Join Us at the Inaugural Southwest Book Fiesta!

Come join us for the first ever Southwest Book Fiesta right here in Albuquerque! The weekend of May 10 - 12 we'll be at Table 30 with all sorts of goodies and special events including Book Signings by TSWC faculty members: Dan Mueller, Amy Beeder, Valerie Martinez, and Hilda Raz!

Dan Mueller will be teaching a weekend workshop, Image and Flash Fiction, at this year's conference.
Amy Beeder will be teaching a weekend workshop, Exercises in the Art of Poetry, at this year's conference.
Valerie Martinez will be teaching a weekend workshop, Why Write: Living the Writing Life Regardless of Publication, Recognition, Money and Fame, at this year's conference.
Hilda Raz will be co-teaching an Ekphrastic Poetry weekend workshop with the 15th annual TSWC featured artist, Ouida Touchón.

We will also be sharing the table with UNM's creative writing graduate run literary magazine Blue Mesa Review. It is going to be a fun weekend and we hope to see you there! 

TSWC Director Sharon Oard Warner Reading Tomorrow Night!

Sharon Oard Warner has published three books—a collection of short fiction, an edited anthology, and a novel, Deep in the Heart, which was reissued in Australia/New Zealand and the Netherlands. She is currently completing a revision of her new novel, Sophie’s House of Cards. Her stories have appeared in Prairie Schooner, The Laurel Review, Other Voices, Green Mountains Review, and elsewhere. Her scholarly essays have appeared in Studies in the Novel, Studies in the Short Story, Best Writing on Writing, The Writer’s Handbook, and in selected anthologies. Warner is the founder and director of the Taos Summer Writers' Conference.

Tomorrow night, Friday, May 3rd, Sharon will be reading from her new novel, Sophie's House of Cards, alongside Blue Mesa Review editor-in-chief Nora Hickey for Works in Progress - a monthly reading curated by the University of New Mexico graduate program in Creative Writing. It is held at Winning Coffee House at 7:00 pm. We look forward to seeing you there!

Faculty Feature: Robert Wilder

Robert Wilder is the author of two critically acclaimed books of essays: Tales From The Teachers' Lounge and Daddy Needs a Drink; both have been optioned for television and film. He has published essays in Newsweek, Details, Salon, Parenting, Creative Nonfiction, Working Mother and numerous anthologies. He has been a commentator for NPR's Morning Edition, the Madeleine Brand Show, On Point and other national and regional radio programs including the Daddy Needs a Drink Minute which airs weekly on KBAC FM. Wilder's column, also titled "Daddy Needs A Drink," is printed monthly in the Santa Fe Reporter. He was awarded the 2009 Innovations in Reading Prize by the National Book Foundation. Wilder lives and teaches in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Visit his website at www.robertwilder.com.

At the 15th annual Taos Summer Writers' Conference, Rob will be teaching a weeklong workshop titled "Now That Is Funny: A Workshop in Humor Writing." He says, "We will try to push the funny by examining our own work, the work of published writers like David Sedaris, Ian Frazier, and Sarah Vowell, and try written exercises designed to enhance the humor and humanity of our work." The workshop is open to all levels of writers and can handle any form (essay, fiction, monologue). If you want to liven up your fiction or try writing a laugh out loud essay based on that embarrassing night in Toledo, this workshop is for you. Not only will we create work that is more fun to read, we will have a lot of fun along the way. And you better hurry, because there is only one spot left!

TSWC Scholarship Deadline Reminder!

Each year, the Taos Summer Writers' Conference awards various merit based scholarships. This year, the deadlines for scholarship application materials is fast approaching: Postmark Deadline: April 29, 2013.

The various scholarships available are:

LEO LOVE MERIT SCHOLARSHIP IN POETRY AND PROSE
The two Leo Love Merit Scholarships—awarded in poetry and fiction/nonfiction—are available to any potential Conference participant. Each Merit Scholarship pays tuition for a weeklong workshop or partial tuition for a master class (a value of $650). Each Merit Scholarship recipient is responsible for her or his transportation and/or lodging costs. Leo Love Merit Scholarship applicants must register for the Conference (including paying the deposit) at the time application is made for the scholarship. Application Procedure.    

NATIVE WRITER AWARD
The Native Writer Award, established in the memory of Native author and former colleague Louis Owens, offers paid tuition for one weekend or weeklong workshop (a value up to $650) as well as paid lodging to any Native American who is resident of New Mexico. The award recognizes excellence in fiction, poetry, or non-fiction. Applicants may apply in more than one genre and are eligible for only one award. Unlike the merit scholarships in poetry and fiction/nonfiction, applicants for the Native Writer Award do not need to be registered for the Conference before applying. Application Procedure.

HISPANIC WRITER AWARD
The Hispanic Writer Award is open to any New Mexican resident of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish heritage. The award pays tuition for one weekend or weeklong workshop (a value up to $650) in fiction, non-fiction, or poetry as well as paid lodging. Applicants may apply in more than one genre and are eligible for only one award. Unlike the merit scholarships in poetry and fiction/nonfiction, applicants for the Hispanic Writer Award do not need to be registered for the Conference before applying. Application Procedure.

TAOS RESIDENT AWARD
The Taos Resident Writer Award offers paid tuition support for one weekend or weeklong workshop (a value up to $650) to a resident of Taos or the Taos vicinity. The award recognizes excellence in fiction, poetry, or non-fiction. Applicants may apply in more than one genre and are eligible for only one award. Unlike the merit scholarships in poetry and fiction/nonfiction, applicants for the Taos Resident Writer Award do not need to be registered for the Conference before applying. Applicants must be residents of Taos County. Application Procedure.
  

Faculty Feature: Hilda Raz

Hilda Raz is Luschei Professor emerita at the University of Nebraska where she taught in the Ph.D. program in creative writing. She is a past president of the Association of Writers and Writing Programs and has taught at Stanford, Harvard, Goucher, and elsewhere, as well as at MFA programs and writers’ conferences including Bread Loaf, Writers at Work, Taos, and University of Nebraska. A poet, nonfiction writer, and editor, she has published thirteen books. A member of the national literary board for the PRAIRIE SCHOONER Book Prize, she is poetry editor for bosque (the magazine) and now is director of the Mary Burritt Christiansen Poetry Series for the University of New Mexico Press.

At the 15th annual Taos Summer Writers' Conference, Hilda will be co-teaching a weekend workshop in ekphrastic poetry with our featured artist Ouida Touchón. The class is called "Making visual art with poetry, making poetry with visual art: an ekphrastic workshop." In this weekend workshop, you'll have the opportunity to write about a work of art - using tempera paint, colored pencils, or scissors and paste - to create visual art in response to poems. Think of form, color, or collage and your own favorite poems. Or you could write poems in response to visual images. It is going to be a great workshop!

Faculty Feature: Valerie Martinez

Valerie Martínez is a poet, translator, teacher, playwright, librettist, and collaborative artist. Her books include Absence, Luminescent, World to World, A Flock of Scarlet Doves, Each and Her, And They Called It Horizon and This is How It Began. Her most recent book, Each and Her (winner of the 2012 Arizona Book Award), was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Critics Circle Award, the PEN Open Book Award, the William Carlos William Award, and the Ron Ridenhour Prize. Her work has been widely published in journals, magazines, anthologies and media outlets including The Best American Poetry, the Washington Post, and the Poetry Foundation’s Poetry Everywhere series. Valerie has more than twenty years of experience as a teacher, primarily at the college level. For over fifteen years, she has also worked with children, young adults, adults, teachers, and seniors in a wide range of community outreach and educational programs. She is Executive Director of Littleglobe, Inc., a non-profit collaborative of artists who work in community. Valerie has a B.A. from Vassar College and an MFA from the University of Arizona. She was the Poet Laureate of Santa Fe, New Mexico for 2008-2010. Learn more about Valerie at her website: www.valeriemartinez.net

At the 15th annual Taos Summer Writers' Conference, Valerie will be teaching a weekend workshop called "Why Write: Living the Writing Life Regardless of Publication, Recognition, Money and Fame."

"I can't express my gratitude to Valerie enough for assisting me with "picking the bones clean." She was an invaluable asset in whittling down the manuscript to its essence--and reminding me that my work was "certainly" deserving. I am eternally grateful for the experience." - Raquel Flowers Rivera

April 23 is World Book Night US in Albuquerque!

How it Works:
Each year, 30 books are chosen by an independent panel of librarians and booksellers. The authors of the books waive their royalties and the publishers agree to pay the costs of producing the specially-printed World Book Night U.S. editions. Bookstores and libraries sign up to be community host locations for the volunteer book givers.

After the book titles are announced, members of the public apply to personally hand out 20 copies of a particular title in their community. The selected givers choose a local participating bookstore or library from which to pick up the 20 copies of their book, and World Book Night U.S. delivers the books to these host locations.

Givers pick up their books in the week before World Book Night. On April 23rd, they give their books to those who don’t regularly read and/or people who don’t normally have access to printed books, for reasons of means or access.

What it Means for NM:
Book-loving volunteers will fan out across central New Mexico on April 23, 2013 to take 20 free copies of generously donated books to someone or someplace that needs it! 

The goal is to give books to new readers, to encourage reading, and to share your passion for a great book. The entire publishing, bookstore, library, author, printing, and paper community is behind this effort with donated services and time. Several Albuquerque bookstores — including Alamosa Books, Bookworks and Page One — and a couple ABC Library branches — Cherry Hills and Taylor Ranch — are also pick-up locations.

One such volutneer, Beth Humphreys, said, "I love WBN. And I love that I am giving away The House on Mango Street." Beth took the novella workshop with TSWC Director, Sharon Oard Warner, in which they read The House on Mango Street.

Find Out More:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTfoEUaybNQ