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CELEBRATE AUTHORS

Four more writers join this year’s ‘Celebrate Authors’ event

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More local writers have been added to the lineup for this year’s “Celebrate Authors,” which will be held 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 19, in the boardroom and Roadrunner Room on the second floor of Thomas Branigan Memorial Library, 200 E. Picacho Ave.

The event is free and open to the public.

Moonbow Alterations and Moonbow’s Book Nook are the event sponsors.

Celebrate Authors 2021 includes authors from Las Cruces and surrounding area with books published in 2019, 2020 and 2021. The event began in 2014.

Here are the newest additions to this year’s event.

Alexis D. Johnson is a fantasy author with a fondness for mythical creatures, charming worlds and believable characters riddled with flaws and strengths, the author said. Raised in Las Cruces, she now lives with her husband in El Paso.

Her book is entitled “The Seventh Year Trials” and is the first in a young adult fantasy adventure series “for readers who love dragons that steal your heart, unforgettable brother-sister bonds, a little slow-burn romance and a blend of ‘Goblet of Fire/Hunger Games’-like competitions on dragons,” Johnson said.

Here is what Johnson said about her book: “If her father finds out she’s raising a dragon in secret, he’ll kill it...maybe even her. Mirren Calia’s greatest ambition is to steer clear of her lumberjack father’s temper. But when a dragon’s life is on the line, her sights raise higher. She only has one option to keep it from starving to death: Compete. When the charming son of a lord sees potential in her skill, she can’t help but wonder if it’s genuine. Desperate decisions must be made with the approach of the prestigious Seventh Year Trials – a series of treacherous dragon-riding competitions for the nation’s wealthiest youth. But she isn’t a member of the elite, and a vindictive ex-noble is determined to win at any cost in a game all his own.”

“Perseverance is key,” is Johnson’s advice to would-be writers. “Always strive to learn and grow, exploring the people, world and ideas around you.”

Ann C. Sallemi was born in Chicago and came to New Mexico in the 1950s. She received a bachelor of fine arts degree from the University of New Mexico and a master of arts in teaching degree from New Mexico State University.

“Between degrees, I spent three years in Mexico City, dancing with the Ballet Folklorico de Amalia Hernández, and another two years in Peace Corps Guatemala, facilitating the construction of rural schools,” Sallemi said. “My teaching career, brief and unexceptional, was spent in Canutillo, Florida and South Carolina. Retired for more than 20 years, I spent most of my time in front of keyboards – those of my computer and my grand piano.”

In Sallemi’s book, “The Mousetrap,” Maria Ofelia Orongo Chiu, a recent doctoral graduate in zoology, “attempts to put some distance between herself and her ex-husband, Jullian.  Ukraine proves not to be far enough, however. Jullian eventually arrives, only to find pitfall after pitfall awaiting him. Intrigue and silliness bring a satisfying end to each of their journeys.”

“I write because an invisible muse keeps filling my head with words,” Sallemi said. “I am forced to pay attention. Soon the characters have taken over, making their own demands. My best advice for young writers is to read, read, read. You will find your own voice by absorbing those of others. And P.S., you’re never too old to start!”

Michael Potts is an award-winning poet, a songwriter and a published storyteller. Born in Artesia, New Mexico, in 1951, he grew up in Las Cruces. Potts attended school here and married the love of his life, Kathy. Potts’ poems have been published in the National Library of Poetry “Tomorrow's Dream,” and his poem “Alzheimer's” advanced to the semifinals of the National Amateur Poetry Competition. Potts was awarded a third-place finish for senior writers in the Queen Ann County, Maryland, poetry contest for his poem “The Apple Tree.”

Potts’ newest unpublished book, “Strights of Thistlekirk,” takes place in 1787 Baltimore and Paris. The United States is a new country and France is on the verge of revolution. The youngest son of Cornelius Stright, Robert, 23, continues to bring dishonor on his family, so is sent aboard the schooner Kathleen under the tutelage of Captain Dodd to learn to sail and become a merchant. His meeting Theresa Camille Benoist Desmoulin sets up intrigue and adventure that will continue in other novels, Potts said.

“I love creating these characters and find that bringing them to life is thrilling,” he said. “I would advise any new author to just put pencil to paper and let your imagination run wild with you and create.”

Bob Diven is an author, artist, actor, composer and playwright originally from Illinois who has lived and worked in Las Cruces for many years. He has been a professional visual artist for more than 40 years.

Diven’s book, “Living in Las Cruces,” is a softbound, 12-by-9-inch book of more than 300 editorial cartoons along with commentary from his editors at The Las Cruces Sun-News. The cartoons are organized under subject headings, from agriculture to city government to all four seasons, he said.

“I had two reasons for putting this book together,” Diven said. “The first was to share the best from my 13 years of editorial cartoons in one volume and the second was to simply have the book exist as a document of our city’s life.”

Diven said his advice “for anyone wanting to publish their own book is to find a couple of trusted people to proofread your work. Good editing and proofing is both under-appreciated and hard to find. I was fortunate that being a graphic designer I could lay out the book exactly as I wanted it. I paid for an extra printed proof or two from the printer because there were mistakes that could only be seen in the actual physical book and were easy to miss on a computer screen.

“I was also fortunate in that the book won first place in the New Mexico Press Women’s statewide competition, and second place in The National Federation of Press Women’s nationwide competition for adult non-fiction humor book,” Diven said.

Visit www.bobdiven.com.

For more information, contact Joy Miller at joyemmamiller@gmail.com. Contact Alice Davenport at 575-527-1411 and adavenport@totacc.com, or visit her at Moonbow’s Book Nook, 225 E. Idaho Ave.,  No. 32.

Celebrate Authors

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