My New York City

My New York City is a six-session online creative writing workshop from Parachute Literary Arts and poet/filmmaker SM Gray in which participants explore, reflect, and write about their NYC borough, neighborhood or other meaningful city locations, through memory and personal stories. 

My New York City is offered virtually with live captioning.

Registration is limited. Please register and you will receive a link to the Zoom event before that week's session. Note: You must register for each of the six sessions separately. 

What does it mean to really "know" a neighborhood, city, or street? What do you know that others don't? Poet and filmmaker SM Gray will conduct a 6-week community creative writing workshop exploring self and memory through New York City. Poetry and prose about NYC will be introduced for inspiration, exploring themes such as gentrification, neighborhoods and "vanishing" NYC. Writing prompts will be given to encourage drawing out hidden or lesser seen stories, and participants may go out into their neighborhoods to write about and get inspired by nearby locations. Participants’ new writings will be shared weekly with classmates and instructor for feedback.

During and post-workshop, participants will be invited to share their writing by emailing it to parachutefestival@gmail.com or IG @parachute_literary_arts

 

Poet-filmmaker SM Gray is the author of seven poetry collections, including the book Shorthand and Electric Language Stars (Portable Press at Yo-Yo Labs), and the chapbooks, Words Are What You Get/You Do It For Real (above/ground press) and A Country Road Going Back in Your Direction (Argos Books). Gray’s super 8 poetry-city-films have screened internationally including retrospectives at Anthology Film Archives and San Francisco Cinematheque.

This program is designed for adults; older teens are welcome.

Please note: Participants will need to have a pen or pencil and paper for the session.