Abstract
In this performative paper, using spoken word and an autoethnographic approach, Roxanne Bodsworth shares a rural and personal perspective on the ways lockdown opened up new possibilities for creativity, poetry, and the sense of belonging to a community of poets online.
As someone living on bPangerang country in rural Victoria, the experience of Covid lockdown was one in which opportunities for Spoken Word on zoom platforms and participation in online workshops allowed Roxanne open access to the community of shared poetry that had previously been largely inaccessible. During lockdown in 2020, she was a runner-up in the Victorian Slam Poetry final through zoom performances, and has had work published since in Minerva Rising, Liquid Amber Prize Anthologies, Axon, and The Incompleteness Book. She has also self-published a verse novel called Unforgiven and a collection of poetry The Book of Hours. She regularly participates in the Kent and Sussex poetry workshops in the UK, which have continued to be available online. While there has been some research into the effects of lockdown on urban performance platforms, the effects of the pandemic on adult creativity and increased access to creative communities for country people has drawn very little consideration. We need to talk about including opportunities for creative practice in rural Australia and this performative presentation speaks to that.
As someone living on bPangerang country in rural Victoria, the experience of Covid lockdown was one in which opportunities for Spoken Word on zoom platforms and participation in online workshops allowed Roxanne open access to the community of shared poetry that had previously been largely inaccessible. During lockdown in 2020, she was a runner-up in the Victorian Slam Poetry final through zoom performances, and has had work published since in Minerva Rising, Liquid Amber Prize Anthologies, Axon, and The Incompleteness Book. She has also self-published a verse novel called Unforgiven and a collection of poetry The Book of Hours. She regularly participates in the Kent and Sussex poetry workshops in the UK, which have continued to be available online. While there has been some research into the effects of lockdown on urban performance platforms, the effects of the pandemic on adult creativity and increased access to creative communities for country people has drawn very little consideration. We need to talk about including opportunities for creative practice in rural Australia and this performative presentation speaks to that.
| Original language | English |
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| Publication status | Published - 29 Nov 2023 |
| Event | 28th annual conference of the Australasian Association of Writing Programs - University of Canberra’s Centre for Creative and Cultural Research, Canberra, Australia Duration: 29 Nov 2023 → 01 Dec 2023 Conference number: 28th https://aawpuc.wixsite.com/aawpuc2023 https://aawpuc.wixsite.com/aawpuc2023/general-5-3 (Abstracts) |
Conference
| Conference | 28th annual conference of the Australasian Association of Writing Programs |
|---|---|
| Abbreviated title | We Need to Talk |
| Country/Territory | Australia |
| City | Canberra |
| Period | 29/11/23 → 01/12/23 |
| Other | The 28th annual conference of the Australasian Association of Writing Programs is hosted by the University of Canberra’s Centre for Creative and Cultural Research. The event will be held at the University's Inspire Centre, Building 25, on campus. This is Ngunnawal Country; we acknowledge with gratitude that we have been welcomed to walk on this unceded land, and pay our respects to their elders, past and present, and emerging. The 2023 conference runs from Wednesday 29 November to Friday 1 December 2023. It features writers from all over the world, presenting their work focussed on the theme: We Need to Talk: issues that demand personal, social and institutional attention. It is a low-carbon conference; there will not be a paper program provided, and we encourage all delegates to consider their carbon footprint as they prepare to travel to Canberra for the conference. |
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