May 2003

(if you drop in here straight, you need to read the previous parts first to get the whole picture. Start reading with Poetry scam(s), Part I.)

Something strange has happened...
Not only did I submit a poem under the alias Pietje Puk, I also submitted a poem under the name Ape Staartje. I didn't mention that here, probably instinctively because I didn't want to risk recognition when someone from poetry.com would stumble upon this website and find out about it.
I officially registered on the site there and I got a confirmation of registration through e-mail (I still have it). The poem I put there as Ape Staartje was a straight on stupid, ridiculous thing filled with nonsense and typo's.
I'd put it up there some two weeks ago, on a late night. And the next day I thought I could make some little changes still. So I logged on as Ape Staartje, searched for my poem, which was there, in the standard frame with the little flower leafs on the top and all. I clicked the "edit poem" button and guess what?
I got this few lines telling me: "Your poem is currently being considered for inclusion in our hardbound anthology series and is therefore unavailable for editing at this time. This process takes about one week. Our review of your poem is for poetic quality and to determine if it will add to the value of the publication. If you have additional edits to make, please try again in a few days."
I tried a number of times in the following days, but those few lines remained. Until yesterday, when I tried to check another time. In the search box I put my name Ape Staartje (last name first, first name last) and clicked search. Where I got one match in all my previous searches, the search now came up empty. I tried several times, but there was no record of anyone named Ape Staartje, and my poem was gone, too.
That was strange!
Yet it got even stranger when I logged on to my account with the e-mail address and password that I registered with as Ape Staartje. When I typed the e-mail address and the password and clicked the button "log-in" I got a nice welcoming message "Welcome Ape Staartje, if you are not Ape Staartje please click here".
Is that dubious or what?
My name WAS registered, otherwise I couldn't log on, yet my poem AND my name are gone from the database in which I searched for my poem.
So maybe they actually do read (randomly?) poems that are submitted and mine was so stupid and even a bit insulting, that they took my whole entry off the site.

I now put that very poem under the Pietje Puk name, trying the same test as with the other poem I put there. See what comes out.
So far I haven't got any reaction to that one. But who knows?
I'll keep you posted...

TO BE CONTINUED!
Continue with Poetry scam(s), Part VII.