Latest News for ThePoeticLink.com

To Write to me, simply send mail to: Webmaster@ThePoeticLink.com I read all of your comments and suggestions... don't be shy!

News Entry Date: 1/25/2001 9:39pm

Hi Guys, I wanted to let everyone know that ALL of the orders for our Volume #1 Poetry Anthology have been shipped out to you! If you ordered Volume #1, you should be receiving them within a few days. Some of you may get them tomorrow actually! I apologize for Volume #1 taking so long, but it was our first, and there were some problems that I did not anticipate. I am happy to say that Volume #2 and Volume #3 are under way and will have MUCH faster "turn-around" times. Please put your orders in for these new Volumes as soon as possible. Volume #3 is NOW Available for ordering as well. Just go to: http://ThePoeticLink.com/sales/anthologies ------------------------------------------------------------------ Announcement for our members living in Southern California: Riverside Community college is pleased to present THE DISPUTATION: A Christian and Jewish dialogue in sonnet form written by "Rachel Spinoza" and Mark Steven Sheffer and produced by Professor Mike Cluff. The part of the Jewish Cleric will be played by Mike Cluff. The Christian role will be played by Marcus Kulger. Norco Little Theater RCC Norco campus March 25, 2001, 7 PM .

Click HERE to return to ThePoeticLink.com Database Page!

Hello everyone, just a quick note here before I leave for work. I have made a few nice changes to the site. I am now properly reporting Registered and Unregistered Users who are on the site at any given moment. Just look at the Information Box and you will see what I mean. I have also included the 2 poem per person per day limit as I said I would. Not one person responded negatively to this idea. Thank you all for your honesty and support. Lastly, I have made a few minor alterations to some forms like: Adding more IMPORTANT Information to the "View My Poems" link, flipped around the order of the Critique Box and the Scoring Charts in "View a Poem" and "Critique Replies". I probably made a few more changes but am forgetting now what they are :) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- I need to ask all of you to be VERY Alert to any attacks on our site now that I have started this little campaign against Scam Sites. Just please report anything suspicious to me immediately. Attacks can come in the form of poems or critiques so read everything you see, with that thought in the back of your mind. The beauty of our site, is that REAL People are required to make it run, so I is next to impossible for anyone to get anything past us :) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Poetry Scam campaign update! Lots of people have offered their support and their hard work in this campaign against Poetry.com. I thank all of you for your hard work and for your creativeness in approaching this problem. They appear to have thrown up more "FLAG" indicators on their site. The words Scam, Fraud, and Fraudulent, now seem to be flagged as words that can not be used in a poem. You will have to come up with alternate words so be creative. I know you're smarter than they are. I would also check your submitted work. Be sure that it still shows up online. I think that they have tried to ZERO in on any suspicious wording in submitted poems and some people have reported that their has been deleted. If you find that yours was in fact deleted, try submitting again under a friend or family members name and address. Don't make it easy for them to de-rail our efforts. With a bit of creative genius, that you have all displayed, we should be successful in getting a good number of these through their process. The most important thing is to just be sure your wording is not just saying "You are mean and bad" but rather that it is incriminating them by predicting what will happen to your poem and what their award letter will say. Make it clear that if they publish your poem it will be admitting that they are a FALSE Organization only out for money. Be creative in the way you say this and try to stay away from ANY words you think will make it easy for them to FLAG as one of these poems.

Click HERE to return to ThePoeticLink.com Database Page!

Well guys, I got tons of positive responses (no negative ones) regarding the limit of 2 submissions per day per person. This change is now active on The Poetic Link so I hope that it solves the problem of running into SETS of poems all from the same person from now on. Please keep in mind that poems entered before today can still appear in SETS when you're critiquing. However any poem entered after today should never appear in sets from the same author. ------------------------------------------------------------ I am still working on the ability to properly report how many people are using our system at any given moment. The number displayed in the Information Box right now, ONLY reflects registered users who are logged in. It is not currently reflecting people who are just browsing and not logged into our system. I would imagine you could safely add 5 - 10 people to the number displayed at any given moment, but it will be exciting to see the correct number once I finally get it working properly. ------------------------------------------------------------- LOTS of people have joined our campaign against Poetry Scam sites. I want to thank everyone for their support in this. If you don't know what I'm talking about, and would like to find out or you would like to JOIN our fight... please go to http://ThePoeticLink.com/scams That link will give you all of the information you need! I am offering FREE Submission credits for people who help. Details are contained in that link.

Click HERE to return to ThePoeticLink.com Database Page!

Hi Guys, I wanted to let all of you know that I am very happy with support that I have been receiving on my little campaign against Poetry Scam Sites. If you have not heard, I am giving away FREE Credits to anyone willing to do their part in this fight. I have created a new link on my main page that outlines all of the details for you. If you're interested in helping us fight Poetry Scams on the Internet please visit http://ThePoeticLink.com/scams That link will give you all of the information you need to help us. If you would like further help you can feel free to call me at 717-221-9202. I will be more than happy to talk with you in person. You may be surprised to know that if you decide to help us, it will only take a few moments of your time and it costs nothing at all. --------------------------------------------- I am looking for your opinions on something. I have been thinking of a nice way to mix up the submitted poems we receive each month. With our new 100% blind critique system, it is possible to critique several poems in a row, all from the same author. This can be annoying so... I would like your opinions on my proposal for an easy fix. I would like to immediately install a limit of 2 poem submission Per Person PER DAY on the site. This would definitely keep things mixed nicely, and people could still submit as many poems as they like each month, up to 2 per day. It will just make it nicer to critique the poems without running into strings of the same Author over and over again. What do you say guys? Please reply to me and let me know your thoughts. I will put this measure into effect tomorrow if I get enough positive feedback on it.

Click HERE to return to ThePoeticLink.com Database Page!

Hello Everyone! It's time for WAR. I have been receiving FAR too many letters from people lately who are confusing my site with Poetry.com. That site is the BIGGEST Poetry Scam site on the internet. If you don't believe me ...keep reading. Yes you may have made friends through that place. Perhaps you have even been published by them and your poem is in one of their worthless volumes that they fill with absolutely anything. They way they make their money is by luring everyone into their FREE Submission Scam. Once you submit you receive an Award letter saying that you are a Semi-Finalist. So TONS of people who are new to poetry fall into the trap of ordering their stuff. I know people who have spent from $60 - $200 dollars on their offers. This is how they make their money people. Don't get me wrong. If this was a legitimate site and Poetry.com was actually READING this stuff, it would be fine. But NO PERSON ever reads 99.9% of the items that pass through their process. It is a simple issue to prove. In fact, I am willing to pay ANYONE 10 Submission Credits (that's a $30.00 value) if you do the following: Log onto Poetry.com and fill in all of your personal information. Be careful to get the address correct so that you receive your letter in the mail from them. I am not interested in anything but REAL Award Letters from them (e-mails do NOT count). In the poem box type a poem similar to this: (DO NOT copy it exactly since that would be too easy for them to find) Please use your OWN wording but make it deliver the same message. ---------Beginning of Poem -------------------- Title: It's time to wake up! Wake up Poets! You're being sucked into a huge scheme by the organization know as The International Library Of Poetry, also known as Poetry.com also known as The International Society Of Poets. They are lying about reading and discussing what is being sent to them, as is clearly illustrated by this poem being selected for publication "because of its unique perspective and my artistic vision." What a horrible misuse of such an honorable domain name as Poetry.com ...If "after carefully reading and discussing my poem, their Selection Committee has certified this poem as a semi-finalist in their North American Open Poetry Contest," it will be irrefutable proof of their scheme. No person could have ever read this and certainly not discussed it. At the very least they should be stripped of their domain name "Poetry.com" and slapped with heavy penalties and fines! -------- End of Poem -------------------------- Guys, I have an actual Award Letter from them for this Poem. It's locked in my fireproof safe as I am still trying to get more "Poems" through their process of this same style. The KEY to the evidence against them is to be sure to include wording saying something to the effect of "If this makes it through their process in which they CLAIM people are reading and discussing my submission, then they are FALSE Advertising as a LURE to their SCAM." That is the true POINT or CRUX that you need to fit into the poem. Without that they are doing nothing wrong. Put that type of statement in there, and they are now doing something illegal by saying that they both read and then discussed your submission. Again, I got one of these types through, but I need more if I am to build a case against them. Please help me out guys. I am interested ONLY in getting the ORIGINAL Award letters (no copies or e-mails) ...Original Letters ONLY, you can make a copy for your records, but I will need the Original that they sent to you. For this Original Letter of content SIMILAR to what I have above, I will be happy to give you 10 Poem Submission Credits for our site http://ThePoeticLink.com (not to be confused with Poetry.com). If you have questions, call me 717-221-9202. It's time to declare war on that place so let's make it happen. Please submit your version of this poem tonight and hope that it makes it through their process. NOTE: I think they are getting wise to my efforts. Some words like SCAM are not allowed now. You have to be creative and use Scheme or Plot. BE CREATIVE!

Click HERE to return to ThePoeticLink.com Database Page!

Hi guys! Well guess what I picked up from the Book Binder today? ...The first Sample Anthology! They tell me the rest will be finished by the 17th of January. I will send them out as soon as they arrive. I have updated the pictures section as I promised I would. You can go to the link below to see the new pictures of the books you ordered: http://ThePoeticLink.com/sales/anthologies Please get your orders in for Volume #2 ASAP ...I will start printing this month and then they are going off to the binders. I only have 2 orders for Volume #2 at this time. That is scaring me a bit. Please talk to friends and relatives to see if they would also like one. Just use the link above to order your copies. You may have noticed that I have finally activated the "Poem Points." For a long time they did nothing. But now they are a part of the Poem Submission Process. They are just a simple way of getting people to answer their existing critiques before they can submit any more poetry. Too many people were posting poems and NEVER answering any of their critiques. Goodness, one person, I won't say who... had over 500 Unanswered critiques! This system will fix that problem. If you're coming here to learn, shouldn't you at least be answering your critiques and thanking the person who took the time to evaluate and grade your poem? I think it's only proper and I hope that you do as well. Lastly, I have added a few Stats to the Winners Listings. If you look at the TOP of the Winners Pages you will now see the total Poem Submissions and Critiques received during that month. I am very anxious to see how January will turn out. Everything this month will be 100% blind critiqued. I hope you are all enjoying the new additions and changes that I am making. This is a learning process for me as well, so give me your feedback and thoughts on things.

Click HERE to return to ThePoeticLink.com Database Page!

Well guys, today is the final day for critiquing any December Poems. I have been watching the scoreboards and I can say that it will be very exciting now that we're on a 100% blind critique system. December still reflects some bias toward certain poets since we were not 100% blind that entire month, but January is VERY interesting indeed. I can't wait to see how it turns out! Please get your last few critiques done for December! I wanted to let everyone know that I still have a lot of T-Shirts Available. If you would like to order a T-Shirt from us, just go to http://ThePoeticLink.com/sales/t-shirts I am hoping to get the Anthologies back from the binder this week so that I can send them out to everyone who ordered one. I am very excited about seeing our first publication! There are still a few copies of Volume #1 left so if you'd like one, just go to http://ThePoeticLink.com/sales/anthologies I hope everyone has a wonderful week and I look forward to seeing how December turns out tomorrow when the Winners list is made public.

Click HERE to return to ThePoeticLink.com Database Page!

I just wanted to drop everyone a quick line before I go to bed for the evening. I must say that I am extremely surprised at the lack of feedback I have received on the 2 major updates I installed on the site over New Years Eve. I thought for sure that I would hear a lot of likes or dislikes regarding the new 100% blind critique system, but as it stands now, only about 8 comments have come in. I guess I should take that as a compliment :) The other thing that I did for you guys was to install the new Submission Routines. These routines allow you to preview EXACTLY what your poem will look like before you publish it online with us. This feature will come in VERY handy for those of you who like to write "Visual" poetry (poetry where the spacing and fonts have an active role). I would love to hear your comments guys so let me have them. If you have not submitted a poem with the new submission process yet... you're going to love it! Please let me know what you think. I make all of these updates and improvements for you guys... to make your lives here better and easier. The biggest tool I have to gauge whether or not I'm improving things, is to receive feedback from you :) Have a great New Year!

Click HERE to return to ThePoeticLink.com Database Page!

OK Guys ...Merry Christmas! You just got the biggest gift that I can give you! As of tonight 12/31/2000 we are 100% Anonymous. If anyone finds an easy way to identify who a poet is, please let me know and I will fix it in short order. I have done this at the request of the multitudes so it will now be impossible to determine who a poet is until AFTER you critique them! This should provide a very important security and rating aspect to the site. In the early days when we were small, it was not much of an issue, but now as we are bigger it has become a priority. This will ensure fair scoring and critiquing of ALL Poets Work! I will continue to work to add more of my "To-Do" items to The Poetic Link so please look for more additions and improvements to be coming your way shortly! 2001 should be a great year for us so please pass the word to your friends. I hope you all love the new addition! Comments are welcome. ------------------------------------------------ ANTHOLOGIES!!!! I have only received 1 order for Volume #2 so far. Please put your orders in guys. I am expecting Volume #1 to come back from the Bookbinders in the first half of January so expect delivery of them as soon as I get them from the binders :) I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and have a wonderful New Year. If you didn't get any really nice presents for Christmas, please consider the 100% Anonymous functions that I just installed, to be my special gift to you :)

Click HERE to return to ThePoeticLink.com Database Page!

Hi Guys. Happy Holidays! I wanted to let you know that Volume #2 of ThePoeticLink.com Anthology is being compiled. Delivery on this volume should come much faster now that I have everything worked out. I want to ask all of you to please place your orders for Volume #2 if you would like to purchase it. I need to start getting an idea of how many need to be printed. The link to buy the Anthologies is http://ThePoeticLink.com/sales/anthologies To give you an update on Volume #1... It is still at the Book Binders. I have been informed that they should be done early January. I will ship them out to you immediately upon my receiving them from the binder. There are still a few extra left to order, so if you'd like to order a Volume #1 you can still do that from the link above. I am sorry that Volume #1 did not reach you in time for Christmas. I would have loved that, but things just a tiny bit too long. I wanted to let you all know that I am taking a rather long vacation for the Holidays. I have the 21st through the 1st off from my normal day job. I plan on taking advantage of this time to work on some long overdue additions and upgrades to The Poetic Link. Woohoo! I think my list has some really great things on it that you guys will love. I will do my best to add as many of them as I am able to.

Click HERE to return to ThePoeticLink.com Database Page!