It is interesting how the reputations of the novel and poetry have switched—the novel was once considered a niche genre of literature, the demesne of mostly women, who were thought to be disconnected from reality. Now women significantly outnumber men in poetry programs, and it is poetry that has become the niche genre. The common perception of the poet is of an overly sensitive person who occupies their own reality. Novels of course are the most popular genre of literature, and a novel is potentially more profitable than a book of poems could ever be.