Q: What is Shadow Poetry?

A: The heart of Shadow Poetry exists through our writing resources. We designed this web site as a one stop writer's resource for all poets, writers, students, etc. Shadow Poetry at one time hosted many contests, published two different magazines, and was a small press for chapbook publishing. With the changing demands of the Shadow Poetry visitors and audience, we have leaned more toward the educational side of poetry writing over publication. For more information about Shadow Poetry, click the About Us link at the top of this page.


Q: I've seen "by our Shadow Poets" mentioned several times on this site. Who are the Shadow Poets?

A: When Shadow Poetry began before the birth of its web site in 1999, it was solely an email-based poetry group through Yahoo Groups. The members of this group would post poetry for comment, feedback, and sometimes to enter poetry contests for a prize or certificate. Over time. the needs of Shadow Poetry's Egroup members could not be contained by an email list alone. Therefore, the Shadow Poetry web site was born as a writers resource and publishing house. The web site hosted a section for members to post their profiles, photos, poetry, and more. When Shadow Poetry began to focus more on contests and publishing, the members section was closed. When we speak of a "Shadow Poet", we are referring to previous members of the Egroup or Members section who have allowed us to continue to display their poetry or invented poetry forms. We thank them very much for their contributions!


Q: May I use or reproduce the content on this site?

A: Material from this site may be used for personal and educational purposes only. Commercial use is strictly prohibited. If information, works, and/or examples are copied, printed, etc. from this web site, it/they may not be published, sold, or displayed in any form without strict written permission from Shadow Poetry and any authors that may be involved. When used for educational purposes, we ask that all poets and authors be given proper credit wherever they may be quoted or displayed and referenced back to this site. The Shadow Poetry web site may be added to any educational poetry database for student and teacher reference. For more in-depth information, please visit Shadow Poetry's Copyrights page.


Q: I have a poem that I'd like to add as an example to one of the featured poetry forms. How do I add it to the web site?

A: If you have an accurate example of a poetry type featured on the Shadow Poetry web site and would like to see it displayed, please submit the poem through our contact us page along with your contact information. We will review it to see if it is a good fit for our site.


Q: I have invented a poetry form. Will you display it on Shadow Poetry?

A: If you have invented a poetry form and would like to see it displayed on the Shadow Poetry web site, please submit the form with a detailed definition and several examples to us through our contact us page. We will review the form to see if it is a good fit for our site.


Q: How do I obtain copyrights for my works?

A: Depending on how many works you wish to have copyrighted will depend on the route you may want to take in protecting your material. The Copyright Office will charge you $65.00 per poem or short story to copyright the work you have written. Many poets and writers do not have the kind of funds available to copyright each work individually. We suggest publishing your works within a collection (book) and copyrighting the collection as a whole. That way each work is protected, though not individually copyrighted. For more information, visit the US Copyright Office. You will find forms to print and fill out once you have decided upon the method that will work the best for you.


Q: How do I navigate the Shadow Poetry site?

A: Shadow Poetry uses two main navigation bars at the top and bottom of each page. The first navigation bar (Fig. #1) contains the seven main categories featured on the Shadow Poetry site: Home, Poetry Types, Japanese Poetry, Handbook, Poetry Guide, Resources, and Bookstore. To access these sections, simply press any one of these buttons. When one of the sections is activated, the button will turn a dark blue.

Fig. #1

The second navigation bar is dark blue in appearance and features all the options (sub-categories) under one of the seven main categories (Fig. #2). Simply click any page you wish to view on this sub-category bar. The link will turn aqua, indicating you have accessed the section you wish to be in.

Fig. #2

Due to the Traditional Poetry Forms and Invented Poetry Forms having such a variety of information, we use side navigation down the left side of the page for each poetry form. The poetry type, definition, and examples will appear in another window to the right.

Fig. #3

Q: Why won't many of your links work within the site?

A: Shadow Poetry offers a number of links to visit other web sites as resources or helpful guides. If you have a pop-up blocker activated on your computer, these links might not work for you. Simply disable your pop-up blocker program, and the Shadow Poetry links and other informative pages should load properly for you.


If your questions were not answered, please visit our "Contact" page. Any of the Shadow Poetry staff members will be happy to help you.