Place poetry

A few months ago I was lucky enough to lead a poetry workshop at Stott Park Bobbin Mill.

It was the perfect place to run a workshop on creating poetry from the space around you. The dull stone walls and intimidating machinery gave way to a room coated in light and wooden shavings. The wonderful volunteers bring the place to life, not only with their stories, but by getting the machinery going and showing visitors how quickly a hunk of wood could be turned into a bobbin. However, not every space will be as full of life as the Mill, so I have devised some prompts and activities to get you to see the stories and the beauty in the world around you, from the Bobbin Mill, to the local park, to your bedroom…

Helpful tip

Try not to skip ahead or to tie the activities together (until the final step). I’ve found that doing them in isolation helps me come up with new ideas at every turn as well as making it a more fun and carefree experience. I often get a scrap of blank paper and scribble down my answer to the prompts in different colours or sections of the paper.

Senses

Name one thing you can taste. This seems like a strange one, but you can taste many things, such as smoke in air, or use it in a more imaginative sense, such as the heat in the air. If you’re stuck, name something you would like to taste in the space you’re in (like a Mr Whippy at the park).

Name two things you can smell. If you can’t smell anything, name three things you might be able to smell in a space similar to the one you’re in OR name three things you would like to smell right now.

Name three things you can hear. If you can’t hear anything, what might you hear in this space?

Name four things you can touch.

Name five things you can see.

Expand

Use a minimum of two to three words to describe each of the senses you wrote down.

Objects/people

Pick two objects or people in the same space as you. Using a minimum of five words, describe something about them.

History

What is the history of the space you are in? Again, use your imagination! If you are in your room, think about who could have the room before you, if you’re in the park what do you think it was like in pre-historic times?

Future

What do you think will happen to the space in the future? Who do you think will be there? How do you think it will be used? How will it change? The future can be a year from now or 1000.

Uses

What are all the different ways the space can be used? How do different people interact with the space? Why might they interact that way with the space?

Tying together

And now the best bit. You can start tying it together, connecting a smell with an object with the past of the space…or whatever you like! The possibilities really are endless and you have a sheet full of ideas to play with.

Write away!