2026 Workshop Series: May

Muscle & Breath: Crafting Poems That Move
facilitated by Karen Hildebrand
Monday, May 11, 2026
7-9pm EST
Zoom

the workshop:

“Movement never lies. It is a barometer telling the state of the soul's weather to all who can read it.” ― Choreographer and modern dance pioneer, Martha Graham

In this generative session, we will consider how we as poets can benefit from looking at our creative work through a lens of movement. Martha Graham famously used a combination of muscle and breath to express dramatic emotional themes in her modern dance concert works. Her signature move, the contraction, is a stylized way of engaging the core abdominal muscles while exhaling. The effect is like a punch to the gut. In poetry, “muscle” might refer to our subject matter and the diction and syntax used to reveal it; while “breath” would be about pacing—how fast or slow we read a poem and the way its elements affect that speed.

During our time together we’ll discuss a few example poems from this perspective, then we’ll conduct our own research: How might the observation of movement inspire or enhance our own writing? We will watch short video clips of dancers performing, and make notes about what we see, feel, and hear. Afterward, we will use these notes to begin drafting our own poems.

the facilitator:

Karen Hildebrand is both a poet and a dance critic. She worked as editorial director for Dance Magazine for twenty years, and served as editor in chief of Dance Teacher magazine for a decade. Her poetry appears in the full length collection, Crossing Pleasure Avenue (Indolent Books) as well as, Mom Egg Review; Westchester Review; Grist; LEON; No, Dear; Rust+Moth; Slipstream; SWWIM; Swannanoa Review; Scoundrel Time and more. Her dance writing appears frequently in The Brooklyn Rail and Fjord Review, and her poetry reviews are published in Lily Poetry Review, LEON, Lightwood and LitStack. She is currently a volunteer editor for Painted Bride Quarterly.

Check out Karen’s poem, “Still Life, Blue Baby,” in Issue 28: WATER!

discount codes for those who need

No, Dear aims to be as inclusive and barrier-free as we can. If the workshop rate is a barrier for you to participate, please keep reading!

• If you’re a student or a senior citizen, and would benefit from a $10 reduction in the price, use the code LEARN at checkout.

• If you’re experiencing financial hardship, and would only be able to participate with a $20 reduction in the price, use the code SUPPORT at checkout.

• If you’re in need of a full scholarship, email your interest to nodearmagazine at gmail dot com.