3 Instagram Accounts to Follow for National Poetry Month
It is both easier and more difficult than ever to stay engaged with a poetic practice in today's social media climate. Ignoring for a moment the fact that many writers find social media to be a huge distraction from their craft, Instagram doesn't do much, by design, to honor or promote the art of the written word. There are endless Instagram accounts dedicated to posting poems, but sifting through the slush and bots to find what resonates with you can prove daunting. In honor of National Poetry Month, here are three Instagram accounts that uniquely center poetry.
1. Poetry is Not a Luxury - @poetryisnotaluxury
It's possible you've seen your favorite writer re-post a poem from this account on their Instagram story. The beauty of this account, which gets its name from a poem by Audre Lorde, is in its anonymity. The account aggregates poems, not unlike the newsletters and social media accounts of organizations like The Academy of American Poets or The Poetry Foundation, but the account's anonymity allows for the poems to have their own unique space to breathe. While it would be nice to think that Audre Lorde herself is posting her favorite poems from beyond the grave, the name is likely just a tribute. The posts are simply screenshots or photographs of poems from a wide range of writers, from Maya Angelou to Saeed Jones to Molly Brodak, and many more. The only through-line of the poems that are featured seems to be that the poems all embody the sense that poetry is, indeed, not a luxury; the poems are striking in their joy and poignance alike, and resonate with thousands of Instagram users. Their Patreon, which has a meager following compared to their Instagram, aims to "create poetry community," and offers revisions and writing prompts to its highest tier of contributors.
2. Andrea Gibson - @andrewgibby
Many poets have their own Instagram accounts, but not every poet's account is itself a "poetry" Instagram. Andrea Gibson stands out in this field. Gibson is one of the ultimate living "poet's poets," having spent years performing their poems as well as publishing six poetry collections. Both their posts on their main Instagram page, as well as their story posts, are dedicated to highlighting lines and whole poems of theirs. Some of the posts have captions that offer context, but many of the posts stand alone with no explanation: stark white text on a black background. Poetically, Gibson's verse is universal and accessible to readers from all walks of life. In addition, they regularly post about writing workshops they're leading, as well as virtual readings and other events, and the Linktree in their bio has a section of writing prompts to help you get inspired.
3. Devin Kelly - @dgkelly91 (Bonus follow: "Ordinary Plots: Meditations on Poems + Verse")
Kelly is more of a Twitter poet than an Instagram poet, if for no other reason that his audience on Twitter is a bit wider than his audience on Instagram, and that his tweets are more geared toward poetry than his Instagram posts are. That said, any successful social media account inspires its followers to seek further information about the works they feature, and Kelly is no different. He writes a weekly newsletter called Ordinary Plots: Meditations on Poems + Verse" in which he highlights and discusses his favorite poems. Every week, among his other tweets about poetry, he tweets the subscription link. He investigates poems without overanalyzing, as though each work he writes about is found in nature over the course of his life and given a home. If you're looking to experience poems through someone else's lens (and you want to step away from Instagram for a moment), Kelly's meditations are a wonderful prism through which you can find more poets and poems to read and love.
Some other accounts to follow:
St. Mark's Poetry Project (@poetry_project) - The Poetry Project's Instagram features online events and readings, having previously been devoted to in-person events at the St. Mark’s Church-in-the-Bowery since 1966.
New York Writers' Coalition (@nywriters) - The NYWC is a non-profit offering free online workshops and virtual readings to the public as well as marginalized communities in New York City.
Depressing Fridge Poems (@depressingfridgepoems) - This account ticks the "just-for-fun" box. It does exactly what it says on the tin, widening the borders of what one might consider poetry.
