Katherine Widner
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Katherine Widner
@katherinewidner.bsky.social
320 followers 380 following 90 posts
Writer, professor, lit lover, & cozy gamer 🙃

My debut poetry collection, “I Wish I Could Write," is now available in print and eBook on Amazon here: https://shorturl.at/vkpZs

Follow me everywhere! https://linktr.ee/katherinewidnerpoetry
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katherinewidner.bsky.social
Splattered blood and
Battle scars, on
Closer inspection are
Merely freckles and
Stretch marks.
Perfect blemishes
Scattered over
The body, guiding
Heart and eye,
Like stars.

#vss365 #scar #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
May 10, 2025 at 12:48 PM
Reposted by Katherine Widner
vwalker-author.bsky.social
POETRYPALOOZA IS LIVE! Stock up on poetry for less than $2. Link in bio.
Blue and white graphic that says “it’s time” announcing the big indie poetry sale PoetryPalooza has started and runs from April 12th to April 14th.
April 12, 2025 at 5:57 AM
katherinewidner.bsky.social
📣 PoetryPalooza 2025 is coming April 12-14! Get indie poetry eBooks (like mine!) for $0.99-$1.99 + enter to win a $15 or $20 Bookshop.org gift card! 😍

🛒 More info + giveaway entry: www.vwpublishing.com/poetrypalooza

#PoetryPalooza #IndiePoet #PoetryMonth

open.substack.com/pub/katherin...
PoetryPalooza 2025 - Coming Soon!!
I’m thrilled to announce I will be taking part in PoetryPalooza 2025!
open.substack.com
April 10, 2025 at 1:21 AM
katherinewidner.bsky.social
It's Day #2 of National Poetry Month! 🥳

Today's prompt is a “Blackout Poetry Challenge."

See my blackout poem on Substack and let me know your thoughts! 🥰 katherinewidner.substack.com/p/something-...

#NationalPoetryMonth #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
Something Like Passion
My free verse poem in response to V. Walker's National Poetry Month Daily Challenge #2: Blackout Poetry Challenge.
katherinewidner.substack.com
April 3, 2025 at 12:27 AM
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It is April 1st ya’ll— AKA, the first day of National Poetry Month! 🎉

Subscribe to my Substack to stay up to date with all the fun things happening this month!

Here’s my poem for Daily Challenge #1: katherinewidner.substack.com/p/my-hands-a...

#NationalPoetryMonth #katherinewidnerpoetry
My hands are weary from typing, My mind, exhausted, seeks insight and motivation, My lithe, pale fingers dance back and forth Over black keys, backlit with illumination. I know not where the words come from, They travel from my brain, through my limbs, and out my hands: Black words appear, like magic, upon My page, once stark white, lonely, and bare. My hands, dutiful basins of wisdom, traverse The copious pages writ once before And care not to stop and mimic voices of those long-gone— Hence, my hands are weary from typing. -Katherine Widner
April 2, 2025 at 3:49 AM
katherinewidner.bsky.social
“Contaminated Brain”

#vss365 #euphoria #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
We live in times of Canned laughter and Store-bought silence, Breathing in air Through holes punched In plastic bags, and embracing Without touching, hand To gloved hand, mouth To taped mouth. Wash, rinse, repeat. Every experience, an echo of Of what should be, every Interaction removed from Itself, sanitized and scrubbed Until we become desensitized To everyone and everything— Until joy is not joy, but Dull, meaningless pleasure. Wash, rinse, repeat. Wash, rinse, repeat. We duplicate the experiment Longing, throbbing, aching To experience deviation. But we will never Feel true euphoria Until every person Becomes free. Wash, rinse, repeat. Wash, rinse, repeat. Wash, rinse, repeat. -Katherine Widner
March 31, 2025 at 9:09 PM
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“Joy’s Thief”

#vss365 #velveteen #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
Velvet amongst velveteen. One longs to offer The world something More than mere utility, The other longs to be Something more than Flesh to be touched and seen. -Katherine Widner
March 30, 2025 at 9:04 PM
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“Ode to Alexithymia”

#vss365 #gossamer #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #hainka
#haiku #tanka #hybrid #katherinewidnerpoetry
Gossamer strands, the Intricate albedo or The vernix caseosa. Protective film will Not protect the fruit. Inside— Gossamer strands, the Heart and soul, as they grow, risk Being juiced or just sucked dry. -Katherine Widner
March 29, 2025 at 7:49 PM
katherinewidner.bsky.social
“Richard Parker”

Btw folks— read about the real story of the Mignonette! It’s wild! Or listen to the Avett Brothers’ album Mignonette ☺️ (that’s how I learned years ago!)

#vss365 #mignonette #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #tanka #katherinewidnerpoetry
My family, the Mignonette. And I am the Cabin boy. From a Distance, all is serene. But Real love does not row that way. -Katherine Widner
March 28, 2025 at 8:57 PM
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Sorry it’s so late today y’all!! I was at work way too long 🤪

“They Say / I Say”

#vss365 #canoodle #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
they say that teen girls who make “googoo eyes” and canoodle with boys are destined for trouble and nasty, hopeless whores. i say that teen girls are merely searching for something they will never find in the arms of someone else. -Katherine Widner
March 28, 2025 at 2:08 AM
katherinewidner.bsky.social
“Hungry Girl, Edible Woman”

Base cravings dictate
Sustenance, sex, and knowledge
Eclipse all other
Needs. I sit, insatiable,
Fork poised, and lick my plate clean.

#vss365 #insatiable #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #tanka #katherinewidnerpoetry
March 26, 2025 at 9:50 PM
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“Marital Sex”

#vss365 #desire #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
Love and desire Are two Chromides; One yellow and The other green— Different genera, but The same species. Our bodies drown In symbiosis, hands Drifting softly, desperately. Lips brushing, fingers Touching, I bite, Teeth bared, a Smile on my Face, and trace My tongue from Place to place, Cartographically, Following the roots Of my longing. We imprint flesh Against flesh, chest Against chest, heart Against heart, open Mouth against raw Soul. We grasp Frenzied, restlessly clasping Sweaty palms at The crisp sheets, Carphologially, And my hair, Tumbling down, earth Brown, like foliage Or a veil, Hides my wretched Shame from the Eyes of God In an embrace Too tender to Ever be seen. -Katherine Widner
March 25, 2025 at 8:05 PM
katherinewidner.bsky.social
My inspiration?
The mundane— through bright eyes, not
Yet dulled to the world.

#vss365 #inspiration #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #haiku #katherinewidnerpoetry
March 24, 2025 at 7:12 PM
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“Starving Artists”

#vss365 #passion #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
Like many artists, the Writer finds carnal Passion in their Craft. They desire openly And wantonly, eyeing The page, a blank Canvas, and the Act of seduction, From spark to idea, From idea to the page, Causes a sensual Sensation, a mix of Lust and anticipation. And with every word written They softly trace their Fingertips around every Crevice and nook, As if they are trying To absorb the piece Through skin-to-skin Contact— like they are Desperate to know it, To make love to it, To keep it to themselves. They place their lips Upon the flesh, sharing Secrets with the Universe that only The page can tell. -Katherine Widner
March 23, 2025 at 8:14 PM
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“The Church of the State”

#vss365 #indivisibility #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
They say it’s only In oppressed regimes That citizens are forced To bow, to crawl and Scrape their knees. They show us pictures Of classrooms, dingy Walls with portraits of Leaders allegedly supreme— They say the eyes Of those gods will Follow you, from room to Room, from place to Place, and it’s your Family that will pay The price if you End up a disgrace. Yet here we slumber In the land of the free, With the illusion of choice: In the morning we get To choose coffee or Tea! And we send off Our children to learn Independence, to learn To see— but Instead they chant praises To a flag, purporting Indivisibility. And the problem with a Flag, instead of a picture Is that anyone can wave it And regurgitate holy scripture. That flag, like those portraits Are just empty, meaningless Things, meant to inspire Fruitless, garish mimicry. No matter the love we give Or the allegiance we pledge, We live in a place we Will never be free. -Katherine Widner
March 22, 2025 at 2:24 PM
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“Uranglass CorningWare”

#vss365 #radioactive #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
My trauma, like Uranglass corningware Was handed down to me. A family heirloom— A gift that I Could not appreciate Nor understand As a little girl, but now Fully resent and Embody in my Grown woman’s flesh. My hands, now Stained, radioactive From cradling it, frantically Turning it over and over, Interrogating it from every Angle in the hopes Of finding something Meaningful or lovable, Would rather shatter The thing than Pass it down to Someone new. -Katherine Widner
March 21, 2025 at 9:00 PM
katherinewidner.bsky.social
“Secondhand Serenade”

Ultramarine, strokes
Of celadon— hues fail to
Capture earth’s grandeur.
Sempiternal, we sing praise
With fervent, unworthy words.

#vss365 #sempiternal #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #tanka #katherinewidnerpoetry
March 20, 2025 at 12:34 PM
katherinewidner.bsky.social
“Workaholic”

Guilty
Is my conscience—
My toiling, ne’er enough
To fill the vast emptiness of
My soul.

#vss365 #guilty #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #cinquain #katherinewidnerpoetry
March 19, 2025 at 1:44 AM
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My Grown-Up Lullaby

#vss365 #lullaby #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
I never had a lullaby As an infant or a child— My mother never sang, My father merely whistled. But as I grew older I realized an inherent Desire to find a Tune that could somehow Soothe me in times of Perpetual sorrow. “Oh Mary, this London’s A wonderful sight. There’s people here Working, by day And by night.” When I hear the lyrics, And I feel the melody, My soul sings in tandem. My heart pangs, The notes stab me, irenically Through the middle of my heart, All the way down to my gut Until I can See only mountains, Until I can Taste only rain. I am both soothed and Revitalized by the symphony Of a place I’ve never been, and A time I wasn’t raised, And I take comfort In the horripilation— The manifestation Of passion, that my Grown-up lullaby brings. -Katherine Widner
March 17, 2025 at 8:43 PM
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Ode to my Sacré-Cœur Rosary

#vss365 #cerulean #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
St. Christopher watches Me. As I drive Down the road, Blood red beads Dangle in my periphery, Dancing, like scarlet Ribbons, liquid in their Movements. Against The sun‘s light, Hints of cerulean Glint off the beads, Haphazardly swinging. Momentarily blinding. I reach out to Carefully thumb the Face of our Lord— No silent prayers, No confessions or thoughts. Just my eyes on the road, And the beads Winking at me, mixing Together like Blood and water. -Katherine Widner
March 16, 2025 at 10:43 PM
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Historia est Magistra Vitae

#vss365 #vssdaily #interregnum #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
History repeats itself— Humanity, seeking truth, Plunges its emblematic hand Into thick quicksand, searching For a relic to help them Better understand The world they find Themselves stuck in. The common thread that Ties us to our past Is a genuine belief that The world has reached its Unnatural end— that times Are at their worst, that we Stand, itching to jump, At a precipice. Will they say This is another such Interregnum? Perhaps. I say, hold fast And cling to hope— The one holy relic Made to last. -Katherine Widner
March 15, 2025 at 1:14 PM
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As Above, So Below

Skin and bone alone,
A myopic autopsy—
How false is the flesh
That we think we are just so?
The heart, soul, and mind transcend.

#vss365 #vssdaily #myopic #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #tanka #katherinewidnerpoetry
March 14, 2025 at 4:10 PM
Reposted by Katherine Widner
jangoeswriting.bsky.social
Yearning. Lone bird song,

Among the haunting wind chimes,

A mate never found.

#vss365 #Haiku

(Literally had to stop doing what I was doing to write this in one of my many, *many* notebooks. 😅)
March 12, 2025 at 11:43 AM
katherinewidner.bsky.social
Künstlerroman

Obstreperous heart,
Fire dances through her veins—
Wildly pumping joy.
How soon though may fire die?
Not by love’s hand, but life’s pain?

#vss365 #vssdaily #obstreperous #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #tanka #katherinewidnerpoetry
March 13, 2025 at 8:25 PM
katherinewidner.bsky.social
In Situ

#vss365 #vssdaily #chime #writingcommunity #poetry #poems #writesky #writing #poetrycommunity #freeverse #katherinewidnerpoetry
Memories come to me Quite suddenly— besieging My mind, and all at once I find I am out of step With my own time. Like a ghost that sighs, Wind, nature’s intrinsic Exhalation, sifts my thoughts Through a sieve, until all I can Hear are the faintest Tinklings of a wind chime. Little birds splash about In a stone fountain, but I remain Contentedly rooted, as the sights And smells fill up the void in my mind. If I squint hard enough, it’s almost As if I am still there, In situ, sitting contentedly among The chachkis, as if My scent remains, still lingering Like cigarette fumes Soaked through old oak paneling. -Katherine Widner
March 12, 2025 at 10:25 PM