Writing by the Lake

Fall 2026 - Playing with Poetic Form

Wednesdays, 10 - 12 p.m.
October 7, 14, 21, and 28, 2026
Krebs Center for the Humanities

Recently retired professor Cynthia Hahn returns to campus this Fall to teach the next installment of Writing by the Lake, titled "Playing with Poetic Form."

The four-week workshop gives students the opportunity to read and try their hands at writing a variety of poetic forms, such as haiku, villanelle, sonnet, pantoum, image poems, blank verse, prose poems, ekphrastic poetry, and free verse.

Examples used to inspire the creative process will be drawn from poetry in English, French verse (translated into English), as well as some poems set to music, while a study of sounds and rhythms within the various forms may be used to guide our poetic play.

The course will be held on campus on four consecutive Wednesdays: October 7, 14, 21, and 28, 2026, from 10 - 12 p.m., with a fifth session of individualized feedback on November 4.

Interested? Please call the Office of Community Education at 847-735-5083 or email Mike Alzamora at malzamora@lakeforest.edu.

Learn essential techniques

• Connect with other writers from the community and receive advice and mentorship from Lake Forest College faculty.
• Whether you are a novice or professional, Writing by the Lake will help you improve your skills and resources.

Four two-hour sessions and an individual evaluation

• Writing by the Lake is taught by award-winning authors and concludes with a “Next Steps” conference.
• Your personalized conference will provide one-on-one time with a faculty member to discuss which directions and pursuits your writing will go next.

Tuition

• Tuition for a Writing by the Lake seminar is $350, which includes four two-hour class sessions, an end-of term writing project evaluation report, and a “Next Steps” conference with a faculty member.