About

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Poetry Is Life Publishing was established in January 2004. But well before that, the foundation was carefully being laid through unique experiences that are the driving force, the heart of Poetry Is Life Publishing. It was my freshman year in high school and I was blessed to have a teacher that encouraged me to do my best. Mrs. Stewart suggested that I take a look at the bulletin board and what I saw was opportunity. It was in the form of an 8.5 x 11 flyer of a  poetry contest sponsored by the Anthology of Poetry by Young American's. I was so excited to possibly have a chance to have my poem published in a book for people to see. Something inside me changed. I had an opportunity speak my mind and also the opportunity to hear what others are going through. I entered the contest and my poem, One's View of Life was published and printed on the first page of the book. Right then, I knew that poetry would forever be a part of my life. The most important part was the fact that I was able to express my feelings in a way that brought inner peace. I bought a few copies, signed my amateur autograph to them and it gave me confidence to write, in the process learning who I am and how to express myself in different ways. It showed me that I could make a difference and connect to the lives of other through what I wrote and that I connected to the lives of other and was encouraged by the poems they wrote.

As time passed, hundreds of poems written, I wanted to have a book of my own poetry published. A friend purchased a Poet's Market 2003. This book was a road map to becoming published. I submitted poems, most of them rejected but it really got me interested in the business of publishing. What happened next would change my views of publishing forever. In the quest to become published, I wrote over three hundred poems. When I say wrote, I mean a pencil and paper. I submitted them to a publisher and expected to have them published. The poems were returned along with a rejection letter, saying that the company couldn't publish my poems because they didn't fit what they were looking for but encouraged me to keep writing. This single event along with other similar situations would be the motivation to become a publisher. Since 2004, Poetry Is Life Publishing has published a host poetry books and a host of other print publications; Pleasure & Pain: The Voices of Poetry, a monthly newsletter, Listen Up! The Ghetto's Talkin'. Through this journey, I have met great people with the same passion for poetry that I have and these people are essential to the success of Poetry Is Life Publishing.

Below are a few of pieces that have become history of Poetry Is Life Publishing. The first is my poem, One's View of Life.