From the Directory of Poetry Publishers
27th Edition, 2011-2012

One of the things Dustbooks asks editors in the annual survey from which this directory of poetry publishers is compiled is to name five poets whom that editor has published recently. Of course there are many ways to measure a poet’s popularity. This is just one of them.

This list has been compiled and called the “Sweepstakes” for twenty-four years now and each year the list comes out slightly different from the year before. This year Lyn Lifshin of Vienna, Virginia came in first and Virgil Suarez of Tallahassee, Florida came in second. Lifshin held the top spot on this list for almost twenty years until Suarez overtook her a few years ago. Now she is back in first place.

The frequency curve of statistical distribution continues to reflect the very populism of poetry in this age. The curve is a long, flat one with the poet named most often getting 31 entries out of more than five thousand. As far as this directory and these responses are concerned, no single poet holds the national attention.

The top thirteen entries go like this:

Rank    Poet   (Entries)

1       Lyn Lifshin (31)
2       Virgil Suarez (30)
3       Simon Perchik (17)
4       John Grey (15)
4       W.S. Merwin (15))
5       Billy collins (14)
5       Albert Goldbarth (14)
5       Bob Hicok (14)
5       B.Z. Niditch (14)
6       Robert Cooperman (13)
6       Denise Duhamel (13)
6       Dorianne Laux (13)
6       Gerald Locklin (13)

--Dustbooks, 2011