This class will examine the history of the short poem beginning with fragments by Sappho, moving through Japanese short forms and up to contemporary poets who use the form. The main focus of our writing will look at Dickinson poems and her theories on the short form. We will discuss the effectiveness and purpose of short writing and using models, practice our own forms and pieces. This class will work well for both poets and prose writers, as time will be allotted to cover flash writing.