Barbara Henning

Prompt Book Barbara Henning

Both a poetics of teaching and a teaching on poetics, Prompt Book is a work of generous insight and practical instruction that will be of great value to teachers, students, writers, readers, anyone interested in making or engaging the kinds of writing we call poetic. Henning's prompts are focused yet open, aimed at directing one's attention without predetermining or overwhelming one's intention. They propose avenues of exploration designed to push writers outside of our normal patterns of seeing and writing, circumventing habitual writing patterns. "To offer a prompt is to encourage someone to take action," Henning writes, to "inspire something new."