Poetic Asides

No matter what you write, a bit of poetic license can be a valuable asset to any writer's arsenal.

- BY ROBERT LEE BREWER

HOW TO FIND SUCCESS AS A POET

I regularly receive questions related to writing and publishing advice. Some of the questions are unique and specific, while others are more general and repetitive. One that I tend to receive every couple of weeks is a variation of the following: “I’m new to poetry—I recently wrote my first poem—and I want to know how to make it as a poet. How do I find a good literary agent? Do I need one to get published by (insert big-name publisher here)?”

This is a big and important question that is actually several questions I believe could be combined into two umbrella queries. One is, “How do I share my work with others?” The other is, “How do I find success as a poet?” So, let’s take them one at a time.

How Do I Find an Agent or Publisher?