In my recent interview with Julie Platt, she discusses a poem she had trouble placing in a literary journal. She liked this poem, believed in it, and the poem eventually found a home, but not without a lot of perseverance on her part. I’ve been in this situation before, and my very unscientific polling of other writers suggests that this is fairly common. We have a poem we love, and we know it deserves to be published yet it lingers on – and on and on – in our file of unaccepted work.

My intention with The Homeless Poem Project is to publish on maybesopoetry those interesting and quirky poems you can’t seem to place with a literary journal; those poems currently without a home that deserve to be read and appreciated. So find that one poem that’s been kicking around in your submissions folder and send it my way.

Guidelines:

1. Please email one poem (and only one!) to cveladota@yahoo.com. Put “The Homeless Poem Project” in the subject heading.
2. This poem should be one you’ve tried to publish without success for at least six months. Obviously, I will take your word for it.
3. I will not accept previously published poems. Because that would kind of defeat the purpose, right?
4. I will allow simultaneous submissions, but please let me know immediately if your homeless poem finds a home.
5. Please send your poem as a Word document (no longer than three pages, please).
6. Include a brief bio and a brief reflection on the poem (what inspired you to write it, your intentions for the piece, or a little about the poem’s history).
7. If accepted, I will also ask you to provide an image, preferably of your writing space or your writing tools (not a book cover, or a picture of yourself). Whatever image you provide, it should represent you in some unique way, and it will be assumed that I have permission to include it on my blog.

Important:

Please be patient with response times. My work on maybesopoetry is a labor of love. I teach full time at a community college, and during the academic year I’m very busy, so if I don’t respond to your submission immediately, please wait at least a month before you inquire. I’ll do my best to respond quickly.

My publishing schedule could be erratic. My intention is to publish one poem at a time. This could mean a poem a day, but it could also mean a poem a week, or every other day, depending on how busy I am with work and on how many submissions I receive/accept.

I regret that I am unable to compensate you for your work. As a poet, I am aware of the time and energy required to write, and I do believe you deserve to be paid, but as I’m on my own in this endeavor, I can’t afford payment at this time. I understand and respect anyone who chooses not to submit because of this limitation.

I will continue to review books by and promote the work of women writers. Reviews will appear less frequently during the academic year; however, if you have a new book or chapbook published (or forthcoming), please contact me at cveladota@yahoo.com, and I will consider reviewing it on maybesopoetry.