testimonials
Mentorship & Coaching Programs, with Sawnie
What Writers Are Saying
“I have come to trust my own voice and to have much greater confidence in my writing as a result of working with Sawnie. She has taught me about craft, but even more importantly, she has fostered discovery of what and how I want to write. I have been a participant in her Mentorship program for close to two years and my poems have developed in ways I never imagined possible. It has been a thrilling process that includes hard work. I feel Sawnie works just as hard as I do to meet me where I am and support me in taking the next step. I am proud of the results.”
– Ann Gibaldi-Campbell, Phd, English Literature,
Chicago
“My poetry writing had plateaued – but no longer. I have immersed myself in an intensive mentorship experience with Sawnie Morris and the process has greatly accelerated my poetic maturity. The readings, the prompts, and her detailed feedback to my writing, directly address my sensibilities and goals. It is a privilege to have such a gifted poet and teacher so fully apply her perceptions to my efforts. I am breaking through my own glass ceiling!”
– Linda Malm, MFA Film, UCLA,
Taos, New Mexico
“Sawnie Morris’ Mentorship Program is an opportunity to delve deeply into the world of poetry, with the guidance of a poet and teacher of exceptional expertise and compassion.”
– Catherine Rashmi Karnitisn, MA, History
Taos, New Mexico
ONLINE WORKSHOPS
“I found Sawnie’s workshop to be stimulating and illuminating–forcing me to see my work in new ways, introducing me to poets I was unfamiliar with (and excited by), and “virtually” creating an atmosphere that was supportive. Sawnie is a passionate teacher and her love for language and poetry infuses each interaction, whether through her written commentary on your work or in individual/group sessions. Impossible not to grow as an artist during the experience.”
–Tara Ozelek, Amherst, MA
“Sawnie’s personal assistance (verbal and written) in our private meetings, along with her comments on each poet’s work, the craft notes, and poems given as examples that we discussed during our group meetings inspired my ideas and approaches to poems. Her kindness, praise, and patience allowed me feel free to express my self.”
– Sharon Delgado, Southern California
“Dear Sawnie, I am looking forward to making new poems under your guidance – it was quite thrilling to have two from an earlier workshop with you published! I love that this workshop will take us though our difficult New England mud season into our raucous spring!”
– Beverly Army Williams, Western Massachusetts
Poetry Writing Workshops, Ranchos de Taos, NM, w/ Sawnie
“Sawnie Morris is a wonderful teacher. Her workshop on form is spectacular. Given the multitude of poetry teachers out there, to stand out is quite the honor. Her workshops are always reminders that true listening offers a groundwork of both craft and appreciation. She offers a plethora of voices that immerses each workshop in that intangible borrowing and inspiration that poets offer to one another. I am deeply grateful for her seamless understanding and approach.”
– Veronica Golos, Author of Rootwork: The Lost Writings of John Brown, Mary Day Brown, Ghosts and Runaways (3: A Taos Press); Vocabulary of Silence (Red Hen Press), and Bell Buried Deep (Story Line Press); Co-Editor, Taos Journal of International Poetry & Art; Poetry Editor, Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion
“Sawnie’s week-long writing workshops demand a fearlessness and levity that brings out the best in my writing. Through highly supportive feedback rounds and stimulating prompts and exercises, she offers each writer the freedom to explore their psyche, their dreamscapes, and find new wisdom in the day-to-day journey of the writer’s life. Her workshops are an important refueling waypoint on my writing journey.”
– Ned Dougherty, High school history teacher, Poetry & Essays: teachpoet.com, Twitter: @teachpoet
MANUSCRIPT CONSULTATIONS, WITH SAWNIE
DREAM AND CREATIVITY WORKSHOPS
“Sawnie is brilliant with dreams. She is deeply and profoundly aware of the inner realms, the nuance of language, and the echoing subtleties and symbolisms in the dream world. She is awake to the turn of the phrase, the analogies, the puns that shed light on what a dream is trying to say. She treads gently and respectfully. I think it is because Sawnie had delved so deeply into her own work, her writing, her poetry and her own inner awareness, that she is able to be such a fabulous facilitator of dream groups. My participation in several of these groups has proven to be of great value to me and I cannot recommend them enough.”
– DeAnn Hall, M.A., LPCC
“I have been blessed to participate in at least 3 of Sawnie’s dream groups. Her workshops invite such a strong sense of appreciation and respect, honoring really, for the dream world and the dreamer. My dreams open up through the richness and variety of possibilities others offer, and through the warmth in the group that Sawnie’s leadership helps to create. The offerings of others in the group come as invitations, not as interpretations. “If this were my dream I would wonder about…..” If this were my dream I would follow this image…..” This way the dreamer is free to be influenced or not by others perspectives. Sometimes someone else’s dream speaks strongly to me and I am enlivened by following those threads on my own. I leave the groups knowing that accessing the wisdom of the dream world is also a collective endeavor.”
– Gaia Mika, Phd. Clinical Psychologist
SawnieMorris.com 