We're not very good in the UK at blowing our own trumpet - but there's not much point performing to rows of empty seats, and anyone who wants an audience needs to make sure that somebody knows the show's happening (or the book launched, the workshop scheduled, the award won and so on). As poetry editor of a creative writing magazine, I'm constantly amazed by how few poetry people send me press releases, even though I'm in a position to publish their news to thousands of readers with an interest in creative writing in general, and (for nearly 50% of our readers) poetry in particular.

Obviously space in a print-based magazine is finite, so I have to select a balanced range of items for my news column each month. But even if I can't publish every press release, if people in the poetry world keep me in touch with what they’re doing I will at least know they exist, and who to approach for information or comment when I'm writing a feature or workshop. Far from finding frequent press releases a nuisance, I want to hear from poets, publishers, editors, educators - in fact anyone who's involved in the world of poetry ?" on a regular basis. I'm sure that other journalists, editors and publishers feel the same.

There are a couple of points to remember, though, in the planning of a media release. Magazine production schedules are very long - so long that I will file copy for the October issue of my magazine in the middle of July. There's no point asking me to publicise a reading that's only a fortnight away, and ideally I need at least a couple of months’ notice (though I can occasionally slip a really hot item in at the last minute, so it's still worth a try if you can’t avoid a late submission). Reports on past events are always welcome, but again they need to hit my inbox as soon as possible after the event, or the news may be too old to print.

A good press release contains all the available information (at least What, When, Where, Why, Who), some background on the people and organisations involved, and an email or phone contact so that details can be checked and questions asked with the minimum of delay. It’s not essential, but if the piece is written in the style of a news item so that it can be used with a minimum of rewriting, most journalists are much more likely to use it than, say, a long, disorganised letter or inadequate notes.

We’re always chasing deadlines, and after all we’re only human.

So - all it takes to reach thousands of potentially interested individuals with your own or your group’s poetry news and events is an up-to-date press contacts list and a bit of time spent planning and writing. If releases are sent by email (which most journalists prefer, because it saves re-entering text and doesn’t swamp their desks with paper), it needn’t even cost the price of a stamp, comparing very favourably with the hundreds of pounds that a paid advert in most magazines would cost. We want to help you, we really do, but how can we do that if we don’t know you’re there?

Sarah Willians is Poetry Editor of Writers’ Forum magazine, and can be contacted at poetry@writers-forum.com.