Katherine Mercurio Gotthardt

Katherine GotthardtFollow

About the Poet

Award-winning poet and author Katherine Mercurio Gotthardt, M.Ed., writing concentration, hails from the Northern Virginia/D.C. metro area. She considers herself a writer by nature and by trade, having begun writing as soon as her mother helped teach her to read. Her first poem was published by ELF literary journal in 1991, and she has been writing and publishing ever since.

An active part of the literary community, Gotthardt is current president and a founding member of Write by the Rails (WbtR), the Prince William Chapter of the Virginia Writers Club. She is also a member of the Poetry Society of Virginia, Prince William County Arts Council, Gainesville-Haymarket Rotary Club and other organizations. Gotthardt has been a Prince William County Poet Laureate nominee and was the winner of Inside Nova’s 2019 and 2020 Best of Prince William award in the category of author. Her poetry and prose book Get Happy, Dammit: Staying Inspired and Motivated in an Often-Unhappy World received a Silver Award from the Nonfiction Authors Association. Gotthardt's children’s book, an illustrated epic poem entitled A Crane Named Steve, hit number one in its category on Amazon in 2019. She then took first place in the free verse category of Loudoun County Library Foundation’s 2020 Rhyme On poetry contest for her piece "Discussion Topic." The Prince William Arts Council and Poet Laureate Circle awarded her the 2020 Outstanding Poetry Project Award for her leadership in Write by the Rails' Poems Around Townpoetry installation. In 2021, Gotthardt earned second place for "Aftermath" in a Poetry Society of Virginia national contest and the regional Seefeldt Award for Arts Excellence in the category of Individual Artist. She won first place in the Virginia Writers Club statewide Golden Nib contest in the poetry category for her poem "Kayak." Gotthardt was recognized as a PW Perspective 2021 DMV Best Business award winner in the category of author.

While Gotthardt is well-known for her poetry, she also has established a solid reputation for writing articles, columns and short fiction. She is a full-time marketing writer for a government contracting company and is published in dozens of journals and anthologies. As of 2022, she has authored ten books: Poems from the Battlefield, Furbily-Furld Takes on the World, Approaching Felonias Park, Weaker Than Water, Bury Me Under a Lilac, Late April, A Crane Named Steve, and Get Happy, Dammit. D.C. Ekphrastic: Crisis of Faith was released in December 2020. Thirty Years of Cardinals Calling was published by San Francisco Bay Press in 2022. Well aware of the effects of poverty, inequity and injustice, she uses proceeds from her books to support community giving-back initiatives.

From www.KatherineGotthardt.com.

Region

Northern

Virginia City or County Affiliation

Prince William County

Years of Residence in Virginia

23

Current City/State of Residence

Bristow, VA

Gender

Female

Race/Ethnicity

Not Specified

Year of Birth

1969

Keywords/Tags

Inspirational, Motivational, Mental health, Nature, Parenting, Aging, Disabilities, Social justice

Published Works or Performances

  • Thirty Years of Cardinals Calling: Select Published Poems. San Francisco Bay Press, 2022.
  • D.C. Ekphrastic Crisis of Faith. ‎ ATW Publishing, 2020.
  • Late April. 2019.
  • Weaker Than Water. ATW Publishing, 2013.
  • Poems from the Battlefield. Surge Publishing, 2009.
  • Micro Poem and Four Haiku. North of Oxford Press, 2022.
  • "Four Poems." Journal of the Blue Ridge Writers, Spring 2022.
  • Kayak, Panoply Press, 2021.
  • "Aftermath", Poetry Virginia, Poetry Society of Virginia, 2020.
  • "Two Poems." Prince William Poetry Review, Local Gems Press, 2020.

Selected Individual Poems or Performances

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Katherine Mercurio Gotthardt