This was initially going to be a part of my scams to look out for series, but I decided that it sort of deserved its own post entirely.
So, the main thing you should know is that no agent will ever represent poetry. If you see anyone offering to represent poems, it is a scam. Poetry hardly makes anything these days. No agent could possibly earn a living through selling poetry.
I'm serious regarding that. Some people do manage to make a living entirely by writing novels and such (their numbers are few, but at the very least it is possible). Poetry never sells as much. People who submit their work to poetry publishing houses generally don't do it for money, but rather for reputation.
Another thing, poetry doesn't need to rhyme. There are a whole lot of people who think that even today, and it's just not true. Open any recently published poetry book and look. Of course, children's poetry is often expected to rhyme, so that's another thing.
So anyway, even if you do want your poems read, you'll probably have to become super famous. Either by writing, or something else entirely. And as people now-a-days don't read poems, even then the sales probably aren't going to skyrocket.
I would also advise you to watch out for poetry contests that promise to publish your work for a small fee. You might want to see if anyone actually reads the publication before putting any money on the table, and even then, you might want to really think about it.
So, the main thing you should know is that no agent will ever represent poetry. If you see anyone offering to represent poems, it is a scam. Poetry hardly makes anything these days. No agent could possibly earn a living through selling poetry.
I'm serious regarding that. Some people do manage to make a living entirely by writing novels and such (their numbers are few, but at the very least it is possible). Poetry never sells as much. People who submit their work to poetry publishing houses generally don't do it for money, but rather for reputation.
Another thing, poetry doesn't need to rhyme. There are a whole lot of people who think that even today, and it's just not true. Open any recently published poetry book and look. Of course, children's poetry is often expected to rhyme, so that's another thing.
So anyway, even if you do want your poems read, you'll probably have to become super famous. Either by writing, or something else entirely. And as people now-a-days don't read poems, even then the sales probably aren't going to skyrocket.
I would also advise you to watch out for poetry contests that promise to publish your work for a small fee. You might want to see if anyone actually reads the publication before putting any money on the table, and even then, you might want to really think about it.
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