Useful Knowledge: Erasure Poetry

Date and Time

• Tuesday, Nov 3, 2026  11am

Location

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Details

Times: Tuesdays, 10a -12 p.. November 5 -December 3 (no session during Thanksgiving week) Erasure poetry, a kind of automatic writing, is favored by people who like to admit chance into their play with language. Each poem begins with a source text, often a page from a newspaper or a neglected book from a sale bin. Using a sharpie, the poet marks out most of the source text, leaving selected words or phrases to form a new utterance. The object is to create something original, whether lyrical, humorous, or gnomic. The new poem is not a mere synopsis of the source; it should be a surprise. Participants in this group will study examples of erasure literature, from simple to complex, make their erasure poems, and workshop their poems with the group. Charisse Gendron is a former English professor at Middle Tennessee State University, where she taught courses in literature and film. In addition, she has taught literature and creative writing at the University of Connecticut, the University of Vermont Extension Program, OLLI, Midcoast Senior College, and Coastal Senior College.