Language
Fact-checked

At LanguageHumanities, we're committed to delivering accurate, trustworthy information. Our expert-authored content is rigorously fact-checked and sourced from credible authorities. Discover how we uphold the highest standards in providing you with reliable knowledge.

Learn more...

What Are the Different Types of Poetry Resources?

Alicia Sparks
Alicia Sparks

Poetry resources exist for people who want to learn about poetry, practice writing poetry, or even just meet other poets or poetry enthusiasts. A poet can find resources for navigating the poetry publishing industry, as well as information about submitting to poetry contests. As such, there are poetry resources available for everyone from new and experienced poets to those who simply enjoy reading poetry.

For those who want to learn more about poetry and poets, or learn how to write poems, educational poetry resources can help. These resources can range from high school literature classes and college poetry courses to local community groups or online forums. Books about the history of poets, as well as those about reading and writing certain kinds of poems, also are helpful for learning purposes. Such resources can help students, group members, or aspiring poets learn about the time periods of certain poem types and what worked to influence the subject matter and style of poems from various eras. They might even help a person better understand the language used in some poems.

Poetry resources exist for people who want to learn about poetry, practice writing poetry, or even just meet other poets or poetry enthusiasts.
Poetry resources exist for people who want to learn about poetry, practice writing poetry, or even just meet other poets or poetry enthusiasts.

Online and offline poetry resources exist for poets and poetry fans to meet, discuss poems, and share tips about writing poems, getting published, and entering contests. Writers might search the Internet for poetry forums and message boards, especially those connected to larger websites that provide information articles and other sorts of poetry resources. They might even find blogs and social media and networking websites they can join. Depending on age or eligibility requirements, poets might join poetry groups hosted by local high schools, colleges, or universities. Some professional poets or even amateurs or hobbyists might organize poetry groups in their communities.

Literary magazines often provide a great resource for poetry.
Literary magazines often provide a great resource for poetry.

Often, new and even established poets will look for poetry resources dealing with publishing poems. Like other kinds of resources, those dealing with publishing can be found both online and offline. Although poets can directly contact poetry publishers, usually it’s easier for them to have access to larger databases of information about multiple publishers. Various websites are dedicated to providing such information, as are e-mail newsletters, blogs, and message boards. Printed materials, such as poetry-related or literary magazines and annual collections of publishers’ information, can help them locate appropriate publishers, too.

Social media groups might give poets different resources.
Social media groups might give poets different resources.

Contests are a popular way for poets to gain recognition, become published, and earn money for their poems. Similar to publishing poetry resources, those related to contests can come in the form of an online or offline group, newsletters, magazines, and books with information about regularly held contests. Oftentimes, poetry resources related to contests are tied in with resources related to other areas of poetry.

Discussion Comments

gravois

A fun way to get outside of your comfort zone and start writing about things and in styles that you wouldn't normally is to enter into poetry chapbook contests. Lots of small presses will have contests where you write a poem about a certain theme or image and all the best are published in their own chapbook. I was featured in one once that was all sestinas.

truman12

I was a high school English teacher for almost 30 years and it can be hard to separate the good resources from the bad. Some students respond to some things others respond to others.

But the most consistently effective lesson I seemed to have was a good focused writing assignment. If you tell kids to just go out and write a poem many of them flounder with all the freedom. They don't know where to start and never connect with any idea or image. But it you help guide them a little by giving prompts, or scenarios or starting points the poetry you get back will likely be better. The students appreciate the direction.

tigers88

I think the best resource for any poet is a library card. This is the easiest, fastest and cheapest way to access the vast amounts of poetry that are published world wide every year.

Many large libraries have extensive poetry collections. They usually also have loan agreements with other libraries that allow you to get volumes from across the country. In some cases these books are not even available to buy anymore. Literally millions of poems can be yours to read with just a public library card.

Post your comments
Login:
Forgot password?
Register:
    • Poetry resources exist for people who want to learn about poetry, practice writing poetry, or even just meet other poets or poetry enthusiasts.
      By: Chris Tefme
      Poetry resources exist for people who want to learn about poetry, practice writing poetry, or even just meet other poets or poetry enthusiasts.
    • Literary magazines often provide a great resource for poetry.
      By: maska82
      Literary magazines often provide a great resource for poetry.
    • Social media groups might give poets different resources.
      By: gemphotography
      Social media groups might give poets different resources.