Dodsley exemplifies the bookseller-writer-poet hybrid. He had poetic aspirations at a young age, composing verses while still working for Sir Richard Howe and sharing his work with Pope. With Pope's encouragement, Dodsley opened a successful bookshop, publishing the first works of many poets, including Mark Akenside, John Brown, John Gilbert Cooper, Thomas Gray, William Mason, William Shenstone, Joseph and Thomas Warton, William Whitehead, William Collins, Stephen Duck, William Thompson, and Edward Young, as well as many of Pope's works. Dodsley sometimes got in trouble for publishing politically sensitive work, including Paul Whitehead's Manners, for which Dodsley paid a £70 fine. Throughout his life, he continued to publish his own original poetic, prose, and dramatic works, as well as several successful compilations. Evidence from copyright purchases suggests that he offered his authors the standard rates for their MS, meaning he was fair, but not generous. It is likely that Dodsley reinvested his profits into his business, as he died with little savings.