“Nancy is extremely positive and supportive of all the poets at her table, no matter where they are in their poetic journeys, without letting anyone off the hook. The other participants have been hard-working writers, bringing their best to the group, giving intelligent critiques in the nicest way, and listening to others’ observations without resentment or defensiveness. The vibe is friendly, lots of laughter, with the kind of safety that fosters honest work. I find myself energized and feeling freer after every meeting.”

“Nancy is a wonderful poet who has a unique gift of being able to share many of the subtleties of writing poetry. We so appreciate all she has taught us and the creative suggestions to give our poems more depth and beauty. We came away with poems we didn’t realize were inside of us.

More than that it is Nancy’s wonderfully encouraging attitude and loving acceptance for each of us wherever we might be in the process that makes this workshop so transformative. Working with Nancy was one of the most delightful experiences I have ever had, and not just in poetry.
She touched our lives.”

“I participated in Nancy’s April generative poetry workshop. I wrote more in those four weeks than I have in the past few years. Nancy really helped unlock and spark my creativity. She provides excellent feedback and support in the workshop environment, and she does a fantastic job encouraging new writers. I highly recommend Nancy’s workshop, and I look forward to it each week. Her workshop brings much needed intimacy in this time of physical distancing.”

“A born facilitator, Nancy Woo gives the gifts of clarity and direction. She is rich in poetic talent and insight, a fact that transmutes your poetry with her ability to see its intention and its function, then guide the poem towards its highest realization. More than this, she magnetizes a crowd of hyperintelligent, talented, and published poets, to the point that your peer critique is as poignant and revelatory as her own feedback. She is informed by years of experience and a profile of edgy success in the publishing world. If you want inspiration in your poetry, this workshop is your breakthrough.”

“Nancy took what I consider my strengths in writing and helped me expand my comfort zone. Her activities helped to make the forms that we learned really fun to tackle as exercises. In the end, the villanelle became something I enjoyed writing. Her feedback and the way the group setting was run really helped to create positivity going into revision. This ended up allowing me to increase my awareness and appreciate of writing. I feel my skills were sharpened and increased. I would recommend one of her workshops to poets
of any skill level or style.”

“Surprise the Line Poetry is a wonderful writing workshop that is delivered through a porous and generous lens. Nancy Lynée Woo is an empathetic and curious facilitator who truly believes that everyone is capable of creating fantastic art.”

“Nancy is an excellent workshop facilitator. Her lessons are well crafted, her comments are thoughtful and will bring out the best in any writer at any skill level. She fosters healthy growth and a supportive atmosphere while also encouraging you to step out of your box. I cannot recommend
her workshop enough!”

“I highly recommend Nancy’s workshop because I’ve been in a writing slump. I found her workshop on Facebook, not knowing anything about her, and decided to show up and take a chance. I’m very happy that I did. She was very warm, welcoming, and inviting. She is a great facilitator. I was able to learn a new skill (writing and researching a poem). I felt at home with her and the rest of the participants. Thanks Nancy for helping me break that writer’s block.
I thoroughly enjoyed myself.”

“Nancy leads by allowing her students to be the leaders, which gives them opportunities to grow and develop confidence. Unlike other workshop leaders who teach from the top down, imposing their agendas and/or conclusions, Nancy strategically pulls back, which forces her students (in a good way) to fill up space and contribute significantly to the conversation.

I remember being in her class and thinking, “Wow, I’ve seen these same students in other workshops, but in this workshop, they are being different. They are going deeper and speaking more intelligently.” While other workshops focus more on improving a poem on the surface, Nancy focuses on going deeper, giving both time and space necessary to do this
deep-diving work.”

“I loved this workshop! Nancy cultivates a supportive and productive creative environment. I was happy and surprised by the poems I wrote in the workshop, and when I left I was glowing from what a great experience it was. I’ve been using the steps she taught us at home ever since, and it has helped me focus my poetry and write more effectively.”

“I really like the Surprise the Line workshops. Nancy Lynee Woo was well prepared with an approach to help us get to the heart of what we are trying to do with a poem. Short focused exercises helped us dig deeper into our subject, without feeling a lot of pressure to “write to a prompt.”
Having attended so many workshops that were essentially long critique sessions of previously written work, I found this approach
productive and refreshing.”

“I participated in Nancy Lynée Woo online poetry workshop and it was time spent well. It is a great environment to be creative and your creativity to be supported. The workshops not only helped me as a writer, but also in other areas of my creativity and personal life as well.”