# Insta Novels

> NYPL put classics in Instagram Stories and reported over 300,000 reads.

- Owner: The New York Public Library
- Kind: Campaign
- Sector: Education
- Seed date: 2018-08-22
- Peak date: Week of Aug 22, 2018
- Date basis: Dates use the stated precision; chart positions are date anchors.
- Spread Score: 31 (Niche), v1.2
- Mechanics: Transgression, Platform jump, Press loop, Creator relay, Newsjacking

## Summary

NYPL and Mother put illustrated classics in Instagram Stories. Press and unaffiliated X users shared the format; Mother reported over 300,000 reads. Later releases followed, and Zürich offered its own Insta Novels.

## Timeline

- 2018-08-20 — @nypl (Instagram) — NYPL teased full classic books coming to Instagram Stories.
- 2018-08-21 — @nypl (Instagram) — NYPL posted an introduction to Insta Novels.
- 2018-08-22 — @nypl (Instagram) — NYPL released the first part of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland as Instagram Stories.

The full timeline, metrics and sources are on the case page, or via the Pro API (https://howitspread.com/developers).

Canonical URL: https://howitspread.com/cases/insta-novels

Cite as: How It Spread (2026). “Insta Novels.” Case HIS-00229. Spread Score v1.2: 31/100. Updated 2026-10-17. https://howitspread.com/id/HIS-00229