Check out Las Cruces Digest covering the Southern New Mexico Book Festival, here.
Category: workshop
Southern New Mexico Book Festival
Upcoming Events with LCW’s Charmayne Samuelson
Charmayne has the following exciting events coming in the next several months. Here they are, straight from her newsletter:
FRIDAY SEPT. 11 & SATURDAY SEPT. 12
Major Mata Ortiz exhibition, trunk show, powerpoint presentations, wine reception, and pottery demo and firing at the San Antonio Museum of Art.
I am honored to be attending this event with the world-famous Master Mata Ortiz potters, Hector Gallegos, Laura Bugarini, Paula Bugarini and Yetito Bugarini.
An opening wine/cheese reception on Friday with pottery and books, and on Saturday I will be sharing the unbelievable story of how it all began! Details in the flyer below. Pottery Sales and Book Sales!
SATURDAY OCT 3
SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO BOOK FESTIVAL
I will be attending with my books ready to autograph for you, and I will be leading a workshop. This will be the second year for this event, and it was hugely successful last year. Authors from all over the Southwest will have their books for sale, and there will be other special events.
THURSDAY, FRIDAY, SATURDAY, OCT. 8, 9, 10
I am very excited to launch the Spencer MacCallum biography En Espanol in Mata Ortiz, Mexico and will be attending a book signing event while there for the world-famous Concurso, competition of the potters. It is a fun and exhilarating weekend full of amazing art, delicious food, and wonderful friends!…
Volunteer for Southern New Mexico Book Festival!
SNMBF needs your help! If you love books, share your love with others at Southern New Mexico Book Festival.
Click here to sign up!
…Request for 2026 Southern New Mexico Book Festival Vendor Applications
We are ready to accept applications from authors, booksellers, and book-related vendors to participate in the 2026 Second Annual Southern New Mexico Book Festival (SNMBF).
The 2026 SNMBF will be held on Saturday, October 3, 2026, at the DASR building at the Doña Ana Community College East Mesa campus on 2800 Sonoma Ranch Blvd.
This year, we are expanding beyond the common area into the courtyard, so we will be able to accommodate more vendors. If you choose to be in the courtyard, you have the option of using your own table or renting a half or whole 6-foot table.
Follow the appropriate link to access the online application that applies to your situation.
Link to Author Vendor form – https://forms.gle/W1bgwHkCnq4LGPyi6
Link to Bookseller/Publisher Vendor form – https://forms.gle/AkXL23rnNw95iHUx8
Link to Book-related Vendor form – https://forms.gle/R8qf9LseUqpAQJho6
If you participated in the 2025 Southern New Mexico Book Festival (SNMBF) and you want to use the same headshot and book cover that you submitted last year, email us at snmbookfestival@gmail.com. Put your name as the subject.
DO NOT SUBMIT PAYMENT UNTIL YOUR APPLICATION IS APPROVED. When you are accepted, you will receive instructions about how to pay. There will be an online payment option.
We still need volunteers to help with the 2026 SNMBF. Only children’s book authors will do readings. Author panels by genre will replace adult author readings. We need authors to serve as panelists and moderators; help with planning and conducting workshops; getting sponsors and food vendors; and doing …
2026 Southern New Mexico Book Festival
April Meeting!
Where
Las Cruces Village (formerly Good Samaritan) in the Creative Arts Room, 3011 Buena Vida Circle. Enter through the main administrative building entrance (parking is to the east of the building) and turn left in the first hallway to reach the room.
When
2:30-4:30 pm, Saturday April 11th, 2026
Agenda
- Call to Order
- Welcome New Members
- Membership and Financials
- Member Accomplishments
- Mira! Las Cruces!
- Carol Potenza – Going Wide – Other than Amazon Book Sellers
- Booknanza discussion
- Readings by members?? (THIS COULD BE YOU!)
- POV Discussion (read up on the different POV types and their strengths!)
- Time & Date of next meeting reminders
- Adjournment
Book Release: Spencer MacCallum en Español!
Award-winning Las Cruces Writer Charmayne Samuelson has released a Spanish version of her biography of Spencer MacCallum, a critical figure in the development of the Mata Ortiz pottery school of Mexico.
Here are some upcoming events she is doing:
The book launch AND tour begins on Friday, April 17, 2026 from 6-8 at the prestigious Otero Arts Center Reading Program in Alamogordo, NM, where I will be the guest speaker and will share thoughts about everything from the Creative Process to Publishing to the significance of winning awards for not only me but those I write about. I will be signing the new book as well as many of my other books.
The second launch date is Sunday, May 3, 2026 in Tucson, AZ. I will join the renowned Tito Carillo’s Mata Fest, joining famous potters from Mata Ortiz, and signing all three Mata Ortiz books.
The third launch date will be Saturday, June 20, 2026, in Silver City, AZ, at the Silver City Museum for the Silver City Clay Festival. The museum features the stunning work of Mata Ortiz Potter Oralia Lopez and others, and I will be doing 3 slide show presentations and signing books for you!
Karen Ray Speaks!
Check out Las Cruces Writer and memoirist Karen Ray talk about writing at the virtual Kingdom Writers Conference on March 24th. Extra-nice: it’s free!
Amp Up for the Southern New Mexico Book Festival with the Las Cruces Bulletin!
Check out new articles in the Las Cruces Bulletin that cover our two rock-star writers and event organizers, Eva Nevarez-St. John and Charmayne Samuelson. First the two discuss the event, its origins and even a little about literacy in the 21st century. The second article covers Charmayne’s amazing run of awards and success with her Mata Ortiz pottery collaborations and, drum roll please… five new awards from the New Mexico Book Awards, announced Oct. 1st.
For more information on the book festival, check out our events page.
