Millay's fame began in 1912 when the nineteen-year-old, encouraged by her mother, entered her poem "Renascence" in a poetry contest in The Lyric Year.
[1] Millay had written and published poetry in St. Nicholas, a children's magazine, throughout her teen years, and had become a proficient poet.
[2] On publication, Millay's poem was widely considered the best submission, and her eventual award of fourth place caused a major scandal.
[2] The first-place winner Orrick Johns was among those who felt that "Renascence" was the best poem, and stated that "the award was as much an embarrassment to me as a triumph."
[4] The scandal brought Millay much attention, and "Renascence" was widely distributed and even taught to schoolchildren as an exemplar of American poetry.