FAQ - About PoetrySpeaks.com

FAQ Categories:

PoetrySpeaks.com Community

Creating and Managing My Account

Purchasing Products on PoetrySpeaks.com

Poetry Rights and Permissions

Uploading Poetry to YourMic

Rating and Commenting

Poetry Contests

PoetrySpeaks.com Community

Who makes up the PoetrySpeaks.com community?
Poets (both published and unpublished), educators, publishers, authors, and students – the list goes on! If you love poetry, want to learn more about poetry, want to support poetry and poets, or are just looking for a new creative outlet, then PoetrySpeaks.com is for you.

Where is my favorite poet? He or she is currently not listed on PoetrySpeaks.com.
We are always looking to expand our community of poets. If you want to see your favorite poet on the site, send an email to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and we will work to include him or her on the site.

How does poetry get onto PoetrySpeaks.com?
For those poets who are already published, our editors work with their publisher to include them on the website. If you would like to be included, please have your publisher contact us. PoetrySpeaks.com also works to record poets across the country. We work with archives to help promote and spread their poetry. And in the cases where the poet is deceased, we work with the poet’s estates to ensure their continuing legacy.

What’s an unpublished poet to do?
We built YourMic for unpublished poets who want to share their poetry with the world. Upload two, three, or all of your poems to be read, heard, and seen by this poetry community.

Creating and Managing My Account

Why should I register for an account?
Opening an account opens up a world of possibilities for you. Registered members can rate their favorite poems and videos, they can leave comments, and they can purchase text, audio and video works to support these poets and poetry presses. Registered members can also upload poetry to YourMic.

How do I register for an account?
It’s easy! Just click “login” at the top right and click “register.” Accounts are single sign-in, meaning one account connects you to all three sections of the site.

Do member accounts relate across all three sections of PoetrySpeaks.com?
Yes, whether you start an account on the PS•Voices, SpokenWord, or YourMic sections of PoetrySpeaks.com, your account will connect you to all three sections of PoetrySpeaks.com.

Can community members view my personal information?
On YourMic visitors will only see the information you include with your video or audio file. If you answer the Why Poetry? Question during registration your answer will appear on PoetrySpeaks.com.

How do I remove my poetry from YourMic?
Once you login, you can delete your poetry by clicking the delete button. You can only delete videos that you have uploaded yourself.

How do I delete my account?
Please email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with a subject of “Delete Account” if you have chosen to delete your account.

How do I add my answer to the Why Poetry section on the homepage?
When you register for a free account, we ask you Why Poetry during the registration process. Just answer the question here and wait for your response to appear in the scrolling Why Poetry section on the homepage.

Purchasing Products on PoetrySpeaks.com

Purchasing products with your account:
In order to purchase poetry products on PoetrySpeaks.com, a PoetrySpeaks.com account is required. However, shopping carts on this site are divided. For example, if you want to purchase audio from the SpokenWord section and text from the PS•Voices section, you will need to complete your transaction on each section you intend to make a purchase for the order to go through.

Why should I purchase poems?
We at PoetrySpeaks.com believe poetry should be paid for and that poets should be recompensed for their work. We’ve created this site as a marketing tool for poets and as an avenue for poetry lovers to support the poets they love. By purchasing poetry through our site, one is directly supporting said poet while being able to carry that piece of poetry with them wherever he or she goes.

What can I buy?
You can purchase text of poetry as well as audio and video performances where the poet reads and performs his or her own works. We also offer combo packages in which the text and audio performances are sold at a discounted price. Our online poetry bookstore features Sourcebooks’ bestselling titles such as our three New York Times bestsellers, Poetry Speaks, Poetry Speaks to Children, Hip Hop Speaks to Children, and much more.

Why do some PDF downloads require payment while others are available for free?
You can download free PDFs of poems currently in the public domain. Poems being sold for $0.99 are copyrighted. This means we’ve secured the rights to sell this poetry as a means to create review for the poet, poetry press or estate.

Can I download products to my cell phone or e-reader?
At this time it is not possible to download directly to your cell phone or e-reader. However, our products are DRM free. That means that you can upload our MP3s to your preferred music software and add them to your cell phone from there. You can also purchase and download our PDFs to your computer and upload them to your e-reader of choice.

Why won’t the audio or video play on my computer?
Check to make sure that your computer meets our site's requirements.

Why can I preview only a limited sample of the audio or video file on PS•Voices and SpokenWord?
PS•Voices and SpokenWord are sections where popular contemporary, slam, and spoken word poets are selling their own poetry. The preview allows you to experience a snippet of the poem so you can get an idea of the sound, tone and feeling of the poem you may like to purchase.

What payment types do you accept?
We accept the following Credit Cards: Visa, Master Card, American Express, and Discover.

Poetry Rights and Permissions

Do I have rights to a poem’s text, audio or video once I’ve purchased it?
Once you’ve purchased text, audio or video poetry on PoetrySpeaks.com, you only own the actual poetry product. You do not own the rights to recreate, distribute, or sell said poetry product.

Do I have rights to a poem’s text, audio or video once I’ve purchased it?
Once you’ve purchased text, audio or video poetry on PoetrySpeaks.com, you only own the copy of the actual poetry product. You do not own the rights to recreate, distribute, or sell said poetry product.

How do I know whether my content adheres to copyright laws?
When you upload your poetry to YourMic make sure that it is your poetry. You can also upload your own performances of poetry that is in the public domain. If you are not sure whether a poem is in the public domain, check before uploading. The U.S. Copyright office has a website that allows you can check if a piece of work is in the public domain.

How do I report a possible copyright violation on YourMic?
Please follow our copyright notification procedures listed in the PoetrySpeaks.com Terms of Use.

Uploading Poetry to YourMic

How do I upload my poems on YourMic?
Once you’ve registered for an account, log in and click “upload.” You will be walked through the rest of the process. Once you’ve uploaded, refresh your browser and visit the homepage to ensure your file has been loaded.

What are the Upload Requirements for this site?
Your video or audio upload is limited to 2GB.
You may upload videos with these formats: mpg, mpeg, avi, divx, mp4, flv, wmv, rm, mov, moov, asf, swf, vob, 3gp, mkv, mp3

Can I upload videos to YourMic that I’ve already uploaded to other video sharing sites?
If you have posted your own poetry videos on other websites, feel free to post them on YourMic once you’ve set up your account. You will be asked for the link to your previously uploaded videos during the upload process.

Which category should I choose when I upload my video to YourMic?
Categories help visitors find videos that interest them. When you are uploading your video, think of what category that best suits your creation and choose accordingly.

I’ve uploaded my audio/video poetry on YourMic! Now what?
Share it with the world! Link your video to your website, blog, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace…you name it. You can also embed your video on other sites.

Why can’t I upload my video?
First, make sure that you’re logged in. Once you’ve confirmed you are logged in, make sure that your computer meets our site’s requirements.

Can I request for my poem to be featured on YourMic?
Currently on YourMic the featured poems are the most viewed, so if you’d like your video to be featured, get your friends, family, and colleagues to check it out and increase your views. YourMic contest winners will also have their videos featured on the homepage of YourMic.

Rating and Commenting

Do I need to register for an account to rate poetry and add comments?
Yes, but nothing could be easier! Just click on the login button at the top of the page, and then click register. You’ll be rating and commenting in no time.

How often can I rate poems?
You can rate a poem once a day.

Poetry Contests

Can I participate in Poetry Contests on the site?
You know it! Anyone with a PoetrySpeaks.com account is welcome to participate in our poetry contests. If you are between the ages of 13 and 18, you will need to secure parent or guardian permission. Anyone under the age of 13 is not permitted to participate.