GirlGenius
Las Vegas, NV
Female, 37
I've been a poet for about 10 years. Not your mother's poetry--think more along the lines of Def Jam or Verses and Flow type feel. When I'm not writing, I travel around the country performing with awesome folks. I've also hosted and teach poetry workshops.
Realistically-- I tell people don't expect to get rich. However it's very possible to cover bills. Most poets have a side job or a side product to supplement the art. Many teach. I know some who lend their talent to commercials. Dependng on how good you are and how well you market yourself you can make decent money. Small venues pay but not much, but a few small gigs in a week can add up. Not to mention tours which can payout well if executed correctly. There's a lot of way to spin it into something fruitful.
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Good question.
I suggest sitting in at an open mic if you've never been. People who've gone with me--even the skeptics, come away plesantly surprised. The range of subjects and styles are typically diverse enough that you can walk away with something. You aren't expected to get everything you hear, just keep an open mind.
Also, for the most part poets are approachable--if you hear something you like (or don't like) ask. I actually really like when people ask, because as the artist I can get real time feedback.
There are open mics all over the place, or if you're game to be more involved in the show find a poetry slam (it's competive poetry with Olympic style judging by the audience).
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The Nobel Prize for Poetry is like any other Nobel award: nominations from members of the committee.
For the everyday poet--on the competitive circuit for example, judging is far less intense. Trying to judge art is always subjective of course but the main things are: content, originality, performance
In a more general sense you can gauge overall skill by looking at a person's work over time--I like to think I'm better at it now than I was when I started. I get to see that in others too--it's especially cool to see it in youth poets.
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Because it's much easier to remember rhymes and pneumonic devices particularly when you're small. "Mature" poetry sometimes requires analysis or social context
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some rap is poetry...lol, or a form thereof. Rap requires cadence, rhythm, tone and nuance like performance poetry does. The difference is being able to do it while riding a beat. I personally am an fan of old school hip hop...when people paid attention to lyricism, but more recent I like Common and Kendrick Lamar
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Favorites: Maya Angelou, Nikki G, Amiri Baraka, Last Poets...more contemporary: Danez Smith, Patricia Smith, Sonya Renee Taylor, G Yamazawa, Gail Danley, T Miller, Megan Rickman, GaMe...I'm missing some. There are some phenomenal artist out there
Overrated...i know a few who are in my opinion, but it's kinda sticky to answer that. Most of the performance poets know each other. However I tend to consider someone overrated when they're getting lauded but have not improved on their body of work or they've meshed elements of other poets I've seen before.
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This is very well timed, as I am in the process of putting together a small book. You can go about in a few ways--if you're looking for something quick, with a few poems in it, you can put it together yourself with any desktop publishing program and print it at kinkos's--it's relatively inexpensive. Alternately if you're going for a more polished look, there are a million and one online publishers-- create space for example. It's free, you would only have to pay to have books shipped. The route you choose will depend mostly on the length of the book and how you want it to look.
As far as what to include...poems! lol. seriously, you can arrange it however you want. My first book had photographs included.
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I don't have a single method. I'm a "concept" writer--meaning more often than not I'll start with a broad concept in mind and not always a specific subject. I try to dedicate at least a small block of time everyday to working on new pieces. That block of time could be 30 minutes uninterrupted on my laptop or sitting with a notebook. Then there are those moments when stuff just comes to me, in which case I try really hard to have something handy (the Evernote app on my phone has saved my life on multiple occasions).
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Because some poets (not all and certainly not many) are pretentious. The vast majority however are not and (speaking for the ones I know) work hard to make poetry accessible
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I wish it were that easy. Unlike other genres, while people realize that poetry exists in the universe, it's not fully mainstream. Also, poetry is still one of those things where most want to see it in person. That said, most poets get discovered on stage. Perform as much as you can and build a buzz--but you have to do it well. Another route are the literary journals (adding publishing credentials is a boost). I've seen poets I know and love go viral on the web, but those poets already had a large fan base built from years of touring or competing in national level poetry slams.
The short answer is, you have to put in work
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Yes. I know people poets who don't do a great deal of stage work but lend their talent to commercials and advertising, there are some who teach--in addition to performing I teach workshops. Even if you're more of a "literary" poet, you should expect to do readings, but there are ways to make the money without being on stage.
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Of course. Not every poem has to be heavy and tear jerking...if they were open mics would be very depressing. Sometimes poems can just be funny.
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