How to Find a Legitimate Poetry Publisher

Writing poems can be a fun pastime.

Poetry is a wonderful way to get started in writing and become an author. The problem with poetry is that many poems end up being submitted to illegitimate publishers that proclaim that the winner is published and charge high fees to receive copies of the anthology or similar items. The best way to avoid finding scams is to get legitimate poetry publishers to publish the poem instead.

Instructions

1. Look in poetry books at local libraries or bookstores. Look for the publisher information in these books to determine who the main poetry publishers are. If the book is in the library or in a bookstore, the publisher is legitimate.

2. Watch for letters that are flattering. Legitimate publishers will write business-like letters when they send rejection or acceptance letters. Flattery is how scam artists talk people into paying them.

3. Submit the poem to literary magazines. Magazines can be seen in bookstores, grocery stores or other locations. Rather than submitting poems to competitions that are online, submit your poems to competitions advertised in magazines, especially when winners will be published in the magazine.

4. Avoid poetry competitions that require payment to receive a book with the poem in it. A legitimate poetry publisher will typically give authors a free copy of the published work.

5. Avoid competitions where the winner supposedly can win thousands of dollars. Poetry publishers do not make very high profits on poems and often do not pay much when publishing a poet.

References

• Poe War: Writing Career Center: Avoiding Poetry Contest Scams
• Absolute Write: Getting the Scoop on Poetry Contest Scams
• Empty Mirror: Poetry and Money

Resources

• Bella Online: Ten Places to Publish Poetry for Profit