Joy is a tremendous teacher and an enthusiastic person who has made me want to write at a time of my life when I wanted to be as far from pen and paper as possible. Her enthusiasm and love of poetry is truly infectious. She challenged us to write on the spot with no pressure or judgement. The way she analyzed poetry made it understandable and accessible. Without a doubt one of the best writing teachers I’ve ever had because she made me want to write.

This course came at precisely the right time in my development as a poet, and it gave me everything I could have asked for. As someone who has written poetry seriously for 45 years, I was given new, fresh ways to experience the world and find language to express that experience. The workshop itself resulted in my production of several new poems that seem worth publishing, but far more important it added to and deepened my craft and my approach to writing. The instructor was incredibly thoughtful, warm, supportive, and insightful, and working with him was inspiring to me.

I really enjoyed the course and feel that I gained so much from it. Joy Roulier Sawyer is an amazing teacher! She brings tons of information to the subject. Her feedback on assignments is so thorough and highly thoughtful. She always brings such enthusiasm to everything that she does.