June is going to be a busy month for SouthWest Writers. Thanks to everyone who responded to the survey. It is great when people get involved. We’ll be sharing results soon. Congratulations to Susan Hering, who was the winner of our $50 gift card drawing.
Writer’s Coffee: Our first Writers Coffee will be on June 28 at 10:00 at Books on the Bosque, located at 6261 Riverside Plaza Lane NW, Suite A-2, in Albuquerque. If you haven’t been to this charming local bookstore, you are in for a treat. It features local books as well as a wide range of reading. Please purchase something from their coffee/tea bar and join us for conversation. There is no formal program, just an opportunity to meet with other writers and talk. Great for both newbies and pros. See you there! (See our recent post about this bookstore here.)
Unbreaking the Circle: Stories of Service the 2025 Military Anthology is set for release later this month. Watch our website and your email inbox for readings and other events to celebrate the writers and their work. For example, the lauch event will be held at the Albuquerque Museum on Jun 22 from 2:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m. Even if you don’t have something in the anthology, come to a reading and support your fellow writers.
Contest is OPEN! Submissions are open until July 8, but don’t wait too long. This month will disappear fast. For more information click here.
It’s a great time to be a SouthWest Writer!
Judy
Message from the VP and Contest Chair
Submissions are rolling in, but please make sure you’re SURE before hitting, SEND.
We love seeing submissions and can’t wait to read yours. One of the things we’ve noticed is that several folks have asked to resubmit a further-revised version of their contest submission. While it’s common and understandable to continue revising, this request presents a challenge for us. Our team of judges can read submissions throughout the submission window, so we can’t guarantee that re-submitted changes will be viewed by judges.
In other words, measure twice, cut once. Take a few extra moments/days to proof, revise, or get feedback on your work before submitting.
Thank you for helping our awesome group of volunteer judges efficiently read and assess your submissions.
Good luck!
Kim
Upcoming SWW Events
You can find information about upcoming events on the SWW website here. Here’s what’s on tap in the coming weeks.
Saturday, June 14: Meeting presentation (in-person or Zoom) from 10:00 a.m. until 11:45 p.m. Mystery Writing will be presented by James Wilson. More information here.
Saturday, June 14: Workshop (in-person or Zoom) from 12:00-2:00pm. Romance 101: The Basics of Writing the Hottest Genre in Publishing will be presented by Bethany Turner. More information here and register here.
Wednesday, June 25: Meeting presentation (Zoom only) from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Should You Shun Books with Footnotes? will be presented by Léonie Rosenstiel. More information here.
May’s Writing Challenge - The Results
Last month we challenged you to tell us about a vacation to remember. See contributions from Dita Dow, Ed Johnson, and Rose Marie Kern on the SWW Website here.
June’s Writing Challenge for SWW Members
The monthly challenge is a terrific opportunity to write and submit short pieces based on a prompt. Entries we select for publication will appear on the SouthWest Writers Sage Challenge webpage and will be eligible for inclusion in upcoming anthologies. For more information and our submission guidelines, click here. Email your entry in MS Word or TXT format to info@swwriters.com by June 20, 2025.
This month’s writing challenge: Sports and Games
Do you play a mean game of Canasta…or Bridge? Maybe your best memories are of Little League Baseball or winning at Bingo. Give us up to 1000 words of prose – real or imaginary. It can be fiction, or non-fiction, and any genre. It can be a section of a book you are writing or have written, or an article you wrote for a newspaper….get creative!
Welcome to SouthWest Writers!
The following writers joined/re-joined our community last month. We hope to see you at one of our events in person or online. Write on!
Beth Branchal, Mark Carrara, Pamela Heath, Basia Irland, Maryhelen Jones, Carylee Kensler, Cynthia McLean, Judi Phillips, Johnie Sherman, Semaj Stallworth, Jeff York
If you’re not yet a member, learn more about the benefits here.
