Awetober
journaling + awe-finding workshop
Awetober
Like all good stories, this one starts on Instagram (I’m kidding but stay with me). Last year, in the strange heat of October, I posted an Instagram story. It was a picture of changing leaves across the garden in the house I used to live in. Caption: “I’m renaming this month Awetober. Go find some awe and report back!” I added a question box with the label “awe field report.” For a few days I posted photos of tiny moments of awe.
A tree’s changing leaves reflected against my newly washed car. A perfect crescent moon against a blue sky. Syrup pooling on steaming french toast. The night sky lit up with stars over yellowish clouds across the backyard creek.
People responded with their own awe field reports. Golden larches in the Cascades. Holding a newborn nephew the day he was born. Their tiny child learning to say “hell yeah!” Photos of flowers. Photos of perfect coffees. So many sunsets.
Almost immediately, I knew I wanted to turn this project into a writing workshop. Something to help us catalog the changing season and the things that stop us in our tracks along the way. It is so easy to forget about all the tiny good joys in our lives and I desperately want to practice holding them just a little longer.
My friend Sebastian once said, “The work of the poet is to notice,” and in October, that’s your job. In Awetober, we’ll practice finding the awe waiting for us. We’ll commit to a daily practice of noticing. Each day, you’ll receive an email from me with a short essay about where I’m finding awe and an invitation to look into your own life. I’ll also share a poem or a song or something else that I think you’ll like. You’ll keep a daily journal of tiny moments of awe—perhaps supplemented with photos or collage or drawings or any other form of documenting you enjoy. Or maybe just a couple scribbled notes.
We won’t be trying to write a poem each day, but instead, to catalog the little moments that make us stop and stare. To jot down some notes or take a photo that helps us remember. To find out what happens when we look for the tiny delights. Once a week, we’ll meet on Zoom to parse through our awe field notes and write a poem or an essay—or whatever you want to write.
Schedule
You'll receive an email each morning including a short essay about where I'm finding awe, a link or two to explore for inspiration, and an invitation about where you might look for awe in your own life. Your job is to document a daily experience of awe—in your own journal, and also with the group if you would like to share. This is not a daily poetry writing workshop—we save that for November and April—but instead, a chance to jot down a few notes each day and practice noticing our own lives.
We'll also meet each Thursday in October to look through our awe field notes and write something a bit more structured—a poem, an essay, or whatever else you want.
Awetober Zoom Sessions:
Thursday, October 2, 5-7 pm PDT
Thursday, October 9, 5-7 pm PDT
Thursday, October 16, 5-7 pm PDT
Thursday, October 23, 5-7 pm PDT
Thursday, October 30, 5-7 pm PDT
Each Zoom session will be recorded and this workshop can be completed completely asynchronously (at the same price point) if you'd prefer.
Sliding Scale Pricing
$150 regular price:
This is the actual cost of the workshop and what most participants will pay. This price ensures I am paid sustainably for the labor that goes into planning and facilitating this workshop.
$100 low income:
Reserved for participants who have a difficult time meeting basic needs such as food, housing, and transportation. If this is you, please grab one of these tickets, no questions asked. Enter code resolutionplz at check out.
$200 community support:
This price point is for participants who a) can comfortably afford both basic needs with expendable income, and b) those who believe in this community and want to contribute to a scholarship fund for those who may not be able to access full-priced workshops. Consider it a pay it forward gesture for another writer!
Recent Awe