Poetry Publishing
My correspondent asked how do I progress from publishing individual poems in magazine and journals to that magical first slim volume?
Umm good question - synchronicity there in that just after I got your email - a slightly nutty person who'd phoned me a while back - decided to have another go - it's the peril of being in Writers and Artist Yearbook - i told her she couldn't get to first base unless she was on the internet these days - preferably with a blog - she's doing that in between bouts of medication ; )
anyways this time she wanted to read me something she'd just written on emerging from her druggy haze - wasn't bad either - told her it was blend of John Cooper Clark and Pam Ayres - which sent her off feeling positive.
Whats needed is a spell to make pagans a bit less philistine - very hard work getting them to _buy_ collections although they seem to appreciate poems in magazines - everyone seems to enjoy them. In the current very harse conditions for poetry publication you have to have an angle (and an angel). You're doing the right thing in sending out lots of poems to publications - they could maybe be collected together with the longer piece you wrote - but you also need a leaflet about yourself - and this is to be distributed to other poets at poetry slams, impromptu pub readings etc - this is so they know of you and can get in touch if they are looking for support at an event. Realistically you might have to pay for publication of your first collection just so you have something to sell after the readings. Why not see if you can put together a syndicate of the unpublished - each chips in 100 pounds and gets say ten copies of the resulting book which they then give to friends - send to reviewers etc etc - with adverts could be a neat calling card. If you want more that's possible but you have to buy them at cost - but its also there for the odd direct mail sale which can happen. My experience with david parry (caliban) has been ok - had some nice reviews - he is a teacher and thus hasn't done as much grifting as he promised - but its starting to get around - he's starting on a related novel which we put in Mandrake Speaks - see current issue for a nice poem by Bridgit Ariel - it all helps build a bit of a buzz - thats my ten penneth worth -
Suggested Reading: James Fenton, Master Class in English Poetry
Umm good question - synchronicity there in that just after I got your email - a slightly nutty person who'd phoned me a while back - decided to have another go - it's the peril of being in Writers and Artist Yearbook - i told her she couldn't get to first base unless she was on the internet these days - preferably with a blog - she's doing that in between bouts of medication ; )
anyways this time she wanted to read me something she'd just written on emerging from her druggy haze - wasn't bad either - told her it was blend of John Cooper Clark and Pam Ayres - which sent her off feeling positive.
Whats needed is a spell to make pagans a bit less philistine - very hard work getting them to _buy_ collections although they seem to appreciate poems in magazines - everyone seems to enjoy them. In the current very harse conditions for poetry publication you have to have an angle (and an angel). You're doing the right thing in sending out lots of poems to publications - they could maybe be collected together with the longer piece you wrote - but you also need a leaflet about yourself - and this is to be distributed to other poets at poetry slams, impromptu pub readings etc - this is so they know of you and can get in touch if they are looking for support at an event. Realistically you might have to pay for publication of your first collection just so you have something to sell after the readings. Why not see if you can put together a syndicate of the unpublished - each chips in 100 pounds and gets say ten copies of the resulting book which they then give to friends - send to reviewers etc etc - with adverts could be a neat calling card. If you want more that's possible but you have to buy them at cost - but its also there for the odd direct mail sale which can happen. My experience with david parry (caliban) has been ok - had some nice reviews - he is a teacher and thus hasn't done as much grifting as he promised - but its starting to get around - he's starting on a related novel which we put in Mandrake Speaks - see current issue for a nice poem by Bridgit Ariel - it all helps build a bit of a buzz - thats my ten penneth worth -
Suggested Reading: James Fenton, Master Class in English Poetry
posted by Mogg Morgan | 10:54 AM
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