English
What do we collect?
Whilst you’ll find thousands of poems on our website, at our premises in Edinburgh we have an even larger collection. You can search this collection in our Online Catalogue. The list of poetry periodicals we take can be found here. You can read our Collections Policy here.
In our collections we have poems from Scotland and the rest of the world: as well as caring for Scotland’s own poetry, we also work to provide access to international poetry for Scotland’s readers. Our collection focuses primarily on contemporary poetry — poetry from 1950 onward, but we do hold representative works from earlier periods. We have a strong focus on European poetry and poetry in translation, too.
We also have a children’s collection: there is poetry for younger readers, with nursery rhymes and funny poems, babies’ books and scary verse all jostling on the shelves upstairs. Older children are well catered for with anthologies graded for different age groups, and hundreds of individual authors’ works in the Junior section, and a bridge section for young adults in with the main collections.
Our collections are format neutral, which means we collect poetry published in Large Print, braille, on CD, cassette, vinyl, on a postcard, or online.
Gaelic
Dè bhios sinn a’ cruinneachadh?
Gheibhear lorg air mìltean dhàn air an làraich-lìn againn, ach aig an Leabharlann fhèin an Dùn Èideann lorgar an tuilleadh. ’S urrainnear rùrachadh anns a’ chruinneachadh seo leis a’ Chatalog air-loidhne againn. ’S urrainnear liosta fhaicinn de na h-irisean bhàrdachd a th’ againn an seo.
Anns na cruinneachaidhean againn tha dàin bho Alba agus bho air feadh an t-saoghail: a bharrachd air aire a chumail air bàrdachd na h-Alba, bidh sinn cuideachd ag obair airson slighean a chruthachadh gu bàrdachd eadar-nàiseanta a thoirt gu leughadairean na h-Alba. ’S ann air bàrdachd bho 1950 chun an là an-diugh as motha a tha sinn a’ cuimseachadh, ach tha sgrìobhaidhean againn bho linntean a dh’fhalbh. Tha sùil gheur againn ga chumail air bàrdachd Eòrpach agus bàrdachd eadar-theangaichte cuideachd.
Tha cruinneachadh cloinne againn cuideachd: tha bàrdachd ann airson leughadairean òga, le rannan beaga agus dàin èibhinn, leabhraichean leanabach agus dàin eagalach uile air an riochdachadh ann. Tha cuideachd stuthan ann airson clann nas sine mar dhuanairean airson aoisean sònraichte, agus tha ceudan de leabhraichean aig ùghdaran fa leth an Roinn na h-Òigridh, agus tha roinn ann mar dhrochaid airson inbhich òga am measg nan cruinneachadhaidhean àbhaisteach.
Tha na cruinneachaidhean againn rim faighinn ann an iomadach cruth. Tha sinn a’ gabhail bàrdachd fhoillsichte ann an clò mòr, braille, air CD, teip, bhional, air cairtean-puist, no air-loidhne.
Donations Policy
The Scottish Poetry Library is always pleased to receive donations, as laid out in our Collection Management Policy.
Deposits, donations, gift and bequests
Publishers and poets are encouraged to voluntarily deposit their newly published poetry items. Other donations are accepted on a case by case basis. Donations are accepted on the understanding that the items belong to the Library and may be subject to future withdrawal. Donations sent without prior agreement may not be accepted into stock and may be disposed of through the means listed in 8.4 Generally the Library is unable to accept manuscripts or loose-leaf collections. Assessment criteria for donations typically includes:
- Format
- Ability to provide appropriate space to house them
- Potential of items to enhance the existing collections and support future research
- Potential costs of cataloguing, conserving and storing the items
- Physical condition of items
Donations and deposits of self-published works
We recognise that poetry is published through many means. We also understand that poets are passionate about their poetry; and rightly so. While we would like to be able to accept everything, we have to be pragmatic about the space we have available and the focus of the collection we are developing.
A small review panel of SPL staff meets monthly to review donations and deposits that have been self-published. NB Typically work that is often limited editions produced by established and recognised presses that poets may run themselves is not part of the same review process.
The panel will take into consideration the following:
- Format· Ability to provide appropriate space to house them
- Potential of items to enhance the existing collections and support future research
- Potential costs of cataloguing, conserving and storing the items
- Physical condition of items
- Standard of publication
- Presentation, including font, layout on page
- Quality of paper, binding, etc
- Proof reading (eg spelling mistakes)
- Use of images – quality, copyright, sizing to page, etc
- Publication information provided (eg date of publication, location, etc)
- Representation of different types of poetry / poets
- Context of poetry / poets
- Appeal to our users
It should be noted that prior inclusion of a publication by a poet, does not mean that future deposits will be accepted, or vice-versa. Each title will be considered individually. It can be helpful if you can include a little information about yourself.
We are unable to return by post deposits that are not accepted into the collection. However, we will hold them for one month after the panel has met if the donor wishes to collect. Uncollected deposits will be disposed of by the means laid out in the Collection Management Policy.
