The University Libraries is pleased to extend a warm invitation to the University community, donors, friends, literary lovers and Northern ÁùºÏ±¦µä community members alike as it gears up to host and celebrate the 37th Annual ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame. The 2024 event will honor inductee and Silver Pen awardee .
will host this year’s event scheduled for Nov. 1, at 7 p.m. on the first floor, Marilyn R. Melton ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame Gallery, the Leslie Harvey & Robert George Whittemore Tower Entry and Reception Gallery, and Wells Fargo Auditorium.
“I look forward to the Libraries’ annual celebration of ÁùºÏ±¦µä authors and their accomplishments,” Dean Cardwell said. “The Libraries’ signature event pays tribute to our past, preserves our literary history, and celebrates the Silver State’s imagination and creativity. Michael Branch and Laura Newman are highly deserving of these accolades.”
The Hall of Fame induction ceremony and book signing will begin at 7 p.m. followed by a dessert and wine reception at 8 p.m. Poet and ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame member will recognize the important memory of Sundance Books and John Trent, author of “” will help those in attendance celebrate this important milestone in University history.
per person in advance. Free parking for the duration of the event will be available in the Brian Whalen Parking Complex. For more information contact Maggie Ressel by email or 775-682-5653.
“Like many writers, I do much of my work in relative isolation, without the camaraderie inherent to a collaborative art form like filmmaking,” 2024 ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame Inductee Michael Branch said. “To me, the Hall of Fame has always been a home for writers in our state, and its inductees are literary artists whose work I’ve studied, taught, and been inspired by throughout my career. Having the opportunity to join that group means helping to strengthen a mutually supportive community of writers in order to share with others the encouragement I’ve long received from the NWHOF and its supporters.”
Meet the honorees in advance of the ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame event at the Oct. 12 ÁùºÏ±¦µä Humanities Literary Crawl
In addition to the Nov. 1 Hall of Fame event, both honorees, Branch and Newman, will participate in the ÁùºÏ±¦µä Humanities’ Literary Crawl taking place on Saturday, Oct. 12. They are part of a panel discussion titled, “,” from 2 – 2:45 p.m. at 1864 Tavern located on California Avenue in Reno. During the session they will discuss their unique perspectives of the West in a conversation moderated by . In 2015, Maynard was awarded the ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame Silver Pen Award. Community members wishing to get to know this year’s Hall of Fame honorees are encouraged to attend this unique and intimate session with the authors.
ÁùºÏ±¦µä Michael Branch, 2024 ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame Inductee, 2017 Silver Pen Awardee
Michael Branch is University Foundation Professor emeritus at the University of ÁùºÏ±¦µä, Reno. He is the author of more than 300 essays, which have appeared in venues including CNN, San Francisco Chronicle, Slate, Outside, Pacific Standard, Orion, Ecotone, National Parks, The Scientist, and High Country News. Mike has published ten books, including his trilogy of place-based humor writing from the Great Basin Desert: Raising Wild, Rants from the Hill, and How to Cuss in Western. His creative nonfiction includes pieces recognized as Notable Essays in The Best American Essays, The Best Creative Nonfiction and The Best American Science and Nature Writing. He has received the Silver Pen Award from the ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame, the Ellen Meloy Desert Writers Award and the Montana Prize for Humor. Mike’s most recent book, On the Trail of the Jackalope, has been called “an entertaining and enlightening road trip to the heart of an American legend.”
ÁùºÏ±¦µä Laura Newman, 2024 Silver Pen Awardee
Laura Newman is the author of the story collection The Franklin Avenue Rookery for Wayward Babies and the forthcoming The Darling of the Black Rock Desert – Three Novellas (Delphinium Books). Her writing has been printed in The Saturday Evening Post, Literary Hub, Failbetter, Apricity Magazine, New Plains Review, as well as earning finalist in LitMag’s Virginia Woolf Award for Short Fiction.
Prior to publishing, Laura was the first female General Sales Manager in KOLO TV’s 60+ year history. She received the American Advertising Federation’s Community Contribution Award for her media campaigns combating substance use issues. Laura is a many-time winner of the Reno News and Review Short Fiction contest. The only rule was that the piece be exactly 95 words. As a result of her sustained success with this contest, the editor called Laura the “Tom Brady of 95 words…the least glamorous literary form this side of the limerick!”
Regarding receiving the Silver Pen award, Newman said, “The Silver Pen Award is a true honor for me as a ÁùºÏ±¦µän, especially coming from the University Libraries and its selection committee. As a writer, it is an oh-so-important affirmation. It gives me confidence to keep writing.”
ÁùºÏ±¦µä the ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame
The ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame was conceived by former Friends of the University Libraries President Marilyn Melton in 1988. She envisioned two purposes: an annual event honoring ÁùºÏ±¦µä's finest writers, and a stimulus to encourage excellence among emerging writers in the Silver State.
The first selection committee met at Marilyn’s home and chose Robert Laxalt and Walter Van Tilburg Clark as the recipients. Since that time, the Hall of Fame has become an annual event.
The names of all the authors who have been inducted into the ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame are now prominently displayed on a wall of honor in the Leslie Harvey and Robert George Whittemore Tower Entry and Reception Gallery of the Mathewson-IGT Knowledge Center.
Honorees are selected based on their body of work, critical recognition and a strong connection to ÁùºÏ±¦µä through the themes of their writing or residence in the state.
The Silver Pen Award was established in 1996 as part of the ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame to recognize writers who work in or write about ÁùºÏ±¦µä, are in their mid-career, and have already shown substantial achievement.
The award is designed to honor their talent and encourage other emerging and mid-career writers. It is hoped through their outstanding work they may one day be inducted into the ÁùºÏ±¦µä Writers Hall of Fame.
