Check out this story about a woman who finally had her book taken only to be treated terribly.

Bernadette Geyer riffed on the above post to say that poetry presses should not use celebrity judges.

That brings up a good question for poetry presses. Have they tested whether they receive more (or better) entrants with a celebrity judge? I don’t think the judge was ever a factor for me. In fact, it probably had the opposite result of causing me NOT to enter certain contests. We all know certain judges pick their students. We all know certain judges pick students of their friends and vice versa. When there’s no judge and the press decides, we all get to learn what that editor likes and the kind of books that work for that press.

When a celebrity judge enters the mix, we as readers (and contest entrants) don’t have much of a clue about what that judge will pick. This is why I also prefer magazines that have the same editor over time. I spend time getting to know magazines. If the editors change a lot, then I don’t have a clue as to what they might want for their magazine. Then, it seems like a waste of my time and the magazine’s time to submit since I don’t have any idea if my work is anywhere close to their aesthetic vision for what makes a poem.

What do you think?