iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Jumping on this summer’s #Odyssey bandwagon (or should that be black-hulled ship?) to share this poem from my first collection, which contains a line from E. V. Rieu’s 1946 Penguin Classics translation: ‘Bring your ship to rest, so that you may hear our voices.’

youtu.be

The Road Must Eventually Lead to the Whole World – Rhys Owain Williams

YouTube video by Rhys Owain Williams

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

✨ COVER REVEAL ✨ @parthianbooks.bsky.social are publishing my second poetry collection Here’s What Happens When You Enter a Black Hole this October!

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

Chuffed to be shortlisted for the Rhys Davies Short Story Competition with 'Kilvey Hill' – a horror story built around urban myth and set upon Swansea's dockside Sub Marilyn. Congratulations to all the other writers on the shortlist!

swansea.ac.uk

2026 Rhys Davies Short Story Competition shortlist announced

The shortlist for the prestigious 2026 Rhys Davies Short Story Competition has been announced.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

I’ve got two poems in the new issue of The Aftershock Review – & what an issue it is! Just look at the list of incredible poets on the cover, all writing in the aftershock of trauma & crisis. Diolch to editor @maxwallis.bsky.social for choosing ‘Document’ & ‘Being Less Stressed is on My To-Do List’.

Issue 3 of the Aftershock Review resting against a red brick wall. The cover is purple and includes the following names in white text: HOLLIE MCNISH, FIONA SAMPSON, ABEER AMEER, YURI LEVING, XINGYU ZHAO, AARON KENT, ITALO FERRANTE, CATHERINE REDFORD, STEPHEN BOYCE, BLAKE MORRISON, RAYMOND ANTROBUS, JESSICA MOOKHERJEE, TOM BRANFOOT, HELEN MORT, MAURA DOOLEY, KATIE HALE

A photograph of the page of the magazine that includes the poem ‘Document’ by Rhys Owain Williams. The title and some of the text of the poem are visible in the image.

A photograph of the page of the magazine that includes the poem ‘Being Less Stressed is on My To-Do List’ by Rhys Owain Williams. The title and some of the text of the poem are visible in the image.

The back cover of The Aftershock Review Issue 3. White text on purple background, including a quote from The Guardian: ‘A jolt to the mainstream.’

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 05/04/2026

Have you seen they’re up by the moon?

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

Do you have a favourite poem featuring an Argos van? This is mine.

DEATH COMES TO ME AS AN ARGOS VAN

The stupid thing is that as it broadsides me with turquoise and scarlet and steel
all I can think of is that dog someone read us a story about in primary school and finding it funny that someone would call their dog Argos, even if it was in Ancient Greece
and sad that he died waiting
but this only lasts a second because my bike is in freefall towards a shining road
and my day is spooling like wet videotape: tea, tea, internet, invoices,
the chimes of Tibetan bowls in my ears like raindrops.
A multi-tasker, one eye always wandering on its stray root
after water. A fetcher and carrier,
a taker of minutes. The one who makes sure
there is milk in the fridge, the bins are out, the doors are double-locked so
nothing exciting can happen, but at least things will be coherent.
Spinning back, I replay Attenborough last night narrating
the lives of rainforest plants, explaining how even the passive are fighters,
elbowing others out of the way in their bloody-minded pursuit of light,
of water to bend light through, of vision.
And how, patient and unseen, rainforests carry 50% of the world's species.
And I remember how this morning I just said goodbye and I love you
and lacked the imagination to do anything more than be clear. I didn't write you a poem today
or even any good texts. It's impossible to write a rainforest down,

– Rosie Breese

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 01/03/2026

Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Sant Hapus! The traditional leek and daffodil joined by more unconventional adornments this year 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Me wearing a green cardigan over a red Welsh football shirt. On the cardigan are leek and daffodil brooches, while on the football shirt are two stickers of cartoon dogs Chilli and Bingo from the kids’ show ‘Bluey’.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 14/02/2026

Sometimes you see a murmuration of starlings above an InPost locker at dusk and just think “oh god, not another poem”

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 10/02/2026

Love seeing your poetry prints framed and up on walls! They’re still on sale here if you want one (or just send me a DM): ko-fi.com/rhysowainwil...

Framed art print on a cream wall beside wooden floating bookshelves. The print shows a dark blue sky over a stylised sea with the silhouette of a distant ship, overlaid with the text, ‘That lone ship on the horizon arriving or leaving?’ On the shelves are stacked books, a small owl figurine and a ceramic seagull ornament.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

This year’s Ghost Story for Christmas. Another solid short story from the series, though I don’t love that Penguin have taken over from Biblioasis and made the quality of the materials used to make these stocking-filler books worse.

A copy of ‘The Captain of the Pole Star’ by Arthur Conan Doyle, published in Seth’s Ghost Story for Christmas series. The book is resting on the branches of a Christmas tree and is lit by multi-coloured LED lights.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 18/12/2025

If you’re looking for a last-minute poetry gift, today’s the last day to order in time for Christmas delivery! 🎅📦 25% off with discount code ISAWONESHIP

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Mari Ellis Dunning 🖋️ @mariellisdunning.bsky.social · 18/12/2025

Another month, another #Substack post. There's some helpful articles linked here about existing online as a #writer (or anyone trying to 'build a brand.') open.substack.com/pub/marielli... #Rest #Christmas #AmReading #AmWriting #BookSky #WritingSky

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The Ex-Puritan @ex-puritan.bsky.social · 11/12/2025

Issue 71 features poems from Yan Zhang, Maryam Ghafoor, @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social, E. M. Palitha Edirisooriya (translated by samodH Porawagamage & Kasun Pathirage), Drew McEwan, and Nicole Boyce. You can read their work at ex-puritan.ca/issue-71-fal...

ex-puritan.ca

Issue 71: Fall 2025

Issue 71: Fall 2025 has arrived! This edition features yet another incredible array of fiction, poetry, and non-fiction representing the best new and established Canadian writing.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 04/12/2025

🎅 Looking for a gift for the poetry reader in your life? 📚 Everything in my Ko-fi shop is 25% off until 25th December when you use discount code ISAWONESHIP ko-fi.com/rhysowainwil... Books can be sent signed or unsigned, and if you let me know the person's name I'll write a dedication to them ✍️

A framed blue and white print of a ship on the horizon sits on a blue and green Welsh blanket, with a copy of the book That Lone Ship by Rhys Owain Williams placed on one side, and a postcard featuring the cover on the other. A red circle in the top right corner reads '25% off all Ko-fi Shop items with discount code ISAWONESHIP'

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 02/12/2025

For anyone out there who’s still holding on to autumn despite the encroachment of our winter celebrations, I’ve got a new poem published in @ex-puritan.bsky.social’s Fall Issue. Diolch to editor Sanna Wani for choosing it! ex-puritan.ca/autumn-as-a-...

ex-puritan.ca

Autumn as a Lo-Fi YouTube Video

Read Rhys Owain Williams's poem "Autumn as a Lo-Fi YouTube Video" in Issue 71: Fall 2025 of The Ex-Puritan, then check out the Austin Clarke Prize in Literary Excellence!

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The Ex-Puritan @ex-puritan.bsky.social · 01/12/2025

We’re excited to release Issue 71: Fall 2025! Get cozy with vibrant new fiction, poetry, essays, interviews, and reviews, along with the winning pieces of the 2025 Austin Clarke Prize in Literary Excellence:

ex-puritan.ca

Issue 71: Fall 2025

Issue 71: Fall 2025 has arrived! This edition features yet another incredible array of fiction, poetry, and non-fiction representing the best new and established Canadian writing.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

Hoping to be able to share some exciting book news in the New Year. Until then I’m still flogging the first collection, and I’ve also added this brand new digital art print featuring the title poem (made by me, no AI) to my Ko-fi shop. UK & international postage available. ko-fi.com/rhysowainwil...

A framed print stands against a concrete wall. The print shows a stylised seascape with a dark blue sky, a white band of cloud and rippling blue water. On the horizon is a simple blue silhouette of a ship. Text in the sky reads: ‘That lone ship on the horizon / arriving or leaving?‘ The book That Lone Ship by Rhys Owain Williams leans against the frame, featuring a dark cover with a blue title and a white ship.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 16/11/2025

I’ve got a poem in Vernacular’s latest issue: a slasher-inspired prose poem featuring characters from Coronation Street – part of a sequence of poems I'm writing about depictions of stepfathers in fiction. vernacularjournal.com/Richard-Hillman-Drives-Gail-Sarah-Louise-David-and-Little-Baby

vernacularjournal.com

Richard Hillman Drives Gail, Sarah-Louise, David and Little Baby Bethany into the Weatherfield Canal — Vernacular Journal

Richard Hillman Drives Gail, Sarah-Louise, David and Little Baby Bethany into the Weatherfield Canal Rhys Owain Williams It’s almost 9pm on a Wednesday...

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Nick Land Acknowledgement 🇵🇸🏳️‍🌈 @lonestartallboi.bsky.social · 08/01/2024

20 years ago we were suing teenagers for millions of dollars because they were torrenting a single Metallica album and now billionaires are demanding the free right to every work in history, so that they can re-sell it. The law only ever serves capital.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 08/11/2025

Lore update: my 3-year-old says Garfield doesn’t love lasagne he loves sushi. It makes more sense I suppose.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 30/08/2025

Best stairwell in Wales (if there is such a thing)

Stairwell with beige tiled walls featuring vertical blue and brown stripes. A wooden handrail with black metal supports runs along the stairs, which are covered in light gray flooring with black stair edges.

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Mari Ellis Dunning 🖋️ @mariellisdunning.bsky.social · 19/08/2025

The term 'wits' / 'witsh' first appeared in William Salisbury's Welsh-English dictionary in 1547, borrowed from the English 'witch.' Before then, the Welsh didn't really have a word to describe witches. Accusations in Welsh records are full of 'witses' & 'witshes.'

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 23/08/2025

I've never written a sestina before, but I've had an idea for one for a couple of years now without ever sitting down to write it. Finally pushing myself to get at least a first draft ready by the end of this month, and thought I would 'live tweet' (or whatever the Bluesky version is) as I go.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 20/08/2025

I’ve got a poem in the new issue of @gutter.bsky.social, available to buy at guttermag.co.uk/getgutter/p/gutter-32. ‘The First Law of Thermodynamics’ is written in memory of my stepdad, who died in March 2020 a week before the first lockdown. Can’t believe over 5 years have now passed.

Hand holding a copy of Gutter magazine, Issur 32. The cover is red with bold vertical strokes of red, orange and yellow paint in the centre. The title ‘Gutter’ is printed in large yellow text at the top, with the subtitle ‘New Scottish and international writing’ beneath.

A close-up photograph of an open magazine showing a poem titled ‘The First Law of Thermodynamics’ by Rhys Owain Williams, with the subtitle ‘i.m. my stepfather.’ The page number 44 is visible in the top left corner, and ‘Gutter 32’ in the top right. The poem is cut off, but the visible text reads:

The week before the world closed down,
I lit a candle in the Hallgrímskirkja
not yet knowing you had gone.
The coin dropped in the church’s box
a ritual copied from my mother,
who lights them to remember her own.

Though I don’t believe in divine light,
within a house of prayer’s quiet pause
I light a candle for her too: the grandmother
that Alzheimer's made sure I barely knew.
A woman certain in her faith—white-haired
pilgrim to Golgotha’s skull, the empty tomb.
But the candle lit on that icy Reykjavík afternoon
now belongs to you.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 24/07/2025

Been thinking this week how most of the poems I write come from sitting down and choosing to work on something, but every so often that spark of inspiration hits and all of a sudden an entire first draft has appeared out of nowhere.

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Natalie Ann Holborow @natholborow.bsky.social · 15/07/2025

This has been a dream to work on and a nice break to write about history, creativity and falling down hills on my backside in beautiful South Wales. Out September 15th! Pre-order here: www.serenbooks.com/book/wild-ru... #running #writing #trailrunning

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Mari Ellis Dunning 🖋️ @mariellisdunning.bsky.social · 23/07/2025

❀ WITSH ❀ There's just 3 months to go until Witsh hits bookshelves! I'm so excited to be able to share this story with the world. ✬ I don't want to inundate anyone but just to say, pre orders are open: uk.bookshop.org/p/books/wits... ✬ #Witchcraft #Witchrature #Wales #WritingSky #HistoricFiction

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Emily Vanderploeg @emily-vanderploeg.bsky.social · 14/07/2025

A Suppertime Special Edition! I am going to be serializing my novel, “Are You There?”, on Substack over the next ten weeks (starting next Monday). Check out my latest post to see how it all works and gear up for a fun 🤩 summer read 🏖️ 👻 emilyvanderploeg.substack.com/p/are-you-th...

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 01/07/2025

Bit late posting about this but was so happy to have a new poem published in the latest issue of @poetrywales.bsky.social – a special edition feat 60 new Welsh poets to celebrate the magazine’s 60th anniversary. Diolch to @zoebrigley.bsky.social for choosing it and here’s to the next 60 years of PW!

A hand holds up the Spring 2025 issue of Poetry Wales magazine against a backdrop of lush green foliage. The magazine cover is green and black, featuring the headline ‘60 New Welsh Poets for 60 Years of Poetry Wales: from Abeer Ameer to Zillah Bowes.’ The bottom half of the cover is a collage of past Poetry Wales covers, showcasing a variety of designs, colours and styles over the years.

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Professor Karen Sands-O’Connor @ksandsoconnor.bsky.social · 23/06/2025

Librarians and primary school teachers! Join me and @darrenchetty.bsky.social for this event on July 10th in Cardiff on Creating Inclusive Libraries and Curricula and get a free copy of Beyond the Secret Garden!

Poster for July 10th event with Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor, ‘Creating Inclusive Libraries and Curricula’ with the National Literacy Trust

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 10/06/2025

Signed in to LinkedIn for the first time in over 2 years. It's always been full of nonsense, but I see they're now making up geographical areas on there too.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 17/05/2025

The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was making the advert at the top of my inbox look like an unread email.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 11/05/2025

Can't believe it's been 20 years since the last game at @swansofficial.bsky.social's Vetch Field, a 2–1 win that saw us raise the FAW Premier Cup. Here's a poem I wrote about that final final-whistle, originally published in 'That Lone Ship' (available from @parthianbooks.bsky.social). #UppaJacks

Vetch Field Elegy
Swansea City vs. Wrexham, FAW Premier Cup Final,
Swansea, Wales, 11th May 2005

On your deathbed
we stripped you.
Ripped out red plastic seats
and advertisement boards
like thieves
stealing gold from fresh bodies.

The Vetch clock,
not yet stopped
but definitely slowing,
tick-tocked our
final minutes away
as Roger Evans,
muffled by soot,
whispered down chimneys
into Sandfields living-rooms
for the last time.

Then, with makeshift spades
we dug shallow graves
across your boot-worn pitch.
Taking turf home
to place on the mantel,
to plant in back-gardens,

to say we were there
when that man in black
sounded the final final-whistle
at our beloved tin shed.
And as the smell
of warm piss and fried onions
drifted above the floodlights,
getting lost on its way to the bay,
we poured out into the streets
like black and white tears.

– Rhys Owain Williams
rhysowainwilliams.com
First published in That Lone Ship

A large crowd of passionate Swansea City football fans, dressed mostly in white jerseys, cheer and raise their arms in unison under the roof of a packed stadium terrace, with a football visible in mid-air above them.

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Darren Chetty @darrenchetty.bsky.social · 01/05/2025

Publication Day! Thanks to everyone who pre-ordered I'm Going to Make a Friend. It's out today. Illustrated superbly by Sandhya Prabhat. Published by @littletigeruk.bsky.social Here's a lovely review by @edfinch.bsky.social for @justimaginecentre.bsky.social : justimagine.co.uk/childrens-bo...

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 01/05/2025

Happy Publication Day to @darrenchetty.bsky.social for #ImGoingToMakeAFriend – a book that’s quickly become a favourite in our house!

Three wooden wall-mounted bookshelves display colorful children's books and plush toys. The middle shelf prominently features the book 'I'm Going to Make a Friend' by Darren Chetty and Sandhya Prabhat, flanked by a crocheted giraffe toy. A panda plush toy is on the lower shelf beside books including 'Maps' and 'Meet the Dinosaurs'. The top shelf holds additional books and a Bluey stuffed toy.

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Darren Chetty @darrenchetty.bsky.social · 16/04/2025

My first ever picture book is out May 1st. A lovely review -and link to order - here: www.letterboxlibrary.com/product-page... I'm Going to Make A Friend is illustrated by the amazing Sandhya Prabhat and published by @littletigeruk.bsky.social

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

Great poetry-writing advice here (as expected) from @natholborow.bsky.social. Chuffed to see my poem ‘Vetch Field Elegy’ get a mention too 🦢

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Natalie Ann Holborow @natholborow.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

"Poems live not just in what happened, but in the infinite ways it can be seen." Blogging/procrastinating. Put a few tips in here that I've been given and have helped me - I hope you find value in them too 💖✨ natalieholborow.com/2025/04/29/h...

natalieholborow.com

How do you Surprise your Readers in Poetry?

Writing poetry can feel challenging, particularly when seeking inspiration. The author reflects on how poems often surprise us through their unexpected turns, or “volta,” which enhance …

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

like acupuncture needles, twenty wind turbines pinprick the hilltop #Haiku for March from That Lone Ship (@parthianbooks.bsky.social, 2018)

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

I usually only add 10 new poems to this thread each #WorldPoetryDay, but 2025 has been a bumper edition as I've also added poems from previous years' Twitter postings in readiness for shutting down my account on there. Apologies if I flooded your feed, normal service will resume on WPD2026 I'm sure.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 14/03/2025

I think about this line from Great Expectations pretty much every day throughout March

A copy of ‘Great Expectations’ by Charles Dickens open on Chapter 15. The highlighted line is ‘It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade.’

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Hanan Issa @hananelizabethissa.bsky.social · 05/03/2025

“In poetry we hold our culture.” Nick Makoha Check out Poetry Off The Shelf’s latest episode where we deep dive into the Welsh language and culture, cynghanedd poetry, and the Cerdd Tafod Arall project. Thanks again to Helena, Nick, Ciara and Hammad 💚 open.spotify.com/episode/11WB...

open.spotify.com

To the Brink

Poetry Off the Shelf · Episode

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 05/03/2025

I’m never getting invited as a guest on Room 101 (is it even on TV anymore?) but I tell you what that doesn’t stop me living life constantly preparing my selections for oblivion in my head.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 01/03/2025

Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Hapus! In honour of St. David's Day, here's a short poem of mine from 'That Lone Ship' (@parthianbooks.bsky.social, 2018)

SCHOOL EISTEDDFOD

For ‘Sospan Fach’
I sang too fast
he says
placing me joint-third
one from last
although
only four of us competed.

– Rhys Owain Williams

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 17/02/2025

I’ve got two new poems in the latest issue of nawr magazine on the theme of ‘deffro/awaken’. Diolch to the editors for publishing them! You can pick up a copy of the issue from nawrmag.bigcartel.com

My hand holding up a copy of the issue of nawr magazine. There’s an illustration on the cover of someone lying down on a bed clothed but with their lower back exposed.

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 07/02/2025

caught on my sleeve, a long, flickering strand of someone else’s hair #Haiku for February from That Lone Ship (@parthianbooks.bsky.social, 2018)

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Rhys Owain Williams @rhysowainwilliams.bsky.social · 05/02/2025

I am a night owl forever training myself to be a lark

A photograph of a sunrise over Swansea Bay taken from a back lane high above the bay, with terraced houses, trees and telegraph poles silhouetted in the foreground

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