Well, I've tried playing harp and I hang out with harpers, so I know a few things.

The first thing poetlady needs to do is to locate a folk harp and try playing it. She might find that she doesn't like it at all. That's what I found. A harp is romantic, but having the strings jut out a couple feet out in front of you can be uncomfortable. Some people like it, some don't.

Next, if she doesn't hava a teacher, she could develop bad habits which will inhibit her playing or worse yet, cause hand or shoulder problems. A person needs a few lessons, at least.

The Sylvia Woods books someone mentioned are not highly thought of.   They say that Sylvia is not consistent in her approach, "doesn't even know herself how she will finger a phrase."

Then there's the question of what physical shape she's in. I know people who fall in love with a harp in the store, then don't take it anywhere (say to a workshop) because it's too much work. So watch out for that pitfall.

I think the best thing she could do is to locate the nearest chapter of the American Harp Society and then start hanging out with harpers, too.