poetry.com

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Poetry.com is a web site run by The International Library of Poetry, also known as the International Society of Poets and the International Poetry Hall of Fame,[1] a Maryland-based company considered by many to be a vanity publisher. Poetry.com claims to coordinate monthly poetry contests and other services through its website, though the actual competitive nature of these contests is unclear. The site's ostensible primary purpose is publication of poetry anthologies submitted by aspiring authors, and invitations to poetry conventions hosted by the group. The Better Business Bureau of Greater Maryland classifies the business as a vanity publisher, and notes that the quality of the poetry submitted to them "does not appear to be a significant consideration for selection for publication."[2]


[edit] Criticism

There have been a number of complaints to organizations in the United States, such as the Better Business Bureau, by those who feel they have been misled by poetry.com. Poetry.com's promotional materials lead participating writers to believe that their poems were selected for the website's monthly contest because of their quality, when in fact virtually all submissions "advance" to the semi-finals. At that point, the would-be authors are encouraged to spend money on copies of the compilation books and/or visits to the poetry conventions. See Consumer Reports, June 1998.

Additionally, although Poetry.com's website claims that these books are available at "major bookstores",[3] attempts to purchase these books from major retailers such as Barnes and Noble or Amazon.com generally fail.[citation needed]

As of November 2006, there is no verifiable report of any successful legal action being taken against the company for alleged fraud. According to the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America's Writer Beware web site, however, the Maryland Attorney General's Office is interested in hearing from writers who have had dealings with the International Library of Poetry.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Writer Beware: Contests and Vanity Anthologies. Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Retrieved on 2007-04-15.
  2. ^ Margo Stever. THE CONTESTER: Poetry.com Struggles for Legitimacy. Poets and Writers Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-04-15.
  3. ^ Frequently Asked Questions. poetry.com. Retrieved on 2007-04-15.

[edit] External links

  • Winning Writers hosts the Wergle Flomp Poetry Contest in which deliberately bad poems submitted to poetry.com and selected as semi-finalists may be entered for cash prizes.
  • Elite Skills Writing Scams has more information.
  • Poetly.com a response site to Poetry.com allowing vanity self-publishing without the anthology purchase requirement.