9 Best Sites for Free Poetry

free poetry blog post image

Some writers do their best work with short stories, while others prefer the larger medium of a novel to work out their plots.

Regardless of your preferred writing style, we can all appreciate poetry as the unique art form that it is and the creative freedom it affords its writers.

It’s amazing how even just a 3-line haiku can touch on your deepest emotions and make you feel so understood!

But while you can certainly buy some amazing books of poetry, many outstanding poems are available online for free, and you can read them to your heart’s content—if only you know where to look.

Where Can You Read Poems Online for Free?

Below are 9 excellent options if you’re looking for free poetry to enjoy. Some focus on the classics and well-known poets, while others boast the works of up-and-coming talents.

1. Poets.org

Poets.org is produced by the Academy of American Poets. Since 1996, the site has supplied poems, poets’ biographies, essays about poetry, and helpful resources for K-12 teachers. 

Their database features thousands of poems, as well as a calendar of poetry-related events. Sign up for their Poem-A-Day service to get a different poem delivered straight to your inbox each morning.

2. PoetryFoundation.org

The Poetry Foundation advocates for “a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture.” They publish Poetry magazine, which has been around for over 100 years.

The site hopes to raise awareness and cultivate a greater appreciation for poetry by showcasing thousands of poems and poets. The Poetry Foundation also features podcast interviews, news stories, features, and other fun resources for poetry lovers and aspiring poets alike.

3. Poems.com

Founded in 1997, Poetry Daily (poems.com) is an “anthology of contemporary poetry.” Each day, they showcase poems from new books, magazines, and journals.

You can find the featured poem of the day directly on their homepage, or browse their archives for additional poems. Check out their poetry news highlights and other cool features, like their “What Sparks Poetry” series, a serialized feature of invited poets who discuss the experiences and ideas that spark new poems. 

4. SlowdownShow.org

Acclaimed poet Tracy K. Smith shares her recommendations on The Slowdown, a daily 5-minute podcast where she talks about a poem and then reads it.

On The Slowdown’s website, you can find all the archives of old websites, while the show’s Twitter and Instagram accounts offer pictures and the text of the poem as well. Sign up to have the selected poem delivered straight to your inbox.

5. ButtonPoetry.com

Button Poetry is a small publisher and poetry company that seeks “to showcase the power and diversity of voices in our community.”

They produce and distribute poetry media, which includes everything from videos to chapbooks, collaborative audio recordings, and literary criticism. They also host local and national events. You can find free poems on the Best of Button blog and in their video archive.

6. LittleInfinite.com

Little Infinite Poetry features a vast collection of poems in textual, visual, and audio formats, plus resources for performing, reading, and writing poetry. Browse poems by type (classic or modern), or by topic (for example, poems about anxiety, friendship, social justice, and 10 others).

They also host several contests throughout the year. Follow them on social media for more poetry snippets.

7. FamousPoetsandPoems.com

Famous Poets and Poems boasts a wide collection of over 20,000 poems from more than 550 poets. While many sites on this list showcase up-and-coming, contemporary poets, this site focuses on famous poets and their poems, as the name suggests.

Here you’ll find the works of Maya Angelou, Walt Whitman, Pablo Neruda, and more. The site also selects a poet and poem of the month, shares inspiring quotes, and dedicates an entire page to famous love poems.

8. Luminarium.org

Luminarium specializes in the classics, featuring medieval poets like Geoffrey Chaucer, Renaissance writers, and other works that were published in the 17th and 18th centuries.

You can also find free plays from these time periods, as well as works from contemporary female writers such as Margaret Atwood and Alice Walker.

9. Social Media

If you’re searching for free poetry, look no further than social media. Instagram has a thriving poetry community, where poets of all levels share their literary creations, usually as uploaded images with imaginative formats. For example, Canadian poet Rupi Kaur has over 4.2 million followers and she regularly uploads short poems, often with minimalist illustrations.

Tumblr also hosts a friendly community of aspiring poets, so if you’re on the lookout for fresh new talent, this is the place to look.

Pinterest is a great option if you want to browse hundreds of free poems or quotes by famous poets.

Read More for Free

If you’re looking for more free reading material, you may want to check out our list of the best websites to download free ebooks.

Or, if you’re still on the hunt for more beautiful poetry, be sure to browse our collections of the best love poems and the best poems for kids. And stay tuned for the results of TCK Publishing’s 2021 Poetry Awards Contest! The winning poems will be shared on our site.

Did you find this post helpful? Let us know in the comments below!

 

If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:

The post 9 Best Sites for Free Poetry appeared first on TCK Publishing.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Think Pieces: What They Are and How to Write One

Image
A think piece, also known as a thought piece, is an article or piece of writing intended to stir up the reader’s thoughts. It is usually speculative, with a lot of expository material, context, and the author’s analysis and opinion of existing ideas. Sometimes, think pieces can lean toward the controversial, especially when they seek to challenge majority opinions. Particularly provocative pieces are often the ones that get shared all over social media or the internet. Editors of magazines, blogs, and websites often pay for think pieces, but they are not that easy to write. This is perhaps why many writers aspire to be published in mainstream publications like The New Yorker, The Washington Post, The Economist, The Atlantic, and The Saturday Evening Post , but their submissions barely get a sideways glance.  The good news is that getting a think piece published does not depend on your name or reputation; instead, quality is king. The key is being able to think deeply about a t...
Read more

The Best Mobile Apps for Writers

Image
If you’re a writer looking for a better way to write on your smartphone or mobile device, this post will help. Using a text app or word processor just won’t cut it if you’re doing heavy duty writing on a mobile device. These tools can help whether you have an Android or Apple device. 1. IWriter iWriter is a writing tool that functions excellently on Android and iOS. It is the best app for writing articles, books, or taking detailed notes. iWriter is a simple and elegant text editor. You can download it via iTunes or Google Play . You can check out iWriter subscription pricing here. 2. JotterPad Jotterpad makes it possible to convert files from PDF to WORD and some other popular formats. The app supports Markdown. It includes text styling, a thesaurus, a built-in dictionary that’ll even help you rhyme. It has essential features such as snapshots, typewriter scrolling, undo/redo, night vision, universal dark theme, and phrase finder. JotterPad supports full Cloud integr...
Read more

Author Business Cards: Why You Need Them and How to Make Them

Image
The first rule for being a successful author is to write. The second rule for being a successful author is to write more. The third rule for being a successful author is to always be networking. You never know where your next fan will come from. It might be someone who finds your book on Goodreads, but it might also be the person in front of you at the grocery store or the guy you bump into when you’re out for pizza. You might get chatting with someone at the bowling alley. You might end up discussing your book at the DMV. Your next reader could be anyone, anywhere. So you need to be prepared! That’s why business cards still matter in the digital era. Although we all tote tiny computers in our pockets all day, it’s still a pain in the butt to exchange contact information on a phone—not everyone uses the same system, vCards work with contact and email programs but aren’t universal, and NFC transfers are kind of clunky. Besides, after you dump your information into someone else’...
Read more