Tread Softly, For You Tread on Our Dreams (poetry.com)

Member Name: kitschkitty

Product:	poetry.com
Date:	20/10/08 (149 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: None.

Disadvantages: It's a con!

As we all know, there's no such thing as a free lunch. And don't forget your mother's favourite, 'If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.' So if someone told you that you could win $10,000 for writing a poem, you'd be a little skeptical. And rightly so.

Poetry.com is a vanity publishers. There, I've said it. And how do I know? I used to work for a company that operated using the same unscrupulous methods. Poetry.com is a web site run by The International Library of Poetry, a rather impressive sounding backing. The website promotes a range of monthly and annual competitions for aspiring poets offering vast cash prizes. However, Poetry.com's prime business is in publishing and selling poetry anthologies.

The company I worked for operated in a similar way, holding various poetry competitions throughout the year. We were flooded with entries, some excellent, most dire. But regardless of the standard of poetry, everyone was 'successful' in being offered publication in part of a poetry anthology. Writers were then given the opportunity to buy their published works for extortionate sums with extra expense incurred for a profile about themselves or dedications included in the book.

I first visited Poetry.com a few years ago when I was naïve and foolish. Sure enough, despite my pitiful attempt at writing a poem, I was picked for publication within a few days of posting my poem. I must have been astute enough to sniff a rat because despite ignoring the offer, my inbox was filled daily with further offers of publication. Great for the ego, but not a healthy prospect for the bank balance.

If you do choose to get published, you can expect to pay a rather unreasonable sum to purchase a copy of the anthology which will no doubt be filled with the sub-standard poetry of other wannabe Dylan Thomases and WB Yeatses.

And once you're under the spell of the vanity publishers, you can expect to be invite to enter competitions left right and centre. Every time you'll narrowly miss out on the grand prize but be offered publication in a beautifully bound anthology with some artsy fartsy title or of, luring you in to buy more and more copies.

According to Wikipedia, 'Although 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, no action has been taken to date.' Obviously I can't prove that Poetry.com is a con, but combined with my experience working for a vanity publishers, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out what's going on here.

Unless you really do have the talent to become the next Ted Hughes or Sylvia Plath, then you're probably best writing your poems in a notebook and sharing them with the odd friend or two down the pub. But regardless of your poetic prowess, Poetry.com is definitely a website to avoid.

Summary: Just another internet scam.