This post may contain affiliate links, please read my Disclosure policy.
Start your own poetry blog to make money on a great blogging platform
How can an enthusiast with the skills and the passion for poetry writing make money today?
Once upon a time, it was hard to self-publish poetry and get paid for it.
But, one day the internet was born and brought blogging platforms and Apps.
So now, poets and aspiring rhymesters have other options to monetize their writings on their own.
If you’re an amateur poetry writer or full-fledged poet, you should be happy to know that poetry reading is increasing in the US.
According to this article from NPR, this is an up trend.
This trend is high among young people and women. Because of this tendency you can expect to gain readers on any platform you put your poetry.
Here is the thing with poetry nowadays, it has become part of self-care routines for many. So, keep that in mind as you follow your pursuits.
For as low as $2.95 a month, you can start building your poetry blog
Disclosure: I’m an affiliate of Bluehost. I receive a commission when you sign up with the company using my link. This doesn’t cost you any additional money.
How do I start a poetry blog and get noticed?
First, prepare for long term commitment and manage your short term expectations. As with any business, you’ll need to be patient and grow your skills.
People are looking for poems on blogs and also for poems on Apps for on the go uplifting. So, blogging success is possible for you as a poetry writer if you stick to it.
If you’re a writer wanting to create a blog focusing on your passion for poetry, but also wants to make money, a self-hosted blog is the ideal site.
Also, Social Media platforms like Instagram and FB are becoming the engines to discover poetry writing from blogs.
Don’t hesitate anymore and start your blog. Even if don’t have poems for publications yet, you can start to set up your site.
If you get stuck or confused drop me a comment.
The first steps for building your blog, the boring stuff ( Choosing a domain, hosting provider and hooking up to WordPress) generally take about two hours and you don’t have to be a Techy.
⇒In this post I show you how to start a blog, even when you don’t have any blogging experience. It explains all the nook and cranny to building a blog from scratch.
⇒For the more fun poetry writing stuff like content creation, monetization and promotion, keep reading below.
Get creative and Choose a Domain Name
A domain name is the name of your poetry blog. This name will also be the url or www address for your blog.
Try to select a name that captures the theme of your poetry blog or the type of poems you’ll be mostly writing. This name should be relevant to the poetry topics.
Your blog’s name should be easy to remember and search for on the social media and search engines. So, don’t make it too long.
Decide on Poetry Formats
Poems are written using different forms or genres.
You don’t have to focus on only one format, depending on what you are skilled on, choose varying forms.
These are some of the more searched poetry formats.
- Haiku Poems – this is a specific type of Japanese poem usually using Nature invocations. A famous Haiku is “A Poppy Blooms” by Katsushika Hokusa
- Free Verse Poetry – this is a type of poem where the poet doesn’t stick to specific metrics and rhymes.
- Acrostic Poems – in this format, each letter at the beginning of the line spells a word or phrase. A famous Acrostic is Elizabeth by Edgar Alan Poe.
- Lyric Poems – these are first person poems to express emotions and feelings.
- Narrative Poetry – this format tells stories with characters and plot using verses.
Find a Poetry Niche
As you start to write your blog, you may start creating poems with different themes. However, since your poetry blog is online, a niche will work better for attracting an audience.
Wether you’re going to promote your poems on social media or use the search engines, people generally search for specific themes. For example “love poems for her”, instead of just “love poems”.
Having plenty of poems with the same theme or sub-topics will keep your readers engaged on your blog. Also, niching down is one way to get an audience for your poetry.
Here are some popular poetry niches;
- Poetry about positive body image
- Short poems on happiness
- Uplifting poems for women
- Sad poetry
- Romantic poetry
- Self-care poetry
- Poems on Acrostic format
- Poems on Haiku format
- Poems about imagination
- Poems about creativity
- Poems about nature
- Poems about hope
- Poetry about freedom
Select the Tye of Poetry Content
- Write poems – use your blog to write and publish your poems. You can also add stories, thoughts and culture travel.
- Poetry Critic – choose poems and do literary critics.
- Recommend poems – do poetry recommendations in different genres.
- Write about poetry history – this type of content is ideal for writing things like “top 5 poems of all time”
- Teach how to write poetry – create content designed to teach poetry writing, rhymes, metaphors.
- Sell professional poetry/writing service – many commercial brands hire poets to write appealing copies to attract customers.
Get Some Inspiration
Before you start creating content for your blog, you can get some inspirations.
Browse Top Poetry Blogs – Examples; Poetry Foundations.org and My Poetic Side
Monetize Your Poetry Blog
You want to make money with your poetry blog and create a long term feasible platform. Here are some of the ways you can do that today.
- Display Ads – this is the easiest way to monetize.
- Affiliates – Use affiliates to generate commissions. Clicktosell, Write! and WriteSHop are some of the affiliate programs for writing and poetry.
- Sell Courses – Create your online course and sell thru your blog.
- Sell Ebooks – ebooks thru Kindle and Nook.
- Sell Poetry Apps – self-care apps are very popular, including poetry apps. You can always outsource the building of these and focus on the content creation.
- Sell Subscriptions thru Patreon or youtube – for a monthly fee fans can subscribe to your premium poetry service.
- Use traditional formats to deliver services, like in person workshops and Readings – some people still like these formats.
Promote Your Blog
Social Media is the best option for promoting your poetry and your blog, but you can also use the search engines.
Instagram at the moment is a big network to promote poetry. The network provides a huge amount of traffic for self-care types of themes.
You still need a platform to hold your writing and you need to compete with the millions of daily selfies and nature photos on IG.
Pinterest, Twitter and Facebook are additional social media platforms you can use to promote poems and whatever else you hold on your blog.
Search engine traffic. People also use the search engines like Google to find poetry, so this is another way for attracting visitors.
In addition to your blog, you can submit poetry to magazines for payments and a by-line. Some of the online publications you can check out include; Poetry Foundation, Agni and 50 Haikus.
Final Thoughts
It’s clear that you need to be a creative writer with passion for poetry to start writing and making money from it. Unlike the old days, when it was limited to make money as a poet, now there are more options.
Create your own blog and poetry app and use the many opportunities thru social media to promote them.
A blog is a way to build a feasible platform to house your poetry and other related writings.
Once you have a following on your blog, you can also sell them apps, ebooks and other products. Don’t forget to build a subscriber list to your blog.
Leave a Reply