Writing about your problems can really help you overcome difficulty. I’m certain that many of you out there reading this Empowher.com blog write in journals or, perhaps, write poetry or short stories.
Have you ever thought of making these writings public by getting them published? This week my blogs are about places to send your creative work on bipolar illness.
The first place is a forum exclusively for poetry. Bphope.com has a “Poetry Corner,” where writers can upload their poems about bipolar illness. Here’s the link to it:
http://bphope.ning.com/page/welcome-to-the-poetry-corner
Anyone can post on this site as long as the material is not inappropriate or obscene; in other words, there’s no editorial board. The writers just post what and when they want. Then, if your poems spark attention, people can respond to them by giving you feedback.
If you want a more professional forum, try Kaleidoscope: Exploring the Experience of Disability Through Literature and the Fine Arts. This magazine will publish not only poetry, but also short stories and essays. One of my stories, “The Prodigal Daughter,” about bipolar illness, was published in this magazine in 1995.
Kaleidoscope is published twice a year by United Disability Services in Akron, Ohio.
This forum does have editors, and everything that you publish in this magazine, unlike at Bphope.com’s Poetry Corner, must be chosen and approved by these editors. Here’s the link to their editorial guidelines page:
http://www.udsakron.org/services/kaleidoscope/guidelines.asp
The nice thing about this magazine is that it does pay its writers anywhere from $10.00 to $125.00 per piece.
It just may be time to take those poems and stories out of hiding and show them to the world. The above two forums would be great places to start if you’re looking for exposure.