Best Instagram Poetry Accounts
Instagram is often criticized for being a time suck, a place to doomscroll, somewhere you leave feeling badly about yourself. When you game the algorithm, I don’t think that has to be the case. Through careful curation, I’ve created a feed of poetry, dogs, frog content, and my best friends’ lives. It’s a lovely place to spend some time. I leave feeling inspired and refreshed, rather than jealous and drained.
I’ve written before about how poetry grounds me when I feel hopeless. It’s still a first line of defense for me, but I’ve found infusing my days with a dose of poetry keeps hopelessness at bay. I especially love when the poetry finds me. Whether in a book that comes across my desk, a poem a friend sends me that made them think of me, or during my evening scroll, I love snippets of poetry that feel like they’ve been looking to tell me this exact stanza of poignant insight. Book Riot writer Carina Pereira put together a guide to Instagram poetry that you should absolutely check out if you’re new here. If you’re looking for a few more accounts to add to your feed and curate your algorithm, I have suggestions for the best Instagram poetry.
Poetry is not a luxury
This account posts a new poem nearly every day. Usually, it’s poems or excerpts that can fit in one frame, which I find makes the words a little more pungent. Make sure you check out the captions, as they will lead you to other amazing accounts where credit to creators is given. Like this one from @coffeehousepress
Maggie Smith
Maggie Smith posts about her life, her own work, and work of those she finds inspiring. You can read her books Goldenrod and Keep Moving in addition to following her account.
Rupi Kaur
No best of Instagram poetry list would be complete without Rupi Kaur. As far as Instagram poets are concern, she is mega famous with her verse and illustration combinations. You might have heard of her famous Milk and Honey, but she also has Healing Through Words, which came out last year.
Rudy Francisco
Rudy Francisco writes about toxic masculinity, racism, mental illness, and matters of the heart. He has performed his spoken word poetry all over the United States and the world. He’s appeared on The Tonight Show and you can buy two of his poetry collections: Helium and I’ll Fly Away.
Andrea Gibson
Andrea Gibson writes about LGBTQ+ issues, mental health, and how to keep your heart open. They recite poetry on their account as well as share pictures of their written work. They have many collections available for purchase, including You Better Be Lightning, Take Me With You, Lord of the Butterflies, and How Poetry Can Change Your Heart.
Kate Baer
Kate Baer is known for her poetry on motherhood and feminism. Her collections include And Yet, I Hope This Finds You Well, and What Kind of Woman.
Nikita Gill
Nikita Gill is publishing a new collection called These Are The Words. Her other work includes Your Soul is a River, The Girl and the Goddess, and Where Hope Comes From.
Mary Oliver’s Drunk Cousin
Written by Lyndsay Rush, this account started a year ago as a way to make poetry more accessible to people who didn’t consider themselves poetry people and to make readers laugh. You won’t be able to help yourself from scrolling back and liking every post.
Morgan Harper Nichols
With a focus on calming art, MHP is a neurodivergent poet and artist sharing encouragement and peace. You Are Only Just Beginning is coming out later this year and MPN has published other works like All Along You Were Blooming and How Far You Have Come.
Samantha King Holmes
Combining her photography and writing skills, Samantha King Holmes tries to document beauty in many forms. You can get her books Born to Love, Cursed to Feel and Don’t Tell Me Not to Ask Why to dive deeper into her work.
Alex Elle
With over 1.5 million followers, Alex Elle shares poignant truths and help for healing. Her most recent work is How We Heal.
Hollie McNish
A well-established poet, Hollie McNish’s work might make you laugh and rage all within the same poem. Some of her published works include Nobody Told Me and Plum.
Blake Auden
Auden writes about love, social issues, and religion. His simple style has caught the eyes of thousands. His published work includes To Drown as a Cure for Thirst and Murmuration.
Click “follow” to update your feeds and curate the algorithm with the best Instagram poetry accounts to feed you art, truth, and beauty through poetry. If you need even more excellent accounts to follow, read 15 Instagram poetry accounts and 12 of our favorites. For all the aspiring poets out there, here are some tips on how to post poetry to Instagram.
