Persistence is key to getting poetry published. Finding a publication that fits your poetry is important, as different types of publications tend to publish different poems. Submitting to many publications and following their guidelines is crucial. Self-publishing is an alternative, but submitting to other publications can provide publicity.
Trying to get poetry published can be extremely frustrating, but the simple key to getting poetry published is persistence. Each person will be touched by a different kind of poem, so there is no single “correct” way to write poetry that makes it more likely to be published. Finding a magazine, anthology, or other publication that fits your poetry is also important, as different types of publications tend to publish poems that feel very different. Researching the types of poetry that are popular and working on building an impressive publication history can make publishing easier, but many poets find that staying true to a personal vision trumps publishing most of the time.
The first step to getting your poems published is writing poems. If you’ve been writing for a long time, choosing from poems that have already been written is the best strategy. On the other hand, a person who is just starting to write poetry may be more successful by working diligently on a single poem until that poem is satisfying, then moving on to the next. Most poetry publications ask for multiple poems in a single submission, so it’s a good idea to have more than one poem you’d like to publish.
Submitting poems is the most important part of trying to get poetry published, but it’s also the most frustrating. Many poetry publications can take months to respond to submissions, although there are some that respond faster. It’s a good idea to cast a wide net and submit to many different publications, always making sure to follow the guidelines provided by each publication. To publish poetry, you have to get used to following strict submission guidelines so that the writing rather than the formatting can shine.
While it might seem oversimplified, submitting poetry is the only way to get poetry published. The submission process has a number of different aspects, including handling rejection and anticipation. Some journals are more prestigious than others, and getting into publications with lower barriers to entry can help build a poet’s portfolio of published work. Finding online magazines, anthologies, competitions, and other places that publish poetry also helps poets learn about the work that is currently popular and can improve the poet’s craft in general.
An alternative to this endless cycle of submitting poems is to publish your own poetry, although this is sometimes less satisfying than accepting the work for publication. If you do decide to publish your poem, it’s usually best to either format the poems in a small book of some sort or put them online. Marketing these kinds of books is often difficult, but some people find success down this road. Even people who self-publish poetry often find it a good idea to keep submitting it to other publications, as these other publications can provide publicity for a self-published book.
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