A Successful Poet: Is There Such a Creature?

I caught the end of an interview with a poet in the radio a while back. I don't remember which poet it was, but the interviewer asked her what she listed as her occupation when she was applying for, say, a car loan. The poet laughed and said in those moments it was fortunate that she was able to write "professor". The interview was light-hearted, but it brought up an important point about the occupation of a poet; It is not seen as a lucrative career choice.

This is, of course, part of the reason why many people do not pursue a career as a poet. If there are successful contemporary poets in the world today, we certainly don't hear about them unless we look them up ourselves. We don't read their work in high school.

Furthermore, what does it mean to be a successful poet? If it means that you can live off the money you make from your published poems, then I doubt there are any successful poets at all. If it means you are listed on poets.org, that's rather anticlimactic.

I think, as poets, we have to determine for ourselves what success would look like. For me, success is twofold: 1. To be published in Poetry Magazine and 2. To have a published collection of poems that people actually read. But it would also be awesome to win the Nobel Prize or be named Poet Laureate! Haha!

What would success look like to you?

Today's Poem: Success is counted sweetest by Emily Dickinson

Success is counted sweetest

By those who ne'er succeed.

To comprehend a nectar

Requires sorest need.

Not one of all the purple Host

Who took the Flag today

Can tell the definition

So clear of victory

As he defeated – dying –

On whose forbidden ear

The distant strains of triumph

Burst agonized and clear!