Hyperfocus
four-week thematically-focused online poetry courses
Spanning three months in Autumn 2026, with six fantastic tutors, the second iteration of our thematically-focused Hyperfocus programme draws on three themes: climate, ekphrasis and home. Read more below for details of available courses.
If you are unable to attend the courses in real time but don’t want to miss out, we are pleased to offer an asynchronous Playback Recording-Only option, and if you missed out on the first Hyperfocus courses, on grief, eros, parents and resistance, check out the Playbacks for those too.
Each month, two leading poets will be assigned a specific theme which will be shared across the four weeks of the course. Participants will benefit not only from the experience on offer from this cohort of award winning and acclaimed facilitators, but from the strict thematic focus and the more intimate writing groups. The classes are designed for all abilities, offering key insights and prompts into how we can write in and around each theme successfully.
You can either select a single theme that relates to you and your work, or save by registering for more than one.
Whether you’re just starting out on your journey into poetry, or if you’re in the process of completing your first collection or a pamphlet, the Hyperfocus course will enable you to explore and excavate the intricacies of themes and subjects that concern you while equally benefiting from a strong and supportive writing community, and being in close proximity to poets who specialise in writing and thinking around specific themes.
Live Online:
Playback Recordings:
Our Tutors
Pascale Petit’s ninth poetry collection, Beast, published by Bloodaxe in 2025, was a Poetry Book Society Recommendation. Her novel, My Hummingbird Father, was published by Salt in 2024. She has published nine poetry collections, four of which were shortlisted for the TS Eliot Prize. Mama Amazonica won the RSL Ondaatje, and Laurel prizes. Her eighth, Tiger Girl, was shortlisted for the Forward Prize and Wales Book of the Year. She tutors for the Arvon Advanced Writing Programme and led popular poetry courses at Tate Modern for nine years.
Pascale Petit
Tishani Doshi publishes poetry, fiction, and essays. Her fifth collection of poetry, Egrets, While War (Bloodaxe Books), explores the body, violence, and renewal in fractured times, and has been longlisted for the Forward Prize for Best Collection 2026. A former lead dancer with the Chandralekha company in Madras, she is the author of multiple award-winning and shortlisted books. She is a visiting professor at NYU Abu Dhabi, and a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. https://tishanidoshi.weebly.com/
Tishani Doshi
Rachael Allen is the author of God Complex and Kingdomland, both published by Faber. She works as an editor and lecturer in London.
Rachael Allen
Lucy Mercer’s first collection Emblem (Prototype, 2022) was a Poetry Book Society Choice. She often collaborates with artists and her visual work has been exhibited at Hollybush Gardens and RAMM. Her nonfiction essay on wax and mortality, Afterlife, is forthcoming with Fitzcarraldo Editions.
Lucy Mercer
Anthony Joseph is a Trinidad-born poet, novelist, academic and musician. His 2022 collection Sonnets for Albert won the T.S. Eliot Prize for Poetry 2022 and the OCM BOCAS Prize for Caribbean Poetry.
He is the author of six poetry collections and three novels. As a musician, he has released ten critically acclaimed albums. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and a Lecturer in Creative Writing at Kings College, London. His most recent publication is Haunting the Black Air (Bloomsbury Poetry).
Anthony Joseph
Helen Mort has published four poetry collections with Chatto & Windus. Her latest is STEPMOTHER (July 2026). Her work has been shortlisted for the Forward Prize and the T.S. Eliot Prize. She is a Professor of Creative Writing at Manchester Metropolitan and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.
Helen Mort
Save by registering for more than one of our Autumn 2026 Hyperfocus Courses at once! Please select the number of courses you would like to register for in the dropdown below, and state in the additional details form when prompted which courses you would like to attend.
The following discounts are automatically applied:
ALL THREE courses (Sept, Oct, Nov): SAVE 20%
ANY TWO courses: SAVE 10%
Find full details of our Hyperfocus courses here.