In this poetry and non-fiction workshop, we will read and write into our deepest obsessions -- recurring ideas that inhabit our thinking. We will examine the roots of these obsessions, what provokes our hyper-focus, and develop novel ways to harness and investigate our returning thoughts, both formally and thematically. Students will learn a range of innovative processes and procedures on how to approach their obsessions and produce exciting and immersive writing. Readings include Sawako Nakayasu, Claudia Rankine, Lydia Davis, Wayne Koestenbaum, Ross, Gay, Maggie Nelson, Tommy Pico and Bernadette Mayer. The ultimate aim of this course is to sustain an idea across a series of work, with a keen focus on revision. Students will produce a portfolio of extended, connected written pieces about their obsessions. Prerequisite: You must have taken at least one 3000-level course in the same genre (poetry or non-fiction)