Greenwood Lake Public Library presents a Japanese poetry workshop

GREENWOOD LAKE — Greenwood Lake Public Library will presents a Japanese poetry workshop with poet and authors James P. Wagner and Nick Hale on Sunday, April 15, from 12:30 to 2 p.m.
Wagner and Hale will share their knowledge of the history of Japanese poetry. There will be particular focus on Renga, which is a collaborative poetry form, historically used in the social class of the aristocrats who would correspond with each other through letters that could go through hundreds of verses.
A Renga, in the strictest sense, requires three poets or more, and is made up of alternating Tanka verse.
About the writersWagner has spent his lifetime interested in poetry. At Dowling College he earned his BA and his MALS and has frequently been back to guest lecture.
While there, he was involved in the Spoken Word poetry club.
Wagner also founded Local Gems Press, which has since become the unofficial publisher of Long Island poetry — handling yearly publications such as Bards Annual, The Nassau County Poet Laureate Society Review, The Suffolk County Poetry Review, Freshet for Fresh Meadow Poets (Queens) and recently published the Long Island Quarterly 25th Anniversary edition.
He has had a very long but very unorthodox relationship with the martial arts and is currently a Tai Chi/Bagua practitioner.
His online historical series about Benjamin Franklin has been used in high school classrooms and he is currently working on a book titled "Business Lessons from Benjamin Franklin."
Hale has published “ Poets Anonymous: 25 and Beyond” with Lesley Tyson and “Broken Reflections: A Poetry Collection.”
Wagner and Hale also co-authored the best–selling book, “Japanese Poetry Forms.” This book deals with the subject matter that Wagner explores in his panels, talks and workshops, but without the benefit of the live interaction.
It's a guide for poets to learn the forms as well as a bit of history about the topic.
EssentialsAdvanced registration at the front desk or by phone 845 477-8377 ext. 101, or online at www.gwllibrary.org is required to guarantee admission.