Most of my writing is concentrated on poetry for children’s magazines. Several months ago I found myself in what appeared to be a no-win situation. The children’s magazine market was shrinking, rates were dropping, and many more of the publications were insisting upon buying all rights. I needed to find a way to get as much bang for my buck with each poem as possible. But, how was I supposed to do that?

The answer was sitting in my inbox. I receive a monthly educational ezine geared towards those who teach pre-k thru sixth grade. I’m not a teacher, but I subscribe to the newsletter to shed light on new activities to do with my three small children. As soon as I looked through my current issue, I thought of a possible solution to my problem.

Their ezine and website listed numerous themes and corresponding activities, but it didn’t have a poetry section. I immediately queried the editor with the idea of adding a poetry section to correspond with the themes. In my query, I cited poetry as a tool to making curriculum more enjoyable and as a tool to help children remember information more easily.

The editor responded in just a few days. She loved the idea and promptly emailed me a copy of their writer’s guidelines. I immediately submitted six poems for consideration. Within one week, the editor phoned me! She offered to buy five of the six poems and offered me the opportunity to contribute a poetry column to the monthly ezine. Of course, I said yes!

This dilemma went from being a no-win situation to a win-win situation in a matter of weeks. This was not only a paying market, but also a market that only buys one time e-rights. I’m free to sell these poems again. That’s not all! I spoke to a friend of mine who happens to be a teacher. She informed me that there are numerous educational websites and ezines. The market is huge! Do a google search. Don’t wait for opportunity to knock on your door. You go out there and bust down opportunity’s door!

Kimberly Hutmacher is the author of Poetry Play For Preschoolers, a collection of poems on subjects such as as nature, seasons, children, and home. A wonderful collection to introduce young children to poetry. Includes 16 poems with color illustrations. See: