Category Updates

Latina Book Club

Just heard word that my comadre in New York, Maria Ferrer, has started a new blog called Latina Book Club, dedicated to promoting the words of our gente. In addition to author and editor interviews, book reviews, giveaways, and the…

Alaska Round-Up & Greece

Just returned from a two-week romp around my 48th state: ALASKA. What a glorious place! I saw two humpback whales and an orca breach in the bay, scaled one glacier and heard another "calving" (which sounds like a thunderstorm), watched a mama otter teach her pup how to crack a clam shell, biked along Anchorage's Coastal Trail, ate a school of salmon and halibut, rode on a dog sled with a future Iditarod champ, and marveled over the scores of bald eagles, moose, seals, puffins, and hares roaming in the wild. Best yet, I did this with mi familia--Mom, Dad, my sister Barbara and her husband Alex, and my niece and nephew--our first family vacation in 20 years. Wow! The impetus for this journey was the Kachemak Bay Writer's Conference in Homer, which was, hands down, the best writer's conference I've ever attended: stellar staff, a wonderful faculty, a spectacular setting, and great camaraderie. Add it to your list, people!

Kachemak Bay Writers’ Conference

Apologies for the delayed updates as of late: in the past two weeks, I've hopped a MegaBus to catch my first roller-derby match in Chicago, IL; hung out with literary heroes at the National Latino Writers Conference in Albuquerque, NM; vacated my Iowa City, IA crashpad; and relocated to Corpus Christi, TX for the summer. Now I'm packing my bags for the Kachemak Bay Writers' Conference in Homer (as in, Alaska), and here is why you should be too ...

National Latino Writers Conference

Next week, I’ll be flying south and west to eat green chile, dance in the mountains, and teach a travel writing seminar at the Eighth Annual National Latino Writer’s Conference in Albuquerque. This year’s line-up is looking pretty stellar, including:…

Travel Writing Contest

Just learned of a competition that bloomed out of tragedy, yet celebrates life in all its glory: the Mikel Essery Travel Writing Contest. Here is an excerpt of its origin, clipped from its website: On July 2nd, 2007, near the…

Introducing: DEFUNCT

Got nostalgia? Can a whiff of strawberry-flavored lip gloss or a riff of Duran Duran bring a tear to your eye? A literary magazine has just been launched for you: DEFUNCT. The inaugural issue went live this morning, and features essays on Wanamaker's Department Story (by Dinty Moore), the Power Suit (by Margot Singer), vintage video games (by James Scudamore), VCRs (by Daniel Light), 45 records (by Angelo Lacuesta), and, last but not least, the literary precursor to You-Tube and reality TV: True Story (by yours truly). Edited by author Robin Hemley & Co. at the University of Iowa's Nonfiction Writing Program, DEFUNCT is ready to receive submissions for the October 2010 issue.

BWTW 2010 Updates

Much to report about BWTW 2010! First off, contributor Heather Poole is raffling off two free, autographed copies on her Gadling column, Galley Gossip. Simply add a comment to her post by 5 p.m. EST on Friday, April 2, and…

Back from Tucson

Just returned to Iowa from the Tucson Festival of Books, which drew upward of 70,000 readers to the University of Arizona campus for a weekend of panels and performances. Having just survived my first Midwestern winter, my favorite part was…

Tucson Festival of Books

If you’re anywhere near the Southwest this weekend, bolt on over to Tucson for the second annual Tucson Festival of Books at the University of Arizona to bask in literary glory. Last year’s fest featured 450 authors, gathered 50,000 readers, raised $200,000…

Mas on Lit Mags, plus Bulgaria!

Apropos of last week's posting about little magazines, I just stumbled upon an interesting debate about the journals' fate on the website of Mother Jones. Ted Genoways, editor of one of my fave lit mags, Virginia Quarterly Review, wrote an essay called The Death of Fiction about the deleterious impact of MFA programs on the industry.