“Dead City III (City on the Blue River III)” (1911) by Egon Schiele Class: Writing Out of the Ordinary Genre: Poetry/Nonfiction Readings: Maggie Nelson’s Bluets Time: 30 minutes
Identify one thing you have been obsessed with for quite some time.
Detail a direct encounter with that thing. Be as descriptive as possible.
Name the first person you can think of who is missing from your life.
Write down something you never told them. (A confession, an idea, a story, etcetera.)
Remind that person of something you did together. Tell the narrative.
Is there a connection between the thing and the person? Explain.
Write down the first thing and then write the next five words that come to your mind in an associative chain from one word to the next.
Now pick one of those things on the list and write about an encounter you had with that thing.
Emilia Phillips 