Take this class on the ‘serendipitous beauty’ of computer-generated writing

If you’re a social media OG, you probably know that a Twitter bot named @everyword tweeted out every word of the English language over the course of seven years, racking up 100,000 followers in the process.
What you might not now is that the bot’s creator, Allison Parrish, is coming to Philly to teach a beyond-average coding class called Procedural Poetry (GitHub login required), hosted by The Hacktory.
On Thursday, July 21, participants will get an intro to computer-generated writing, and sample a range of free tools to create their own code-enabled poetry. No previous programming experience is required. The class description is itself poetic:

These techniques facilitate the creation of work with aesthetic and emotional affordances sometimes difficult to achieve through conventional compositional techniques: serendipitous beauty, precisely imitative satire, vertiginous wonder at the infinite.

(For a little inspiration, check out this 2014 Technical.ly Brooklyn feature on New York’s code poetry scene.)
Parrish will take attendees through the process of getting those tools to parse texts and come up with original poetic creations. For a sample of computer generated poetry check out Parrish’s other Twitter bots.
Georgia Guthrie, executive director of The Hacktory, said the class is an example of how fun experiences are ideal spaces for learning.
“It would be good for people who are creative but never thought computer coding was for them,” said Guthrie.
According to Guthrie, the makerspace is slated to keep bringing courses that illustrate creative uses of technology.
The class will take place from 6:30-9:30 p.m. The cost is $300, with a $25 discount for Hacktory members. To apply, email georgia@thehacktory.org.