 |
|
| View a Poem | |
| Poetrybox.com | |
|
Home Translate our Site All About Us |
|
| Our Services & Partners | |
| Why We're Unique Top Poetry Sites Be Published Now |
|
| Community | |
|
Member Area
Community Center Hot Links Make this Your Homepg Employees |
|
| Banners | |
|
|
|
- What is Poetry?
- What types of membership does Poetrybox.com have?
- How do I submit my poetry?
- How do I delete my poem?
- How can I get my poem to be the Poem of the Day?
- How does your monthly poetry contest work?
- How come I can't print my poems with backgrounds?
- Where are the Publishing FAQs?
1) What is Poetry?
Go
to INDEX
Poetry. The dictionary defines poetry as "a piece of literature written in meter or verse." A poet is defined as one who writes poetry. These broad definitions, which are vague in their depictions, leave much to be desired. These definitions may satisfy textbook curriculum but inquiring minds are left wondering, "What is poetry?", "What makes a poem a poem?" and "How does one obtain the distinction of poet?".What is poetry? Poetry is not just words on paper ordered in a certain pattern. Poetry is much more valuable than black ink on a white background. Poetry is the result of living life. Poetry isn’t something that is created as a pen touches a piece of paper but it is something that is lived. All art forms are the result of life experiences. A painter can’t paint on a canvas until life’s circumstances have painted on the canvas of his mind. He cannot paint an image he hasn’t seen or envisioned in his own mind. A sculptor is not able to sculpt until his own environment has shaped him. An author cannot write about something he hasn’t experienced first-hand or through his own in-depth studies. In the same way, a poet can’t write a poem until life’s situations have left their mark on his heart. Then, and only then, when a poet is filled with passion and intense emotions, can he put his pen to the paper and express himself. Poetry is life expressed on paper. The words themselves hold no value to the poet or the reader unless the words were birthed from emotions and emotions can only come from the experiences of life.
What makes a poem a poem? Time is the litmus test for poetry. This is because the human condition is static. All of us, have loved and lost, laughed and cried and felt the same emotions. We have all experienced jealousy, anger, frustration, fear, depression, loneliness, joy, excitement, and desperation and all the other emotions that living life produces. As technology advances our surroundings change. As government is modified our social structures are transformed. As life goes on life changes, but humanities emotional responses to life will never change. For a piece of literature to become a poem it must stand the test of time. True poetry is the expression of emotions and, since we all have similar reactions to life, all people, in all places, living in all time periods will be able to relate to it. For example if someone writes a piece of literature solely about his surroundings, his writings will, over time, become merely historical documentation. However, if a man writes about his reactions to his surroundings and the emotions he experiences, time itself would not be able to prevent his readers from connecting with him.
How does one obtain the distinction of poet? A poet is not merely someone who has the ability to write "a piece of literature written in meter or verse." A poet is not necessarily required to have a command of the English language. He is, however, required to have an understanding of his own emotions. A poet must be able to express his own emotions. A poet is one who demonstrates the talent of expressing the heart felt emotions of life. This ability to accurately express emotions is what enables a poem to stand the test of time. Shakespeare, lived several centuries ago, and yet his readers hundreds of years later can still relate to his poetry. This is because his writings were nothing more than expressions of his heart as a result of his surroundings. He wrote from his heart and, therefore, he speaks to the hearts of all who read his poetry. He didn’t write poetry to entertain. He didn’t write out of obligation. He wrote out of necessity. The emotions he was feeling couldn’t be contained by his heart and, consequently, spilled over onto paper. A true poet doesn’t write to impress but he writes to express. He doesn’t write to please his readers. He writes to ease the burden of his heart.
"We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race, and the human race is filled with passion."
-Robin Williams, Dead Poet’s Society
Throughout history younger generations have always aspired to change their world. Because life is so short and our time on this earth is limited, we all desire to leave on mark on the world. Poetry provides an incredible opportunity for us to leave a legacy behind after we are gone. Words themselves do not have power but words that come as the result of the overflow of the heart do. The expressions of the heart can change lives. When readers read words on paper that were affected by the emotions of the poet they, too, are impacted. The degree to which a poem was influenced by a man’s heart is the degree to which the reader will be influenced. If a poet puts his heart into his poetry as he is marked by his life’s situations, he will leave his mark on the world.
"No matter what anyone tells you, words and ideas can change the world."
-Robin Williams, Dead Poet’s Society
Written by Member - Derek D'Anna
2)
What types of membership does Poetrybox.com have?
Go
to INDEX
Poetrybox.com has two memberships, Silver and Gold.
Silver Membership is FREE. It includes access to our poems, ability to submit poems, win prizes, write and receive private messages, etc.
Gold Membership costs $9.95 for 1 year. This fee guarantees that you will get published a minimum of one time during your 1 year tenure as a Gold Member. If we do not get you published during this 1 year tenure, you will receive a full 100% Membership refund. The fee is needed to offset our internal and external maintenance and advertising costs. Of coarse, it also includes everything of the Silver membership and includes access to our chat rooms. As a Gold member of Poetrybox.com, we are here to assist you in promoting any book and or writing you have completed. We can do one of the following:
- We can add a picture of your book cover & a small biography, along with your address for individuals to order directly from you. (Poetrybox.com will not charge you a penny.)
- We can also send an e-mail (1 e-mail per member) to all of our members, with any special discounts you might want to offer. (We only ask that you be a Gold member. You would, of course, need to write up your own sales pitch and we will blast it out on your behalf.)
If you are an already existing Silver member and would like to become a Gold member, click here.
3)
How do I submit my poetry?
Go
to INDEX
In order to submit poetry on our site, follow these simple steps:
1. You must first Register, at minimum, as a Free Member and by Clicking on the "Click to Register" link, located on the left navigation bar or on the register link on the Home page.
If already a member, click here to signin to the member area where you can click on a link to submit a poem.
2. Once you have Registered to attain a Username and Password, simply go to the "Home page", and click on the "Member Area" link, on the left of the page.
In order to send prizes and or winnings to those who submit poetry, we need your contact information. This is the only way for Poetrybox.com, to send you the possible winnings in a certified check.
4)
How do I delete my poem?
Go
to INDEX
You may only delete your poem, if you gave us 0 percent when submitting a poem. To delete the poem, look up the poem using the Search Engine and click on the "Edit/Delete" link next to the poem.
5)
How can I get my poem to be the Poem of the Day?
Go
to INDEX
The Poem of the Day is randomly chosen by our computer. To be the Poem of the Day, your poem must be an original poem submitted to us and cannot be a Short Story. Short Stories tend to be too long.
6) How does your monthly poetry contest work?
Go
to INDEX
Every month we choose 10 random original poems that have been submitted to us. This means that if you submitted a poem two months ago it is still eligible for our next month's contest. We then choose 5 random members to help judge our contest. We also judge the 10 random poems. Once we tally up the votes, we will announce the winner on our main page and place that poem in our member area for everyone to see.
7) How come I can't print my poems with backgrounds?
Go
to INDEX
If you don't see any backgrounds when you print your poem off our site, it is probably due to the fact that you don't have the "Print background colors and images" option selected on your Internet Browser. For example, on Internet Explorer, do the following steps:
1. From the menu bar, select Tools - Internet Options. The Internet Option window displays.
2. At the top of the window, click on the Advanced tab.
3. Scroll-down and under Printing, click on the check box next to "Print background colors and images".
4. At the bottom of the window, click on the Apply button.
5. At the bottom of the window, click on the OK button.
- Can you explain what publishing means?
- What type of Publishing is there?
- How are published submissions distributed?
- How much are books sold for?
- The hottest selling types of literature?
- Why publish on Poetrybox.com?
- What are the disadvantages?
- How long before my work is sold?
- When I submit my work, is it and or can I get it copyrighted?
- If I already have a book, how do I get it listed on Poetrybox.com?
1) Can
you explain what publishing means?
Go
to INDEX
Publishing is a process
in which books are produced and stored either electronically and/or in paper
print. Books and/or individual documents can be produced in almost any format.
These formats can include:- Electronic files, and/or in wireless formats.
- Printed on paper and/or cards, either in text or in brail.
- Voice files.
- Saved on disks and/or tapes..
- On CD and even on any type of memory chip.
Publishing is the means of taking an idea and/or any thought, placing it on a tangible media; usually editing the content for spelling and/or grammatical errors, and then "Publishing" it to a large group and/or the masses. Currently taking a document and placing it on the Internet is now considered "Publishing" your work.
2)
What type of Publishing is there?
Go
to INDEX
There are quite a few types of Publishing, and those are:
E-Publishing:
Publishing your literary work on CD, the Internet, and/or some form of electronic format. Most E-Publishers accept fewer that 18% of the submissions sent to them. Of those received, the submitter and/or author pays nothing, and merely receives royalties from the sale of their literary work. Industry standards usually give under 40% of the Net sales to the Author, while the Publisher keeps the rest or 60% of the Net of sales.
Commercial/Standard Publishing:
Is no different than E-publishing in nature, with the only difference being that all literary work is printed and distributed via hard copy paper formats. Again, most Standard Publishers accept fewer that 18% of the submissions sent to them. Of those received, the submitter and/or Author pays nothing, and merely receives royalties from the sale of their literary work. Industry standards usually give under 40% of the Net sales to the Author, while the Publisher keeps the rest or 60% of the Net of sales.
Subsidy:
The difference in Subsidy Publishing is that these type of outfits will produce any literary work submitted and Publish it in any format the Author chooses for a fee. The fees range from $800.00 and up to $4000.00, depending on artwork, editing needed etc. The percentages given to the Author and to the Publisher are almost identical to the Standard Publishing style of 40% of the Net Sales to the Author and 60% of Net Sales to the Subsidy Publisher. Why then go with a Subsidy Publisher? The reason is simply that typically if you pay their fee, they will publish your work. Almost all other publishing companies only take literary work they believe they can sell.
Self-publishing:
Is the art of an Author writing, editing, and producing a published format of their work. This includes Copywriting their work, and obtaining an ISBN number for distribution to bookstores for ordering new copies later. The pro of Self-Publishing is merely one item: The Author retains 100% rights to their literary work. The cons are many, from incurring all costs, creating deals with numerous book/literary distribution companies like Barnes & Nobles, and managing all marketing and sales cost incurred, plus too many other legal areas that are difficult at best to foresee.
Poetrybox.com Publishing:
Is the latest concept created by Poetrybox.com, a subsidiary of Edventure Inc. The difference here is that Poetrybox.com will accept all literary submissions for no fee. Thus allowing all Authors the ability to write and express their feelings, emotions and artistic characteristics, and then attempting to sell them. Submissions which handed over 30% of their literary works, will be marketed through different channels and revenue will be divided with 30% of the sale going to Poetrybox and 70% going to the member.
3)
How are published submissions distributed?
Go
to INDEX
All submissions can be created and distributed in formats including PDF, M.S. Word, Text, Rich Text, and almost any other recent format. Distribution by Poetrybox.com will include E-Tailors like http://www.amazon.com, local and small to medium size Book and Greeting card stores, as well as via the Internet.
4)
How much are books sold for?
Go
to INDEX
· Fiction books range from $0.20 cents on-line and up to about $7.00 on-line, and/or in an electronic format.
· Biographies and True Story's are usually more expensive and range between $5.00 and $30.00.
· Of course, once an Author becomes well known, the prices listed above are typically much higher thus ranging between $15.00 and $75.00.
5)
The hottest selling types of literature?
Go
to INDEX
· Romance - Largest
readership are women.· Science Fiction - Teenage Boys, and Men.
. How To Literature - Self Help & books.
· Recipes - Everyone eats and/or cooks.
6) Why
publish on Poetrybox.com?
Go
to INDEX
The main reasons are simple:
- 90% of all literary works submitted are accepted.
- All accepted materials are electronically published on the Internet.
- All material in where Poetrybox.com receives 30% of a sale of the literary work will get marketed indefinitely.
- Poetrybox.com is always trying to improve its services for the hidden literary writer who has never had a voice in this publishing arena.
- Books, short stories, recipes, notes, jokes, and almost any other category are accepted, archived, and published on-line.
- Poetrybox.com is researching ways of pushing all submissions to the world via wireless methods, e-newsletters, e-blasts and e-mail blasts.
7) What
are the disadvantages?
Go
to INDEX
Sales in any electronic format are going to be much lower than the standard conventional method of bookstores. As the tide shifts from almost all literary work being printed on paper over to electronic media, moving an Author's work will be slow at best. The world is changing, from VHS to DVD, from Cassette to CD's and from Paper Books to Virtual Electronic Books. Poetrybox.com with the help of all its World Wide Members, will change an industry that was closed to all Authors, and only open to a select few. All Authors will be given the opportunity to publish their work, and at the same time have their hand at trying to have it sold as well.
8) How
long before my work is sold?
Go
to INDEX
Many ask this question and the answer is a very simple one. All that Poetrybox.com can do is allow almost every Author to publish their literary works on its web site. Poetrybox.com can inform magazines, newsletters, other members, and e-tailors of the works recently submitted, but unless an offer is made, a literary submission cannot be sold. The process is that once an Author's work is bid on by a potential buyer, Poetrybox.com is bound to inform the Author. If an Author has not received notification of an offer, then none has been extended. This process can take days and/or years. Regardless, the nice thing about Poetrybox.com is that all submissions will be retained within our databases for review by potential buyers indefinitely.
9) When I submit my work, is it and or can I get it copyrighted?
Go
to INDEX
As soon as you write down a thought and date it, it is in a sense copyrighted. While it is difficult for such a creation to be protected in court, you typically need a third party, (usually it's best to have a company), to copyright it and keep it on record for you. We provide a very inexpensive service and you can click here http://www.poetrybox.com/Copyright.asp for more information.
11) If I already have a book, how do I get it listed on Poetrybox.com?
Go
to INDEX
If you already have a book and would like to have it listed on Poetrybox.com, please contact us at livesupport@poetrybox.com.