About the Poet
Catherine Puma (she/they) is a queer writer who nests in her Alexandria, VA home with her rescue dogs, husband, and their many books. After being vice president of her high school literary magazine, she was secretary for her college writing club, where she received her B.S. in Environmental Sciences and English from the University of Notre Dame and was awarded the 2015 Outstanding Student in Pre-1700 Literature.
During the day, Catherine uses her M.P.S. Tropical Marine Ecosystem Management degree from the University of Miami as part of her career in government consulting. She has lived in Alexandria, VA for years and has been an active member of the Arlington Writers Group since 2018. She is recharged by their annual writing retreats in Shenandoah Valley.
After hours, Catherine has published flash fiction in The Blotter Magazine and a number of haiku and free verse poetry in various online and print journals and anthologies. Her poem “Tokitae” was selected for Lit Shark Magazine’s Best of 2024 Anthology. A series of her haiku received honorable mention in the Poetry Society of Virginia’s 2025 Annual Adult Contest. Her poem “Leaves on the Tree”, is included in The Nature of Our Times: Poems on America's Lands, Waters, Wildlife, and Other Natural Wonders anthology from Paloma Press, which is a 2026 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Finalist and 2026 American Legacy Book Award Winner. Author Website: https://www.catherinepumawrites.com/
Region
Northern
Virginia City or County Affiliation
Alexandria, VA (Fairfax County)
Years of Residence in Virginia
7
Current City/State of Residence
Alexandria, VA
Gender
Non-binary
Race/Ethnicity
White
Year of Birth
1992
Keywords/Tags
lgbtq, science, nature, environment
Website
Published Works or Performances
Poems:
two untitled haiku (forthcoming in The Haiku Shack Magazine, Issue 7: Desert, 2026)
one untitled haiku (In MAYFLY, Issue 80, Winter 2026)
“Eros” (In Moonflake Press, Issue #10: The Affair, Vol. II, December 2025)
one untitled haiku (In Wales Haiku, Autumn '25 Edition)
“Leaves on the Tree” (In The Nature of Our Times: Poems on America's Lands, Waters, Wildlife, and Other Natural Wonders Anthology by Paloma Press, 2025)
one untitled haiku (In Haikuniverse, August 2025)
one untitled haiku (In Under the Bashō, August 2025)
“working eulogy” (In Cerasus Poetry Magazine, #4, April 2025)
“I cannot recall the last time I wasn’t scarred by my own hands” (In Shadow Work Vol. 2: Tarot issue, Grey Coven Publishing, February 2025)
“Tokitae” and “I killed today” (In The Nature of Our Times: Poems on America's Lands, Waters, Wildlife, and Other Natural Wonders online gallery, January 2025)
“Animals on Vacation” (In SEVENSEAS Media’s Issue 116 - Women in Conservation, January 2025)
“Tokitae” and “I killed today” (In Lit Shark Magazine, Best of 2024 Anthology, January 2025
“Mother” and “Leaves on the Tree” (In The Nature of Our Times: Poems on America's Lands, Waters, Wildlife, and Other Natural Wonders online gallery, December 2024)
“Tokitae” (In Lit Shark Magazine: Issue 8, The SHARK WEEK Edition, November 2024)
“Leaves on the Tree” and “As Atoms Collide” (In ionosphere Vol. I Issue 2, Amplicon Press, July 2024)
Flash Fiction:
“Of Horse Girls and Honeysuckles” (In The Blotter Magazine, December 2024)
Selected Individual Poems or Performances
“Eros”, Moonflake Press, Issue #10: The Affair Vol. II, 2025
“Leaves on the Tree”, The Nature of Our Times: Poems on America's Lands, Waters, Wildlife, and Other Natural Wonders anthology, Paloma Press, 2025
“I killed today”, Lit Shark Magazine’s Best of 2024 Anthology, January 2025
“Tokitae”, Lit Shark Magazine: The SHARK WEEK Edition, November 2024
“As Atoms Collide”, ionosphere Vol. I Issue 2 by Amplicon Press, July 2024. PDF attached
Catherine Puma