Meddling with Poetry: Poetry-writing course

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Live courses & workshops

Poetry is for playing with • Poetry is for everyone

October – November 2026

A live 8-week evening course to explore the delight and wild variety of writing poems, in playful workshop-style classes.

meddle (v)

To mix; to mingle
To interest or engage one's self; to have to do; – in a good sense
To interfere or take part inappropriately, improperly, or impertinently

‘… meddle first, understand later. You had to meddle a bit before you had anything to try to understand.’ Interesting Times, Pratchett

Poetry is for everyone

Poetry doesn’t belong in a golden cage: it’s for you to meddle with (part playground, part Dark Art) and to use. It’s an invaluable way to express yourself and to process your thoughts and feelings. And for fiction writers, its fresh imagery and musical language will also transform your prose.

This course encourages you to play with poetry, as something that belongs to you – whether you’re a bit scared of or sceptical about poetry from school, or working on your third pamphlet of acrostic wreathed sestinas. You’ll discover an astonishing variety of poetry forms, each of which inspires you to write in a different way. Through games and guided activities, you’ll discover new facets of our language and poetry, and try out heaps of approaches to write poems in class. Plus each week’s Poem-A-Day booklet gives you everything you need if you want to try the transformative poem-a-day practice.

‘Megan does a superb job in sharing her love and enthusiasm for poetry which worked well for a poetic novice such as myself.’ – David

‘So well taught that a total beginner and an experienced poet can gain insights, at every level seamlessly.’ – Carolyne

‘The course booklet is an incredible resource for future reference, packed full of information on over 50 forms and techniques.’ – Sal

Want to try out playing with poetry with me?

Play with Poetry Join a free poem-writing workshop and create a surprising new poem, whether you've never written a line or live and breathe for the stuff.

Thurs 3 September, 7–8pm UK time
Live on Zoom (no replay)
All levels welcome, from never-touched-a-poem to I-bleed-poetry
Hands-on, fun, and you'll finish with your own new poem

Sign up to the free workshop

By signing up, you're also subscribing to the newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time. (Though if you unsubscribe before the workshop, I won't be able to send you the Zoom link.)

Now you've got that to look forward to, read on for what you could explore in the Meddling with Poetry course in Oct–Nov.

How you’ll explore the possibilities across the eight weeks

1. Free verse and sensory imagery

Free verse (no set rhyme or metre) lets us focus on everything else that makes something a poem – especially fresh imagery that uses all the senses.

2. Old English poems and word-play

Old English poems are a joyful riot of alliteration and compelling beats, a great way to explore the music of language and play with words.

3. Rondeaus and effective rhyme

Rondeaus are greedy for rhymes, so we’ll use these to find heaps of rhymes, spot trickster words with very few rhymes, and use your rhymes to best effect.

4. Cinquains and economy of language

The tiny cinquain makes every word count: the perfect form to try out all the ways we can fold meaning into small spaces.

5. Sestinas and going with the flow

You can’t control a sestina, you can only follow it and see where it goes, so it teaches you to go with the flow, invite the strangeness in, and have fun with words that have multiple meanings.

6. Decuains and natural metre

The decuain lets you pick your own metre, so it’s ideal to try out the music and meanings of different rhythms.

7. Glosas and keeping the meaning open

A poem needs a meaning but it needs to belong to the reader, too. Writing a glosa creates the perfect litmus test: does each line give you enough to explore it, and does it let you explore it?

8. Original forms and English rhythms

All the poetic forms were invented, whether centuries ago or a few years back, and we get to keep inventing. Inventing your own forms is a chance to explore everything English rhythm lets us do, and recap the many aspects of poems we’ve covered throughout the course.

And how the course will help you write

Time to write: In every session, you have time to write or start writing a poem in class.
Discover new poems: Each week's Poem-a-Day booklet includes six contemporary poems.
Individual feedback from me: 2 rounds of written feedback on your poems.
Peer feedback: Learn how to give and receive supportive, helpful feedback on each other's writing.
Optional: A poem a day Each week's Poem-a-Day booklet gives you everything you need if you want to try the poem-a-day practice.

For individual and peer feedback, you’ll always choose a poem to share beforehand: I’ll never ask you to share a poem you’ve just written in class.

‘We received so much input and new poetry forms to try out, exercises and feedback – a great balance between fun and working hard at the craft. Megan knows her stuff and has created one of the best courses I've been on.’ – Inkywriter

Join the Meddling with Poetry course this Oct–Nov

Eight-week course for adults, one evening a week, 7pm–9:30pm.
In person OR online: Choose the in-person course in Oxford OR the Zoom course from anywhere in the world
In-person course: in Wolvercote, Oxford, on Wednesday evenings 7 Oct – 25 Nov 2026
Online course: live classes on Zoom, open to bookings from anywhere in the world, on Thursday evenings 8 Oct – 26 Nov 2026. (Read more about online classes here and check your time zone here.)
£395 £345 early-bird price: a deposit of £95 then two instalments of £125. Book and pay the deposit by 7 September 2026 for the early-bird price.
Includes two rounds of individual written feedback on your writing, which can be work you create on the course or your own project.
All levels welcome: all my courses and workshops cater for a range of experience, from beginners to published writers.
Maximum class size of 12
Booking deadline: Wednesday 30 September 2026.
After Oct–Nov 2026, this course will next run in 2029.

‘Somehow Megan has this gift of freeing you up to write and have fun, whilst slipping in some really important technique that in the past freaked me out. I feel I have the space suit now to travel around this creative world, instead of standing outside on the edge terrified and mute. Thank you, Megan.’ – Shan

Book your place

or read on to see if it’ll suit you.

Will the Meddling with Poetry course work for me?

I’ve never written a poem in my life: can I do the course? Absolutely. It’ll help you try out different approaches, find things to write about, and discover the essentials that make writing poems fun.
I’m an experienced poet: what will this teach me? Between the classes and the Poem-a-Day booklets, you’ll explore 56 poetry forms, all developing your poems in different ways. The activities on rhythm, musicality, imagery, etc, draw on my background in linguistics to solidify your practice. The optional Poem-a-Day practice combined with feedback will stretch your skills in new directions.
Is there any homework? No. If you want to try the poem-a-day practice, your weekly booklets give you everything you need, but that’s completely optional.
What if I miss a class? You get a weekly booklet summarising everything we've covered, so you don't miss out on the info. I also send you optional DIY instructions so you can do the activities in your own time if you want to.
I’m not in the UK: can I join? Yes: the online course is open to bookings from anywhere in the world. You can read more about the online classes here.
I’m dyslexic: can I do the course? Yes, and lots of writers are. The handouts are dyslexia-friendly and I can send you each week’s reading in advance.
I have a chronic illness / disability: I'm very happy to make arrangements to make the classes accessible / easier for you. You can read more about accessibility and accommodations here.
Where is the in-person course? Upper Wolvercote, Oxford, UK. There's free street parking, a good bus route that stops 5 mins away (#6) and a beautiful, well-maintained canal path from town for walking or cycling. (You can pop your bike in the back garden.)

‘Each lesson is designed to spark inspiration and creativity in various ways, and they succeed. I hadn't really written any poetry since school but I never felt discouraged. The message was just to keep on writing, playing, observing and enjoying language.’ – Jill

‘My confidence as a writer of both poetry and prose has increased greatly. An eight week course with Megan is like a year of an undergrad course, she covers so much that is of a high standard.’ – Clare

Book your place

or read on for the time zones for the online course.

What time does the online course start for me?

You can join the course in person in Oxford (Wednesday evenings) OR online from anywhere in the world (Thursday evenings).

Each course lesson is 2.5 hours long, with a break in the middle. Check your time zone in the table below for the online course.

Time zone / Country	Course starts at...
United Kingdom	7pm
EDT (New York, USA)	2pm
CET (eg France, Spain, Germany)	8pm
SAST (South Africa)	8pm
TRT (Turkey)	9pm
IST (India)	11:30pm
SST (Singapore)	2am (next day)
AWST (Perth, Australia)	2am (next day)
JST (Japan)	3am (next day)
AEST (Brisbane, Australia)	4am (next day)
AEDT (Melbourne & Sydney, Australia)	4am (next day)

‘Megan's teaching style is so much fun and it never fails to stimulate my creativity. I got so much from the experience and great satisfaction from what I was able to write. The people who take these classes are great, too.’ – Anita

Book your place

or email megan@thewritersgreenhouse.co.uk with any questions.

Book your place now

Book by filling in the form below OR email me at megan@thewritersgreenhouse.co.uk.

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