POETRY CONTEST SCAMS

There is a company online right now called Poetry.com whose site features online writing contests. They fraudulently accept literally every applicant and label them 'Semi-finalists'.  This company then sends a letter praising the work of the aspiring poet. This letter also states that the panel of judges feels that the work in question has the chance to win the competition.
Poetry.com then requests a 'modest' payment of $50 (plus extra if you want your poem on a page of it's own). Publishing only those who paid, 6000 poems per book at $50-$75. This company publishes over 60 books a year. 

So in reality, there is no competition. The author is paying almost $100 to have a poem printed in a book that maybe cost the company absolutely nothing. In fact, poems.com is raking in the cash! Actually, raking isn’t even the word! This company makes over $50 million a year! 

Want more info about Poetry.com? Check out the interview Barbra Walter slammed them with! : http://windpub.com/literary.scams/abc-nlp.htm

Here’s a list of scam companies. It is taken from http://www.eliteskills.com/writing_scams/writing_scam_list.php:

Poetry.com
FamousPoets.com
aftrk.com/e/Poetry
International Society Of Poets
International Library Of Poetry
National Library Of Poetry
The Poetry Guild
National Society Of Poets
www.poetry-contest.com
Iliad Press (Cader Publishing)
The American Poets Society www.poetryamerica.com
Noble House Publishers
https://www.noblehousepublishers.co.uk
Publishers Clearing House
Water Mark Press
The Poem Place
Hollywood's Famous Poets Society
Pen Pushers Publications
Poets' Guild