchard of another community member’s behavior:
Please use our anonymous feedback form or contact us hi@ion of Poetry Orchard and its co-founders. However we choose to rule, please respect our boundaries and refrain from reaching out to Blossom, Maria, or Nashira privately through unofficial channels. Failure to do so will revoke the appeal and prevent any return to Poetry Orchard’s community.

Can I suggest a workshop theme?

Yes! We love hearing from our community. Drop us a line at hi@poetryorchard.com or send a message in our Discord letting us know what themes you would be interested in attending.

I want to attend a workshop, but the dates and times never fit my schedule.

While we typically host workshops at 12 AM / 11 AM / 7 PM GMT on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, we occasionally host them at other times and on weekdays. We frequently post polls for dates and times to run workshops in our Discord, and we’re always open to suggestions. If there’s a date and time you’d like to see us host a workshop, address us at hi@poetryorchard.com or send a message in our Discord.

I’m interested in a specific workshop theme, but I wasn’t able to sign up. Is it possible to get the materials for it?

Yes! You can subscribe to us on Patreon at the Cherry Jelly tier or higher and receive access to our entire archive of workshop documents, or check out our online store where we sell PDFs of all workshop prompts from each month. You do not have to subscribe to us on Patreon to purchase from our online store.

How do I collaborate with Poetry Orchard as a workshop facilitator?

We are selective with co-facilitation invites and primarily collaborate with people we know personally. That said, if you have a workshop theme you’d like to co-facilitate with us, we’d love to hear from you. Address Blossom, Maria, Nashira, or all three of us with your query at hi@poetryorchard.com.

Who can participate? Do I have to be a poet to join Workshops?
No, you don’t have to be a poet to join. We welcome everyone, even those who don’t consider themselves creative to try something new. We've enjoyed fiction, illustrations, and music inspired by our Workshops. You might make a new friend or discover a new favorite author!

What exactly am I purchasing with a Workshop ticket?

By purchasing a ticket to this event, you receive access to community in the form of an online space where you can engage in a group discussion about the materials guided by the facilitator, followed by a brief creation period driven by original prompts.

Do you offer refunds for Workshop tickets?

We do not offer refunds as you are paying for access to the space and the Workshop materials.

What am I required to do in Workshops?

Other than showing up as your authentic self, nothing! Webcam and microphone are not required; most attendees engage by typing in chat. You don't have to take notes or answer questions, nor are you required to create or share anything.

I can only make part of the Workshop live session, should I still come?

Yes, please do! You don’t have to be here from the start or sit through the entire session. The metaphorical classroom door is always open; you will always be let into the room no matter where we are in the agenda and you are welcome to leave at any point, no explanation needed.

Cancellation and rescheduling

We reserve the right to reschedule live sessions at any point prior to the scheduled time. We require at least 3 people to join the session within 15 minutes of the scheduled starting time. If we don't receive enough attendees after that point, the live session will be rescheduled.

What happens if the facilitator(s) are unable to host?

If the facilitator(s) are unable to host the live session, a supporting facilitator may step in as host. In the event a supporting facilitator cannot take over, the meeting will be closed and the live session will be rescheduled. The rescheduled session will start from the beginning of the agenda.

What happens if a live session is rescheduled?

In the event of a rescheduled live session, Eventbrite will send attendees an email with the new time. The Google Meet link will remain the same.

Will the live session be recorded?

No, the live session will not be recorded.

Are you affiliated with [book / film / game / TV show / public figure]?

No. We're not affiliated with any book/film/game/show/figure. This event is by fans for fans to engage with related materials in fair use for educational/transformative purposes. We don't claim ownership of materials outside of prompts, which are contextualized by materials. Sources are credited.