BORGARBÓKASAFNIÐ
Join us for a series of creative writing workshops in Icelandic where we play with words and spend time together in the library in a relaxed environment.
We welcome Icelandic learners and natives alike; the workshops are aimed at anyone who wants to nurture their relationship to the Icelandic language by using it in their creative practice.
We will meet weekly, you can join once, every week or anything in between. No sign up, just show up. The workshops are free, we provide papers, pencils, light refreshments, and wonderful writers that will share their creative practices and relationships to the Icelandic language during the workshops.
Every Wednesday from September 9th to November 25th / 16:30-18:00 - Grófin
Karólína Rós Ólafsdóttir: 09.09 / 16.09 / 23.09 / 30.09
Maó Alheimsdóttir: 07.10 / 14.10 / 21.10 / 28.10
Marjón: 4.11 / 11.11 / 18.11 / 25.11
Patchwork poetics - Writing workshops with Karólína Rós Ólafsdóttir
09.09 / 16.09 / 23.09 / 30.09
In this workshop we will explore ways to create poems and texts out words that we love, words we find, words we want to understand better or use more. We will let the books, the magazines and dictionaries of the City Library inspire us, we will borrow words from other languages and images from various places to stitch together some beautiful tapestry!
All ages and all levels of Icelandic welcome!
Karólína Rós Ólafsdóttir is a poet writing in Icelandic and English, working across creative writing, visual arts, and translation. Her work has appeared in magazines, publications, performances and group exhibitions in Iceland, Germany, Poland and the UK.
I write what I see and not what I know - Writing workshops with Maó Alheimsdóttir
07.10 / 14.10 / 21.10 / 28.10
Join us in exploring journaling and writing short prose in Icelandic inspired by everyday moments. We will use our surroundings—various spots in the library and the people passing by—as a catalyst for creating stories.
This workshop is especially open to those who write in Icelandic or would like to begin writing in the language. Each week, participants will start by choosing a spot in the library for their writing session. The spots will be curated by our facilitator, Maó - a poet and a writer. At the end of each session, we will gather for a group reading, where participants can share their work, offer feedback, and engage in discussion.
Icelandic & Fusion Poetry - Writing workshops with Marjón
4.11 / 11.11 / 18.11 / 25.11
Join us in making Icelandic language rhymes and resonate with other languages, create phonetic ties and meaning beyond linguistic borders, and deepen our emotional connection with Icelandic in the process. Are you using multiple languages daily in Iceland? Do you know a language that you don’t have the chance to use often? Do you know only a few words in forgotten or made-up languages that you cherish and are very much alive in your mind?
In this fusion poetry workshop, we will select words that we love, in Icelandic or other languages, and explore their poetic meaning to us. At the end of each session, for those willing, there will be space for participants to share and test their ongoing work in a cosy and safe setting.
All levels of Icelandic are welcome, from curious beginners to seasoned users and native speakers. The aim is to break barriers between languages, let your mind connect words from different lands, fuse poetic formats and ideas, and play towards rendering your authentic - and poetic - experience of the Icelandic language, no matter how many words you know.
Marjón is an immigrant writer and poet living between languages in Iceland. She is using scraps of Icelandic, English, French and Spanish to create sharp fusion poetry on the migrant experience. She won the Reykjavík Poetry Slam competition 2025 with "Ég neita", using simple Icelandic words to describe linguistic confusion and isolation.
More information:
Martyna Karolina Daniel
Project Manager - Equity and Community Engagement
martyna.karolina.daniel@reykjavik.is