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For poets

 

The Scottish Poetry Library cannot publish your work, but we can provide you with the books, poetry and resources to lift your writing to a new level and help you find publication.

Read… read… read… and listen too

  • The more poetry you read, the better your own poetry will become. Immerse yourself in poetry
  • We have poetry from all over the world in our collection, as well as many guides to reading and writing poetry.
  • Visit the Library and browse our shelves and collections
  • Explore our online catalogue
  • Become a borrower and borrow in person or by post
  • Read lots of single poems online by exploring our online poem stacks and poets section
  • Browse the onlone poem stacks by tag to explore themes and make discoveries and connections 
  • Read Best Scottish Poems, our annual online anthology of the best 20 Scottish poems
  • Listen to poets talk about their work in our podcasts
  • Listen to poets on CD in our audio collection, or on the Poetry Archive website
  • Subscribe to some poetry magazines or drop in to read from our large range in the Library
  • Dip into our pamphlet boxes - when you’re starting out, sending your poems to magazines, or publishing a small pamphlet is the best approach - visit www.scottish-pamphlet-poetry.com to find out how other poets are doing this
  • Have a look at our online publisher pages to see what’s getting published.
  • Go and listen to other poets reading or speaking around Scotland
  • Join a poetry reading group, or start one yourself, see our reading groups information page for guidance

We’re always happy to help with advice and ideas. Just contact us and we'll try to help.

Join a group

  • Many new poets find joining a group that offers constructive feedback useful.
  • Try the School of Poets who meet on the second Tuesday of every month at the Library from 6pm. 
  • Browse other writing groups in our writers group page.
  • Your local public library will know about groups meeting in your area too. 
  • Try your poems out at an open mic session.

Tipsheets and resources

Download some of our tipsheets for writers (pdfs):