Home-Sharing Opportunity for Weekend Participant, Across the Street from the Sagebrush!

Here's this message from returning participant Jen Villareal:

Small beautiful home with loft bedroom available for sharing over the weekend workshop with a week-long participant. Home is directly across the street from the Sagebrush, a little less than a mile away, about a 12-minute walk or 3-minute drive. It's available 7/15 to 17 or 18 for $60/night. I'm hoping for someone looking for an artistic writing retreat - there's a great porch for reading, writing, painting and watching the sunset and summer lightning storms. Please contact Jen Villareal at jenmcvillareal@gmail.com for information & photos of the home.

Exciting Book News for Taos Instructor Greg Martin!

We're thrilled to announce that Greg Martin's new book, a memoir called "Stories for Boys," is now officially forthcoming from Hawthorne Books in Fall 2012!

It's Greg's second memoir: his first was called "Mountain City," and was named a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. Greg teaches a master class in memoir at Taos and is part of the creative writing program faculty here at UNM.

Greg has gotten so much recognition for his teaching here at UNM, and we're so excited to hear of this much-deserved recognition of his writing! Congratulations, Greg!

New Poems from Hispanic Writer Award Winner Richard Vargas!

 

 

Richard Vargas has some new poems out in Kweli, a publication he describes as "a very cool online literary journal." 

 

The poems, called "for a friend who objects to comparing the events leading up to the Holocaust with what is happening today in Arizona" and "the origami master's wife speaks," are both from Richard's new poetry collection, We Go Boom. 

 

Congratulations, Richard!

Notice About the New Mexico Forest Fires

We have been receiving calls and emails regarding the forest fires now burning in New Mexico, especially the “Las Conchas Fire” outside of Los Alamos, which is about 60 miles (as the crow flies) southwest of Taos and on the opposite side of the Rio Grande River.

That fire poses no risk to Taos, nor any risk to the main transportation routes to Taos from Colorado, Santa Fe, Arizona, or Texas.  We are confident that the Taos Summer Writers’ Conference will be held as scheduled from July 10 through 17.   

We are monitoring fire developments daily with multiple close friends in Taos, who indicate that some smoke can be observed in the skies above Taos and small to modest amounts are in the ground level air from time to time, depending on wind directions.  They further indicate that activities in Taos continue essentially normally. 

National Forests in New Mexico have been closed to public access because of the extreme dryness this season.  Please realize that there have been extensive forest fires New Mexico in many past summers – thus, this, unfortunately, is not a rare event for us Westerners.

We very much look forward to seeing all of you in Taos on Sunday, July 10th for weeklong workshop participants, and on Friday, July 15th for weekend workshop participants!

Bio for Native Writer Award Winner, Monty Little!

 

 

We're so pleased to introduce this year's winner of the Native Writer Award Scholarship! Here's some background on Monty: 

 

Monty Little is a Diné (Navajo) artist from Tuba City, Arizona. He is Ashiihi (Salt) clan, born for Tl’iziłani (Manygoats) clan. He currently resides in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and is an undergraduate at the Institute of American Indian Arts, majoring in Creative Writing and minoring in Studio Arts. He is a recipient of the 2011 Truman Capote Scholarship. The juxtaposition of harsh realities on the Navajo reservation, the beauty of openness and the content of home heavily influence Monty’s poems.

Monty recently was Honorably Discharged from the United States Marine Corps after serving four years with Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines in Camp Pendleton, California. While in the Marine Corps, Monty deployed to Okinawa in 2005, and to Ar Ramadi, Iraq, in 2007. He is currently spending his summer listening to punk rock, writing, painting, and spending time with family.

Room Share Opportunity!

Looking for someone (female, non-smoker) to share a room in the Comfort Suites during weeklong workshop. Please contact taosconf@unm.edu and we will get you in touch.

Another Updated Conference Schedule!

This one includes all our scheduled roundtables and readings: there will be a lot going on, so check it out!

Saturday, July 9 

1 pm Check-in opens at The Sagebrush Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality Inn

Sunday, July 10

Weeklong Workshops and Master Classes
3-5 pm Registration for Weeklong Workshops
5-6 pm Dr. Katherine Toy Miller: "Spiritual Connections: Georgia O'Keeffe
and D. H. Lawrence"
6 pm Buffet Dinner & Opening Ceremonies for Weeklong Participants & Faculty
8 pm Keynote Reading by Gail Caldwell (Open to the Public)

Monday, July 11

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am- 12 pm Morning Weeklong Workshop (Session 1 of 5)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
12:30 - reading by Darlin' Neal, D.H. Lawrence Fellow
1-2 pm Round Table: Cinco Puntos Press
and Independent Press Publishers - Lee and Bobby Byrd
2-5 pm Afternoon Weeklong Workshop (Session 1 of 5)
5:30-6:30 pm Faculty Readings (Open to the Public) Ciabattari, Martin, Monroe, Rapp
Mini-Van Excursion: Taos Pueblo**

Tuesday, July 12

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am- 12 pm Morning Weeklong Workshop (Session 2 of 5)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
12:30 - reading by Monty J. Little, Native Writer Award
1-2 pm Round Table: Literary Agent, Emma Sweeney
2-5 pm Afternoon Weeklong Workshop (Session 2 of 5)
5:30-6:30 pm Faculty Readings (Open to the Public) Boswell, Davis, Houston, Bush
Mini-Van Excursion: D.H. Lawrence Ranch**

Wednesday, July 13

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am- 12 pm Morning Weeklong Workshop (Session 3 of 5)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
12:30 - reading by Linda Michel-Cassidy, Taos Resident Writer Award
1-2 pm Round Table: Jared Bush on Screenwriting
2-5 pm Afternoon Weeklong Workshop (Session 3 of 5)
5:30-6:30 pm Faculty Readings (Open to the Public) Dufresne, Long, Nelson
Mini-Van Excursion: The Harwood Museum of Art**

Thursday, July 14

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am- 12 pm Morning Weeklong Workshop (Session 4 of 5)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
12:30 - reading by Cedar Brant, Leo Love Award in Poetry
1-2 pm Round Table: "Knock-em Dead at the Mic" with Lisa Lenard-Cook & Lynn Miller
1-2 pm Round Table: Laura Tisdel,Associate Editor for Viking, Penguin, and Plume Books
2-5 pm Afternoon Weeklong Workshop (Session 4 of 5)
5:30-6:30 pm Faculty Readings (Open to the Public) Glazner, Khakpour, Wilder
8-10 pm Open Mic in the Sagebrush Inn Cantina
Mini-Van Excursion: Mabel Dodge Luhan House**

Friday, July 15

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am- 12 pm Morning Weeklong Workshop (Session 5 of 5)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
12:30 - reading by Emma Rainey, Leo Love Award in Prose
1-2 pm Round Table: Literary Agent, Kit Ward and Debra Monroe (Master Class: Memoir)
2-5 pm Afternoon Weeklong Workshop (Session 5 of 5)
Mini-Van Excursion: Taos Plaza**

Weeklong and Weekend Participants and Faculty

Weekend Workshops

4-5 pm Registration for Weekend Workshops

Weeklong and Weekend Participants and Faculty

5:30 pm Faculty Readings: Agee, Sundeen, Wood
6:30 pm Social with Cash Bar/Reception and Signing by Featured Artist, Peggy McGivern

Saturday, July 16

Weekend Workshops
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am Breakfast & Opening Ceremonies for Weekend Participants & Faculty
10 am-12 pm Weekend Workshops (Session 1 of 4)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
2-4 p.m. Weekend Workshops (Session 2 of 4)
5 p.m. Social with Cash Bar for Weekend Participants & Faculty
5:30 pm Faculty Readings (Open to the Public) Chávez, García, Gwin, Randall

 Sunday, July 17

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
10 am-12 pm Weekend Workshops (Session 3 of 4)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
1-2 pm Round Table: Amy Block Joy -Taos to Press in 16 months:
My Wonderful Experience as a Participant!  
2-4 pm Weekend Workshops (Session 4 of 4)

Richard Vargas looking for a ride from Albuquerque to Taos!

Please contact Richard if you are headed up to Taos from Albuquerque on Sunday, July 10. Richard is happy to contribute to the gas money. You can contact him at: rvargas54@yahoo.com

Consultation Update! You can still register if you are signed up for a class!

Greetings Everyone:

The 2011 Conference is just around the corner, and we are busy here tying up every loose end.  We’re looking forward to a magical week with all of you in Taos.  We hope that you’re checking the blog  for news, but are sending out this update to make sure that everyone is in the loop.

 First of all, we've confirmed our full roster of editors and agents in attendance at the Conference.  They are all available for publishing consultations on the dates listed.  Their schedules are filling up,  so if you’re interested in sitting down with an agent or an editor, please get your registration in soon.

AGENTS:

Kit Ward (The Ward and Balkin Agency, Boston) -- available Thursday 7/14-Saturday 7/16

Emma Sweeney (The Emma Sweeney Agency, New York) -- available Monday 7/11-Wednesday 7/13

EDITORS:

Laura Tisdel (Viking, Penguin and Plume, New York) -- available Wednesday 7/13-Thursday 7/14

Lee Byrd (Cinto Puntos Press, El Paso, fiction) -- will be available Monday 7/11-Tuesday 7/12

Bobby Byrd (Cinco Puntos Press, El Paso, poetry) -- will be available Monday 7/11-Tuesday 7/12

For more information, and to register, go to: http://www.unm.edu/~taosconf/Workshops/consultations.htm 

Visiting agents and editors will offer roundtable during the conference, open to all participants. For the full schedule of all the special events at the conference, including roundtables and faculty readings, go to http://www.unm.edu/~taosconf/Workshops/special_events.htm.

Don't hesitate to contact us if you have any pre-conference questions, and otherwise we look forward to seeing you soon at the Sagebrush Inn Conference Center!

Best,

Sharon, Eva and Elizabeth

Katherine Toy Miller - last year's Taos Resident Award recipient to present at Conference!

Come see what participants and award winners of years past are up to!

Explore the spiritual paths of Georgia O’Keeffe and D. H. Lawrence and how their personal connections drew them to the same transformative Taos locations in a free presentation, "Spiritual Connections: Georgia O'Keeffe and D. H. Lawrence," by Dr. Katherine Toy Miller of Taos on Sunday, July 10, from 5-6 p.m. at the Sagebrush Conference Center .

Katherine Toy Miller, winner of the 2010 Taos Resident Award at the Taos Summer Writers Conference, has an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona and a Ph.D. in English from Florida State University and currently teaches at the University of Nevada, Reno.

Viking, Penguin and Plume Editor Laura Tisdel to Offer Publishing Consultations in Taos!

We're delighted to announce that New York book editor Laura Tisdel will be joining our roster of agents and editors available for publishing consultations at the conference with participants. We now have two agents available--Kit Ward and Emma Sweeney--as well as three editors: Laura, along with Lee Byrd and Bobby Byrd of Cinco Puntos Press. Here's some background on Laura--we can't wait to see her, and all of you, in a few weeks!

Laura Tisdel is an Associate Editor for Viking, Penguin, and Plume Books. She seeks to acquire up-market women’s fiction titles, and is drawn to especially spirited and tough female heroines and novels with a strong sense of place and cultural rooting. She’s also on the look out for playful literary novels that bend the boundaries of genre, incorporate magical twists, or hinge on original or conceptual plotting—without sacrificing the authenticity or heart of the characters. She is proud to have contributed to the publication of Ron Currie Jr’s fiction as well as City of Thieves by David Benioff. Her projects include The Sea Captain’s Wife by award-winning Canadian author Beth Powning, the forthcoming debut Red Ruby Heart in a Cold Blue Sea by Maine native Morgan Callan Rogers, and The Magician King by Lev Grossman, the sequel to his bestselling novel The Magicians, which Viking published in 2009. She lives in Brooklyn and is a graduate of Michigan State University.

Debra Monroe and Her Agent, Kit Ward, to Lead Joint Roundtable!

Debra Monroe

We are so excited that novelist and memoirist Debra Monroe will be returning to the conference this year to teach a master class.

And we're also thrilled that, for the first time, her agent Christina (Kit) Ward will be attending! (Kit is coming to offer publishing consultations with participants, and still has a few spots open!)

And now we are doubly excited to announce that the two of them, Debra and Kit, will lead a joint roundtable together on Friday, July 15th at 1:00 at the Sagebrush.

Kit Ward

The roundtable will be called "Agent-Author Confidential," and Kit and Debra will share their experiences working through some of the  recent developments in the publishing industry.

See you there!

Participant Amy Block Joy to Give Sunday Roundtable on Her Post-Taos Book Publication!

 We're so excited to announce the addition of another roundtable to our roster at the conference!

At 1 pm on Sunday, July 17th, returning participant and author Amy Block Joy will give a roundtable titled "Taos to Press in 16 months: My Wonderful Experience as a Participant!" Here's more info from Amy on the roundtable and herself:  

Amy came to Taos in July 2008 to begin the writing of her memoir. After a consultation at Taos with Editor Alan Rinzler, they worked together for 12 months--writing and editing a chapter a month. In January 2010 she found a publisher.  Amy's talk will include a short reading from her book and a description of her experience on how her book came to be including tips for self marketing and author events. 

Amy Block Joy, Ph.D., Nutritional Sciences, was born in New York and educated at the University of California, Berkeley.  She is currently a professor at UC Davis teaching a class called "Eating Green".  Her first book, Whistleblower is the nail-biting true story of what happens when someone with a lifelong habit of going along to get along is confronted with criminal activity she can't ignore.  Amy Joy--scientist, educator and administrator--was happy and comfortable conducting research while administering a $14 million program for poor families.  Certainly, nothing she had previously experienced prepared her for the resistance, collusion, and retaliation she encountered when she discovered embezzlement at the University where she had worked for more than 30 years.

She can be found online at: www.amyblockjoy.com

Two More Room and Ride Sharing Opportunities!

From Sarna Lapine:

I am a female traveling from New York city for the Taos Summer Writers' Conference and seeking to share the cost of a large suite at the Comfort Suites.  This is a non-smoking suite that has 1 King Bed, 1 Queen Bed, a partial room divider, a 1-person sofabed, coffee maker, microwave and refrigerator all in the room.  The suite can accommodate up to six people.  I am looking to share the cost and the space with another female traveler.  The room has been booked at the conference rate of $89 per night.  The total cost of the room, including tax is $604.44.  Please reply with your contact information if you are interested in sharing the suite from Sunday, July 10 - Saturday, July 16th. Contact: sarna_lisa@yahoo.com

From Sandra Vallie:

I'm driving up from Albuquerque on Friday afternoon and plan to stay through Monday morning. I've got room for one (comfortably) or two people. People can contact me at svallie@gmail.com

Art Angel: The Barbara Robinette Moss Scholarship in Memoir

A self-portrait by Barbara Robinette Moss

This year, the Taos Conference Writing Community will remember the incomparable Barbara Robinette Moss, who taught beginning memoir at the Conference from 2006-2009.   We lost Barb on October 9, 2009.  Members of her 2009 workshop along with Barb’s husband, Duane, were moved to remember her at the Conference, which Barb deeply loved, by offering a one-time scholarship in her name.  The winner of the scholarship will be reimbursed for the cost of the workshop, up to $650.  (A weekend winner will be reimbursed for 2011 and will receive registration for a weekend workshop in 2012.)

Participants enrolled in a weekend or week-long memoir class are invited to apply for the scholarship by writing a short personal essay inspired by the work of Barbara Robinette Moss.  To do so, please acquaint yourself with her artwork and read excerpts from her memoirs, and then let the art angel loose in your life.

To get you going, here’s a quote from her first-person narrative, “Quest for Beauty” by Barbara Robinette Moss (the full essay can be found at this link):

“You think you’ve got an idea of what you’re doing, but once you start creating, it really has its own life and it does it itself, sort of. My son calls it the art angel. Because I’ll tell him about some piece that I’m going to do and I’ll start working on it, and then when he sees it it’s just like, “Well, Mom that’s not exactly what you said, but this is great.”

The greatest joy is in the making. When you’re at that point where there’s no time and there’s no space and the art angel has flown over and the art is making itself and all you have to do is move around the instruments, that’s when it’s just…like flying. I don’t know another way to explain it. That’s when it’s at its very, very best. I told my husband sometime that it was right up there with sex. He just laughed!”

To read sample chapters from Change Me into Zeus’s Daughter and fierce, go to this website.  This website also showcases some of her artwork.

An article from Present Magazine in Kansas City gives additional insights into Barb’s artwork and her inspirational life story.

 Please submit short personal essays, double-spaced, five pages or less, to Elizabeth Tannen at taosconf@unm.edu by Tuesday, July 5^th.  The winner, to be announced at the Conference, will share an excerpt from the “Art Angel” essay at the Thursday, July 14^th, Open Mic.  

Cristina Garcia Planning New Writers' Conference in Ghost Ranch for June 2012!

Taos Conference participants will be excited to learn of another opportunity for writing workshops in the beautiful Taos area: fiction instructor (and 2010 Taos Keynote) Cristina Garcia is organizing a new program called Las Dos Brujas for June of 2012 at Ghost Ranch!

The instructors will include Cristina, fellow Taos instructor Denise Chavez, poets Martin Espada and Kimiko Kahn, and fiction writer Chris Abani.

The conference is scheduled to take place from June 3-9 next year, but Cristina already has a beautiful website up with further details--check it out!

New and Updated Schedule!

We've made some changes and filled in some names on our Conference schedule--check it out! We're just four weeks away!!

2011 Taos Summer Writers’ Conference Schedule of Workshops and Events

Saturday, July 9

1 pm Check-in opens at The Sagebrush Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality Inn

Sunday, July 10

Weeklong Workshops and Master Classes
3-5 pm Registration for Weeklong Workshops
6:30 pm Buffet Dinner & Opening Ceremonies
for Weeklong Participants & Faculty
8 pm Keynote Reading by Gail Caldwell (Open to the Public)

Monday, July 11

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am- 12 pm Morning Weeklong Workshop (Session 1 of 5)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
12:30 - reading: Darlin’ Neal, D.H. Lawrence Fellow
1-2 pm Round Table: –Cinco Puntos Press and Independent Press Publishers—Lee and Bobby Byrd
2-5 pm Afternoon Weeklong Workshop (Session 1 of 5)
5:30-6:30 pm Faculty Readings (Open to the Public) Ciabattari, Martin, Monroe, Rapp

Mini-Van Excursion: Taos Pueblo**

Tuesday, July 12

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am- 12 pm Morning Weeklong Workshop (Session 2 of 5)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
12:30 - reading by Monty J. Little, Native Writer Award Winner
1-2 pm Round Table:  Literary Agent, Emma Sweeney
2-5 pm Afternoon Weeklong Workshop (Session 2 of 5)
5:30-6:30 pm Faculty Readings (Open to the Public) Boswell, Davis, Houston, Bush

Mini-Van Excursion: D.H. Lawrence Ranch**

Wednesday, July 13

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am- 12 pm Morning Weeklong Workshop (Session 3 of 5)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
12:30 - reading Linda Michel-Cassidy, Taos Resident Writer Award
1-2 pm Round Table: –Jared Bush on Screenwriting
2-5 pm Afternoon Weeklong Workshop (Session 3 of 5)
5:30-6:30 pm Faculty Readings (Open to the Public) Dufresne, Long, Nelson

Mini-Van Excursion: The Harwood Museum of Art*

Thursday, July 14

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am- 12 pm Morning Weeklong Workshop (Session 4 of 5)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
12:30 - reading: Cedar Brant, Leo Love award in Poetry
1-2 pm Roundtable:”Knock-em Dead at the Mic” with Lisa Lenard-Cook & Lynn Miller
2-5 pm Afternoon Weeklong Workshop (Session 4 of 5)
5:30-6:30 pm Faculty Readings (Open to the Public) Glazner, Khakpour, Wilder
8-10 pm Open Mic in the Sagebrush Inn Cantina

Mini-Van Excursion: Mabel Dodge Luhan House**

Friday, July 15

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am- 12 pm Morning Weeklong Workshop (Session 5 of 5)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
12:30 - reading: Emma Rainey, Leo Love Award in Prose
1-2 pm Round Table: Literary Agent Kit Ward
2-5 pm Afternoon Weeklong Workshop (Session 5 of 5)

Mini-Van Excursion: Taos Plaza**

Weeklong and Weekend Participants and Faculty

 Weekend Workshops

4-5 pm Registration for Weekend Workshops

Weeklong and Weekend Participants and Faculty

5:30 pm Faculty Readings: Agee, Sundeen, Wood

6:30 pm Social with Cash Bar/ Reception and

Signing by Featured Artist, Peggy McGivern

Saturday, July 16

Weekend Workshops
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
9 am Breakfast & Opening Ceremonies
for Weekend Participants & Faculty
10 am-12 pm Weekend Workshops (Session 1 of 4)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
2-4 p.m. Weekend Workshops (Session 2 of 4)

5pm Social with Cash Bar for Weekend Participants & Faculty
5:30 pm Faculty Readings (Open to the Public) Chávez, García, Gwin, Randall

Sunday, July 17

6:30-10 am Complimentary Breakfast*
7-8 am Complimentary Instructor-Led Yoga
10 am-12 pm Weekend Workshops (Session 3 of 4)
12-1 pm Lunch Buffet
2-4 pm Weekend Workshops (Session 4 of 4)

*The Sagebrush Inn offers complimentary breakfast to Conference participants lodging at the Sagebrush Inn and Comfort Suites. The Quality Inn offers complimentary breakfast to Conference participants lodging at the Quality Inn.

** The conference offers mini-van excursions to participants on a first-come, first-served basis. Trips take place twice each day, Monday-Friday, and depart from the Conference Center. Seating is limited. Changes in destination may occur.

Updated on June 10, 2011

More Ridesharing Opportunities!

Two more participants have contacted us interested in ridesharing up to Taos

Frost McGahey will be attending a weeklong workshop and needs someone to drive with from the Angel Fire area. She is wililng to pay for gas. Her email address is frosted@newmexico.com, please contact her if you're willing to drive!

And Judy Nelson can give one person a ride in her small vehicle: she'll be driving up from Albuquerque around 1:30 on the afternoon of Saturday, July 9th and leaving Taos on Monday the 17th around 7 am. Anyone interested can email her at sonjud2003@yahoo.com.

Thanks for contacting us, and anyone else who wants to post on the blog feel free to email me (Elizabeth) at taosconf@unm.edu. Thanks!

One Month Til Taos! Available Spaces in Antonya Nelson and Robert Boswell Workshops!

Antonya Nelson

For those of you still holding out on your registration for this year's conference, check out the Workshops page ASAP for updated information on what classes have openings.

Due to recent switches and cancellations, two classes that filled almost immediately--Antonya Nelson's class and Robert Boswell's--now have space available!

There are also still openings in Jane Ciabattari's fiction workshop, as well as Jeffrey Davis' "Where It All Begins: Yoga, Writing and Wonder," as well as a couple of others...including Jared Bush's all-levels Screenwriting workshop.

The conference is now just a month away, and we can't wait to see you in Taos! Spread the word and get those registrations IN!