Loose Change

Publishing poetry?

I could go in a lot of directions with a title like that, but I mean it as "Should I bother?"  Of course, I don't really mean "Should I bother publishing poetry?" but rather "Should I bother getting poetry published elsewhere, or just self-publish?"  I love poetry, but I love it for the sake of writing it, reading it, sharing it.  I can do that on Writing.com or in a dedicated poetry blog or on Twitter or Facebook.  I don't really need to seek out poetry magazines, and since I don't read them myself, I hesitate to ask my readers to do so.

I like the game, of course.  It is fun to send off something and see if I can guess what they'll like.  With sixteen published poems since October, I can get things published if I like, and if I were to be less selective, I could get more published.  But why?  Why not just write poems and share them freely?  Besides, my dad is fighting cancer and my wife is dealing with health issues, and I could spend time with them.

For those who are reading with bated breath, wondering at my conclusion, I am sorry.  No conclusion.  I just don't know.


Current status: 62 items in 70 submissions. One new markets attempted, Dark Discoveries.