Zuihitsu in Hobart

It didn't matter one iota what it was called.  I only knew that Cheryl Boyce Taylor would be doing a workshop on the topic, and that of all the poetry workshop facilitators I've encountered Cheryl inspired me the most.

She didn't disappoint. 

Two and one half hours later, I was loaded with new inspiration, the names of several poets I was either unfamiliar with or with whom I needed a new introduction.

The workshop, "Zuihitsu," was liberating and the women in the workshop filled the small back room of the Blenheim Hill Bookshop with incredible energy, beauty and amazing talent.

It happened at the 2nd (now annual) Festival of Women Writers, and this year several male figures appeared, envious of the excitement about the number of writers who would be presenting, reading or offering workshops.

In addition to Cheryl's workshop, I attended Ginnah Howard's workshop entitled, "Making the Leap from Real Life into Fiction" and Esther Cohen's workshop "Good Stories."  

Ginnah shared how she made her real life a publishable fiction, more than once, while Esther really made writing a good story seem easy.

Hobart is not your average town.  It is not big, no bigger than one long narrow street, and a few shops off the Main Street, but what it has that few other towns possesses is "bookstores"--six or eight depending on how you count.

I was able to pick up a second hand copy of a compendium of Flannery O'Connor's work in excellent condition at Barbara's (Blenheim).

I ended my adventure in Bloomville at Table on Ten with a great Irving Farm iced cup of coffee and a baguette of prosciutto, mozzarella and pesto (just yummy).