Spectacularly unspectacular: How Peter Katsnelson is finding power through humour and honesty

Julia Finot, Staff Writer

In front of the camera but behind the screen, a 17-year-old sits reading into his phone, sharing poems about growing up, insecurity and self-acceptance. At first glance, Peter Katsnelson seems ordinary, but his words have prompted viewers to stop scrolling and listen. 

Katsnelson is a Calgary teenager gaining attention online for poetry that feels playful but deeply personal. He is an emerging poet and author, and through the power of social media, he has grown an audience by writing candidly about adolescence, identity and the awkwardness of maturing, often with humor at the forefront.

Katsnelson posts videos of short self-written poems on Instagram, and his most-liked post has over 580,000 likes. 

Katsnelson is a quirky teenage boy who is not afraid to show it. Through his niche artistic interests and captivating poems, he sets himself apart from other kids. Whether on social media or in person, Katsnelson stays true to himself.

“I would say that I’m a little bit weird,” Katsnelson says. “I don’t think I’m scared enough of the people around me, I kind of just go for it.”

His willingness to openly engage with the world around him has shaped him and his art. Poetry began as a casual hobby before it took on a new life as Katsnelson’s primary creative outlet. It became his way to change while struggling with teenage uncertainty. 

Unlike traditional ‘teenage slam poetry,’ which Katsnelson notes as dark and sometimes performative, he leans his work into warmth, humor and narrative storytelling. 

“I like to tell stories very directly in my poetry,” he says. “They’re always about experiences I’ve had and discovering myself and my place in the world.”

Katsnelson calls this approach “narrative youth poetry,” which is a genre focused on honesty in art.

He often writes about love, acceptance or the issues he sees around him. 

His first publication

Katsnelson independently self-published his own book, This is Fine.

This was a project that started out as a small chapbook intended to be mysteriously placed in libraries for someone to find by chance. But this project quickly expanded into a three-part full-length work that has since found a large international audience, everywhere from Canada across to Japan. 

Publishing wasn’t easy. After a failed attempt working alongside a local startup publishing company, he took it upon himself to publish the book.

The first part of the book is focused on comedy, full of lighthearted and endearing poems. The middle blends his comedic style with sincerity, while the final part strips the comedic tone entirely, revealing raw emotional teenage vulnerability. 

“I’ve heard that it’s funny, which is good, because that was the goal,” says Katsnelson. “But the end is a lot heavier.”

The shift in tones has surprised readers who expected the book to read as comedic throughout.. But instead, This is Fine highlights Katsnelson’s emotional growth, a choice that structurally matches his real-time experience in adolescence. 

Peter Katsnelson independently published his first
book, This is Fine, which explores personal growth,
acceptance and sincerity. Photo courtesy of Peter
Katsnelson

Ripple effect

Katsnelson is inspiring many young writers to chase their passion for poetry.

Local 15-year-old poet, Grace, says learning about Katsnelson and reading his work has encouraged her to pursue publishing her own writing. Grace is considering posting some of her own poems.

Beyond writers, Katsnelson influences his fans. His audience includes teenagers and adults alike, many of whom encounter his work through social media.

Katsnelson describes himself as “spectacularly unspectacular,” a phrase he uses in his own writing, reflecting his resistance to artistic pretension. Through his poems, he also admits to exaggerating his identity to appear more interesting than he feels, although he rejects his own need to perform. 

“If I can’t be honest even in my own art, then the only point it serves is to make myself feel important enough to be an artist,” he wrote. 

His stories are about acceptance, and the recognition that survival, presence and sincerity are enough to make him an artist. 

Katsnelson is experimenting with this future and exploring other creative outlets. Filmmaking is one thing at the top of his list.

As his audience continues to grow, Katsnelson remains grounded in that idea. In a media environment often driven by spectacle, his quiet insistence on truth has proven to be exactly what resonates.