Guide: How To Get Your Poetry Noticed

 

☆ BY LISA WATTS ☆

 
 

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN GETTING YOUR POETRY NOTICED — yet have no idea where to start, we have compiled a list of simple yet effective ways for your poetry to be seen by a variety of audiences. With exposure comes criticism, so keep in mind that not every piece of feedback will be something you want to hear. That is the roll of the dice, but criticism is necessary for improvement. Even though these are “simple” tasks that will grow your audience, putting in the effort will take a bit of time and dedication. Growth won't happen overnight, as sad as it is! However, with patience and persistence, you are capable of having your art be seen. Here’s some tips on getting your poetry out there and seen.

Know your audience and target them. 

I.e., if you write about the LGBTQIA+ community, find online or in-person communities for that audience. Some such are these Instagram accounts: @bipan.magazine or @queercircle. If you don’t know which audience you want to write for, or what you even want to write about (happens to us all — don’t worry!) @thesourcollective is a smaller zine who currently has a poll located in their Instagram bio, where you can vote on which topic you would prefer they focus on for their next issue. This way you can write about a topic that speaks to you AND submit your poetry to their zine for more exposure!

If you don't have a targeted audience, try to think of ways your work can be seen by any age group or any audience.

Local newspapers are read a lot by older folks and could be a good way to target that audience. Perhaps reach out to your local libraries, bookshops, and collectives to display your work for more of a younger audience. Try speaking with your friends or family to ask what sort of poetry stands out to them.

Reach out! 

Don't be scared to reach out to different magazines, companies, small businesses, newspapers, other writers, etc. — you never know who you could get in contact with or who could give you advice (plus, having contacts is KEY!). Maybe your local indie café or independent book store would be more than happy to display your poetry to their customers.

Submit anywhere and everywhere that will accept it. 

Research zines, online publications, or poetry contests to see if your work is eligible to submit, and if it is a fit with the publication. Also, try not to stress if your work does not make the cut — there’s always more places to submit to! 

Don't be afraid to show people your work. 

At first, it seems daunting. Poetry is a very vulnerable art form! However, showing friends, family, or even English teachers your work can be a really good way to get productive feedback. Learning to take criticism is a big part of creating art.

Social media is your best friend. 

If you decide to take the more modern way of sharing your work, try creating an Instagram account. Apps like Canva can help you to curate an aesthetically appealing background to go along with your writing. If you decide to turn to Instagram to display your work, try to establish a theme or a visually pleasing feed so that you can catch the attention of others. 

Try to collaborate with other artists. 

While on social media, follow other poets or writers with a similar following to yours, and form a connection! Collaborations can be very important for the growth of your work as well as building connections within the writing world.

Writing groups.

Tiny Spoon Lit Magazine has a Writing Wednesday every Wednesday, and it is open internationally. Writers can come together over Zoom to share ideas, spend quality time writing, or even discuss future projects. This could be another great way to create contacts or simply make friends in the writing community.

Use hashtags.

If you do a little Google search, you will be able to find out what hashtags are best for showing your poetry off. #poetry is the number one hashtag to get your poetry out there. Some other popular hashtags are #poetrycommunity, #writer, #quotes — just to give a few examples. Once you look at the tags section of the Instagram search bar and type in a word, it will tell you how many posts are currently using that hashtag, which ultimately will help you decide which ones are more used than others. 

If you are interested in submitting to magazines but don't know where to start on the researching step, @artopencalls on Instagram posts different places to submit poetry and opportunities for writers almost daily. This account could be a good tool to use, especially in the beginning stages of getting your poetry out there.

 
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