The secret to getting poetry published is writing like you don’t care if you are published or not, said poet Jacqueline Osherow, professor of English.
Osherow was part of a panel at the English Student Advisory Committee’s publication seminar held on Nov. 16.
“Do not try to publish your work,” said Osherow. “You can’t let some idiot sitting at a desk with 200,000 poems to read decide what’s good.”
The panel of speakers agreed that publishing literary works can be very competitive, even with the opportunities that hundreds of literary journals present. Thus, when writing, authors must not be concerned with whether a piece is “publishable.”
“Do not morph your style to fit Vanity Fair or The New Yorker,” said panelist Nicole Walker, managing editor of Quarterly West. “In a week, their style will change. You have to keep pushing yourself and do things that are new that might not get published.”
The panel recommended reading a variety of literary journals.
“Find one with work you like,” Osherow said. “Most likely it will resemble your style. Send (your work) to them.”
Walker said that contemporary poetry can inspire writers to action even if William Wordsworth is not doing it for them.
The panel also addressed cover letters for submissions.
“Be brief,” said David McGlynn, managing editor of the Western Humanities Review.
“Very rarely do we get past the first paragraph. If it’s good, it will find a home.”
Osherow advised that the goal of writing is not to be published, but to create something interesting.
“Publishing gets in the way of fabulous writing,” she said.
The panel encouraged students to submit their fiction, poetry and photography to enormous rooms, the U’s undergrad literary journal.
“It’s an edgy, gorgeous magazine with diverse work,” Walker said.
Other panelists at the publication seminar included Daniel Peterson, president of Sigma Tau Delta, the English student honor society, and Becky Thomas and Christopher Perkins, editors of enormous rooms.
The enormous rooms magazine is sponsoring discussion groups and readings throughout the year.
The undergrad journal published its inaugural issue in spring 2005 and is accepting submissions for the spring 2006 edition.
To submit work and to find out about upcoming activities, visit www.enormousrooms.com.