What brings a poem from a first-person narrative, to what has been termed Confessional poetry? Looking at poems by groundbreaking poets Sylvia Plath, Ann Sexton, and Ai, we will explore how these women poets broke through barriers of sex and language, how they shaped their work, and, using their examples, we will break through our own boundaries. A packet will be sent to participants before the workshop, with poems from each of the poets and background information of their eras, along with suggestions for our own writing. Each participant will write 3 poems, inspired by each of these Confessional poets, and poems by participants will be read carefully and discussed.