Is this a good poem, and how do I get it published?

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Question:

Here's the poem:

The Battle

Hiding in the shadows of others
Knowing the brightness will bring you pain
By not throwing ourselves into the spotlight
We get confused with the insane

It's hard for us to be examined
We have a fear of being critiqued
Scarred of seeing sneers and giggles
By everyone we meet

You want to be in the center
You have a longing to be seen
But your head processes the worse of it
Your sense for anxiety is only keen

Some reach for the comfort of "strangers"
But you feel emotions tugging at your heart
Something in your head malfunctions the trust
The friendship is now torn apart

You may have many strengths
In your body and your mind
But memories in your head knock you down
Your dreams are left behind

So we go on with our lives
Only trying to stay our of the way
Fighting, hiding, feeling the pain
Fearing what others have to say

In everything we try, we feel wispy
To athletics to academic, it's always the same
Your head tells you, "Your imprudent!."
And now everything is just plain

We are not the dull, we are still the sane
But we share a common weakness
We may be smart, we may be strong
But we loose a battle to shyness

Is this any good (if you have comments please share!) and how do I summit it to publishing!?Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

Your poem interested me!. The subject is good and doesn't seem to ramble or change, and your rhymes, although many are slant, are not bad!. The meter needs work!. Rhyming poetry really should follow a metered arrangement in order to flow properly!. I am going to give you two links!. The first is a reference site for meters that I use a lot, the second is the web page of The Tangled Web Press!. They have published many yahoo authors and starting in January will host a true poetry contest with categories for students, amateurs, and professionals, so that everyone has an even chance to compete!.

http://www!.uncg!.edu/~htkirbys/meters!.htm is the meters site

http://www!.poetsofmars!.com/index!.html is the Tangled Web site

Enjoy!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I really like it, but the last stanza where you rhyme weakness with shyness, doesn't work as well!. I would work on the last stanza more!.

Look around for local/state/national poetry contests, and enter yours!. Send it off to a magazine or two!. If you win enough contests, and/or get published in enough magazines, then you can try publishing a book of poetry!. I have no idea how individual poems might get published though!.

:-) Good luck!Www@QuestionHome@Com