Beware Of Bogus Poetry Contests

Poetry scam contests rake in millions of dollars every year. They do so by promising fame and fortune and then charging 'contest winners' a fee to see their work in print. What is worse, everybody's a winner.

There are legitimate writing contests, and these can be a useful tool to get the attention of literary agents or publishers. Often however they can be scams. One type that dupes thousands of people each year is the poetry contest. This is how it works.

The originators of these scams often can seem to be highly legitimate and respectable. As well as ensnaring people VIA web site adverts and e-mail, you can often find their ads in glossy magazines and major newspapers. You have probably seen them or may even have received on of their e-mails.

The advertisements for poetry scam contests will often promise large cash rewards, even offering a free gift or reward just for entering, they will definitely have no entrance fee and have very easy eligibility requirements. Contestants simply create their poem and e-mail it to the organizers, or drop it in the mail.

Good luck but I bet you win! That's how the scam works because before you know it you get notification that your poem is a semi finalist, and what is more they are publishing it in an anthology. Wow I bet your thinking, I never knew how good I was.

Unfortunately everybody who enters gets the same letter, Yep there are no loosers here. bet you want a copy of your winning poem in print too, here comes the scam. they want $49.95 for the book(plus postage). a plaque with your poem on it will cost you another $40, your bio included with the poem another$20, join the poets society for another $60 the list will go on and on. Some experts estimate that these poetry scam companies make almost 10 million dollars a year!

So how can you spot, and avoid these Poetry contest scams?

If you want to see your poetry published, contribute your poems to legitimate magazines and literary publications. Once you have a collection of published poems, you can put together your own book and submit it to editors for publication.

Legitimate writing and poetry contests are both available and plentiful. If you decide to participate in poetry contests, investigate the organization before you enter. These poetry scam companies operate under a variety of legitimate sounding names. Research each organization before you enter a contest.Search the Internet for warnings about the company holding the contest.

Many legitimate contests do request a small entrance fee to cover administration and financial prizes, however they NEVER request a fee to publish or purchase anything upon winning the contest. Legitimate contests willingly post their guidelines, prizes, judges and contest rules.

Keep your eyes open and ask questions, and you should be safe from this type of scam. Remember as always, if it seems to good to be true it probably is.