2021 Zia Book Award

The Zia Book Awards and Scholarships will be presented at noon on Saturday, March 13. The event is free and open to the public. The link for the Zoom awards session is given below:

Zia Book Awards and Scholarship Presentation Event:
Join Zoom Meeting:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86903374596?pwd=dzNBb3dTWVVySS91andoREpBRlQ4dz09
If you need them: Meeting ID: 869 0337 4596, Passcode: 533656

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Women writers living in New Mexico are invited to submit books for consideration for the Zia Book Award, given each year by NMPW at the annual spring conference. Each year the award rotates to one of three categories: children’s literature, nonfiction, and fiction. To accommodate this schedule, a book published in the last three years is eligible. The 2021 award is open to nonfiction books published in 2018, 2019, or 2020.

Finalists will be invited to attend the award ceremony on Mar. 13, 2021, in Albuquerque (or online if necessary) and speak about their books. Finalists will receive either the Award or an Honorable Mention. To be eligible for the Award, the author must attend the ceremony.

The entry fee is as follows:

If sent by Dec. 31, 2020:
• $25 for NMPW members
• $30 for nonmembers

If sent after Dec. 31, 2020:
• $35 for NMPW members
• $50 for nonmembers

Entries must be postmarked no later than Jan. 11, 2021. An acknowledgement letter will be emailed upon receipt of the entry.

Submissions can be made by the author or by someone else on behalf of the author, such as a publisher. Membership in New Mexico Press Women is not required, but the writer must be a woman who lives in or has a strong connection to New Mexico. The book may be published anywhere.

To submit for consideration for the Zia Book Award, send two copies of the book along with a brief cover letter including complete contact information, the author’s biography (including her connection to New Mexico), and a description of the book to:

Patricia Conoway
Zia Book Award Chair
PO Box 54
Cerrillos NM 87010

The entry fee may be paid by including a check payable to NMPW with the submission or paid online. Optional dues may be also paid on the same page.

Book entries are considered a donation to the organization and are not returned. The books will be part of the silent auction held at the spring conference to raise scholarship funds.

For more information on the contest, send correspondence to the address listed above or e-mail Patricia Conoway.

Rudolfo Anaya: ¡Presente! A Tribute to New Mexico’s Literary Padrino

A panel of scholars and writers discuss the literary life and legacy of Rudolfo Anaya and his works. This online event is presented by the Santa Fe New Mexican and will be shown live on santafenewmexican.com Tuesday, at 1:00 pm MDT and made available also on Facebook.

Educators are encouraged to share this presentation with students and can contact webeditor@sfnewmexican.com to receive an archive file of this event.

The panel will be moderated by Patricia Trujillo Director, Northern New Mexico College Office of Equity & Diversity and include:

  • Levi Romero New Mexico Poet Laureate
  • Belinda Henry: Anaya Scholar and niece
  • Norma E. Cantú: Scholar and author
  • Author Denise Chavez

Made possible by the support of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, National Hispanic Cultural Center and Northern New Mexico College.

You can register at Eventbrite.

Online Panel Discussion: COVID-19 and the NM Media Response

How did journalists that usually report on other issues quickly pivot to report on the COVID-19 crisis competently and confidently? What are the stories they would have liked to tell?

Join us on Monday, June 15, from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. for a NMPW and Las Cruces online video event, “COVID-19 and the NM Media Response,” with a panel discussion moderated by Damien Willis, a lead reporter for the Las Cruces Sun News and the NMPW 2020 Communicator of Achievement.

Panelists include: Sharon Chischilly, photo editor for the Daily Lobo; Algernon D’Ammassa from the Las Cruces Sun-News; Patrick Hayes, general assignment reporter for KOB-TV; Trip Jennings, executive director for New Mexico In Depth; Ryan Lowery from the Las Vegas Optic; and Joy Wang, also from KOB-TV.

Topics include how reporters across the state had to become competent public health reporters during the COVID-19 crisis—and also the stories that panelists believe should have been told but were lost because of the pressing need to keep up with quickly changing updates and important information from health and government officials.

There is no charge for the event, but registration is required to receive the Zoom link. Email lcpresswomen@gmail.com with “COVID panel” in the subject line and include your full name and affiliation (if any).

SouthWest Writers 2020 Writing Contest

Are you an aspiring poet? Fiction writer? Memoirist? SouthWest Writers (SWW) annual short story and poetry writing contest challenges you to bring your tales to life. With more than 66 prizes and an option to have your work published, this is an opportunity to give wings to your creativity. Whether your interest lies in the past (historical fiction, biography, memoir), the future (sci-fi/fantasy), or the present (current foibles, social consciousness/philosophy) this contest gives you an opportunity to express your vision of the world. Do you love to watch mystery/crime shows but have a new plot twist? Can your longing for romance flow out in words? Can you find humor in the little things in life?  Write about it. For more information go to: www.southwestwriters.com or call (505) 830-6034.