About First Verse
The place for poems
The best new poems every day, written and read by real people.
How it works
- Post a poem. No long submissions queue, no reading fee. Each poem is reviewed for safety and authenticity, but if it's safe for everyone and genuinely yours it should publish quickly.
- Readers find it. New poems appear on the home page, and every poem gets its own page for discussion and dedicated linking.
- Build a following. Readers star the poems they like and follow the poets they want to hear from again.
- Get a private evaluation. The Studio can give you a detailed craft evaluation of a poem — scored, specific, and never shown to anyone but you.
- Keep your work. Your poems stay yours, and if you ever delete your account they come down with it.
What else is on the site
Alongside poems by the people who write them, First Verse publishes a small number of public-domain classics worth rereading. Nothing written by a machine should ever presented as somebody's own work, and nothing you write will be presented as ours.
Our code of conduct
Two short commitments - they help keep this place safe for posting and engaging.
Your own work, honestly presented. No AI-written poems right now, no reposting somebody else's work as your own, nothing hateful or unsafe.
Comments a poet is glad to have received. Critique the poem, never the person. No spam, no pile-ons.
Tipping a poet
If you like a poem, support the poet with your wallet. Poets add their own Venmo, Cash App, or PayPal handle, and the tip buttons on their poems and their poet page take you straight to them on that app — 100% of a tip goes to the poet. First Verse never handles the money or adds a fee.
Tips are anonymous. If you'd like the poet to be able to say thanks, you can leave an email when you tip — we pass the thank-you note along without showing them your address. Poets: set tipping up on your account page.
Questions
Does it cost anything?
No. Reading is free and posting is free — there's no submission fee or paywall on poems. Extra evaluation tokens and special upgrades may require payment.
Do I keep the rights to my poems?
Yes. Posting here isn't a transfer of ownership — you keep the copyright, and you give us only the permission needed to show your poem on the site and link to it. The specifics are set out in our Terms, which are worth reading before you post.
Is my poetry used to train AI?
No — never. We don't sell your poems, license them to anyone else, or use them to train AI models. That is also detailed in our Terms.
Here's where AI does touch your work, so you have the whole picture. When you post, your poem is checked for safety and plagiarism by our AI service (Anthropic integration), under an agreement that your writing is not used to train their models. It sees the poem itself and nothing else — not your email, not your account, not your IP address. The same is true of a Studio evaluation, if you ask for one. It's all set out in our Privacy Policy.
How fast does a poem publish?
It's usually fast. Your email has to be verified if it isn't already, then we need to review it for authenticity and safety. If something looks off it will take a bit longer to double-check — we'll email you either way, and you can follow a poem's status any time in your Studio.
What do stars and follows do?
A star tells the poet you appreciated their poem. And it elevates that poem so other readers are more likely to see it. Following a poet means you want to keep up with them.
Who can see my profile?
It's public by default, so readers can find your other poems. You can switch it to private from your profile page, and private profiles are kept off the Poets list.
Can I post a poem somebody else wrote?
No. First Verse is for your own writing. If you want to point readers at a poem published elsewhere, tell us through the form below.
How do I delete my account?
Go to your account and use Delete account in the Danger Zone. It clears your personal details and takes your poems down with it. It can't be undone.
I found a bug, or something looks wrong.
Please tell us — the form below goes to a person. Bug reports are awesome, especially with a link to the page where it happened.
Contact us
Questions, problems, or something you'd like to see? Send a note and we'll get back to you.
Sign in to send us a message
The contact form is for people with a First Verse account — that way we know who we're talking to, your whole thread stays on your account page, and the inbox stays free of spam. It takes a moment to sign in.
Sign in
