FAQ

Getting Started

Joining

What is Poetry.com?

Poetry.com's mission statement is to become the largest online poetry community in the world.

Why should I become a member?

Poetry.com provides the opportunity for all writers and poet appreciators to contribute work and share thoughts and feedback with others. We are committed to creating the best infrastructure, tools & services for poets worldwide whilst creating the largest online poetry community in the world.

Every time you make a submission or contribution to Poetry.com or any of our sister sites, you are a partner in making the site a high-quality, informative and creative place to be.

Does it cost to join?

We are proud to offer Poetry.com as a FREE and inclusive platform for poetry lovers and poets worldwide as a place to write and appreciate all kinds of poetry.

Are there any hidden fees?

None whatsoever!

How do I sign up?

Click right here to go directly to our Sign Up page: https://www.poetry.com/signup.php

Once you sign up, you will receive a confirmation email approving your application, along with instructions on how to log in and access your account.

What if I don't receive the confirmation email?

Check your junk and spam box and mark the email as "not spam". If you still don't see it please contact us and we’ll help you out.

Submitting Poems

How do I add a poem?

First, make sure you're logged in! Then, at the top of the page you will see a tab with your username -- this leads you to your control center. From here you can add a new poem, see all your submitted poems and edit any of your existing work.

I want inspiration / I want to read something new. Where can I find stuff?

The best place is on our homepage. You can find our enormous collection of famous and classic poets there, newly added poems, as well as our promoted poems. If you like surprises try hitting our random poem button.

I love a poem I just read. How can I share my opinion?

You can vote on every poem by awarding it up to 5 stars. 5 being excellent.

You can also share your response by commenting underneath each poem. The member who submitted the poem and any other commenters will be notified of your feedback or praise.

Finally, you can choose to send a fellow poet or contributor a private message - just click on the name of the member who submitted the poem to reach their profile page, then click contact and write away!

How can I get more views on my poem?

Once you've posted some of your own poetry, take some time to explore our site and read others' work. You can look at recently added poems and check out the promoted poems. You can leave a comment if you like something and give it a vote. Once you become an active part of the community it becomes easier to get noticed, generate more views and receive feedback.

What is a Promoted Poem?

You can pay as little as $10 to promote a poem. This guarantees you a minimum of 100 views to your poem and visibility across our website as part of a rotation.

Why should I pay to promote my work?

• The number of poems submitted per day is high. Promoting your poem is a way to ensure your work gets seen.

• It's a great way to introduce yourself to the community.

• You are supporting our endeavors on the site.

• You're keeping poetry alive and visible!

• You can show off to your friends and family!

How do I promote my poem?

There are two ways to promote your poem:

• When filling in the ‘Add a New Poem’ form, you have the option to apply for it to be promoted when it is submitted.

• From your user profile page there is a button ‘Promote’ where you can select which poem or poems you would like to promote from all your submitted entries.

Accounts

I cannot access my account. Help!

Ensure you are using the right username and password you signed up with.

I can't remember my password.

If you don't remember your password or you think you might not be typing it correctly, try visiting the forgot password page and enter the email address you signed up with. You'll be emailed a new password. Once you're logged in, we recommend changing your password to something more memorable for your convenience.

Is a biography and photo required?

They're optional, but recommended. People want to read about the genius behind your words! Plus it's another way to increase views and readers can get to know you, rather than an anonymous username.

How can I delete my Poetry.com account?

Make sure you're logged in to the account you'd like to delete, go to the user profile page and click the "Edit My Details" button. On the My Details page click on the "Close account" button. A notification will appear to confirm you intend to delete the account. Use with caution and ensure you have any work you want to keep, saved somewhere safe.

Looking for poems submitted before 2020?

When did you become the new Poetry.com owners?

The STANDS4 network acquired the domain name Poetry.com at the start of 2021.

Who is STANDS4?

STANDS4 - the company that now stands behind Poetry.com has an excellent reputation and 20 years of experience providing quality platforms for its users to enjoy worldwide. Online since 2001, we are a leading digital media provider of free online reference, education & creative resources — serving millions of unique visitors worldwide with genuine content and community tools through our globally collaborative network of premium brands.

What are your plans for Poetry.com?

As the new owners of Poetry.com, we aim to be a warm, welcoming community for poets worldwide - experienced veterans and newcomers alike. Our site is a creative platform for the writer community to gain inspiration, publish their work online, and gain exposure, feedback and votes from the community.

We are constantly building the features on offer and have lots of good clean fun in the works - including the much anticipated Poetry Contests and more...

What happened to my poems from the old site?

Unfortunately, we do not hold responsibility for content from previous versions of the site.

Having said this, we are aware of how precious your work is! We did our very best to retrieve whatever we could from public internet archives. All we are in possession of currently, is available on our site.

Do you have access to my poems from previous versions of the site?

As the new owners of Poetry.com, we acquired the domain name, but couldn't obtain the accounts, poetry or publications that were associated with the old Poetry.com website.

What's the best chance of finding my old work?

We have created a system on the new site for users to locate and claim poems we have been fortunate enough to retrieve from internet records. Here's how to get the best chance of locating your work on our site, if we managed to save it:

1. Use our search box to look for your poetry, either by poet name or poem title. If you think you may have used a slightly different name please try searching using all variations.

2. You can also explore our poems by searching alphabetically by name of poem, or poet.

3. You can claim ownership for the work by clicking on the 'Claim this poet' link that appears on the unclaimed poet page.

Why wasn't my search successful?

Some material dates further than records go, other work remains inaccessible for reasons unknown.

You may still have a chance to find what you're looking for by going through pages on Archive.org at https://web.archive.org/web/*/poetry.com - it is a public service website, unrelated to us and you may just get lucky if you search around the dates you posted...

My poem was in a published book/anthology. How can I get a copy?

We do not own any books published before our acquisition in 2021. Your best chance to find a copy is to search online second hand book stores such as ebay or amazon.

I'm still lost! What do I do?

You may contact us on any matter here: https://www.poetry.com/contact.php

Alternatively, You can get in touch with the community by posting an inquiry on our 'Help Me Out!' page here: https://www.poetry.com/help-me-out.php