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See you in Albuquerque!
Hotel
Important Update (8/1/2019)
Please read this important note about the availability of the group rate at the hotel
Rooms have been set aside at the Hotel Albuquerque on September 11, 2019 to September 15, 2019 at the rate of $139.00 plus taxes per night (single/double occupancy).
Hotel Albuquerque.
Click image for hotel website.
To make your own reservations, contact the hotel by calling 866-505-7829 and ask to be connected to reservations.
To receive the group rate, guests must state that they would like to be placed within the “MWSA General Membership Conference” block of rooms, or they may refer to the Block Code 1909MWSA.
The following link will work if you prefer to do your own online bookings – the Block Code comes up automatically.
Please note, the link will only work over the actual room block dates and the date of arrival and departure should be selected.
Important Note: Amenities Fee
Hotel Albuquerque has as of 1 June 2019 instituted an additional $20 + tax per day amenities fee which will not affect conference attendees who stay at the hotel. The notice of this fee will appear on all confirmation emails sent. The hotel cannot change their software to stop automatically generating this notice when you make a reservation. We were just notified of this on 19 June 2019 but our room rates were guaranteed by a contract that was signed last year. We are grandfathered in with the rates seen on this page. Please ignore the confirmation notification. The fee will appear on your room bill but then be removed at checkout. Bottom line is you will not pay this fee. If anyone has any problem with this at the time of checkout, contact Jim Tritten [cell (505) 453-6795] who will be staying at the hotel through noon on Sunday. If you are staying beyond Sunday and have a problem after Jim has departed, the Regional Director of Sales is Jacob Quintana who can straighten things out at the front desk. He can be reached at (505) 222-8744 or Cell (505) 501-0940. Jacob’s office is directly behind the front desk
Overview
The Military Writers Society of America (MWSA) and SouthWest Writers (SWW) will co-host a joint writing conference at the Hotel Albuquerque, Albuquerque, New Mexico, from Thursday September 12th through Sunday September 15th 2019. Program details are still being developed but the concept will be to share the strengths of both organizations in a series of classes and workshops designed to help writers learn from specialists they would not normally encounter.
Albuquerque, New Mexico, is known for the annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, chile [red or green is the state question], Native Americans living in close proximity, Breaking Bad, and its extraordinary Spanish culture. New Mexico is known officially as the “Land of Enchantment,” but locals refer to the state as the “Land of Entrapment” – many who come to visit stay. Here are some links to what to do while in Albuquerque.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g60933-Activities-Albuquerque_New_Mexico.html
https://www.visitalbuquerque.org/things-to-do/
https://www.thecrazytourist.com/top-25-things-to-do-in-albuquerque-nm/
MWSA is a nation-wide association of some 279 authors, poets, and artists, drawn together by the common bond of military service. Most of its members are active duty military, retirees, or military veterans. A few are lifelong civilians who have chosen to honor our military through their writings or their art. Others have only a tangential relationship to the military. MWSA will take the lead on teaching a free day-long writing class at the Raymond G. Murphy VA Medical Center in Albuquerque on Thursday, September 12th, 2019.
SWW brings a wealth of expertise to the conference. This would include memoir, southwest setting, mystery/thriller, poetry, short stories, romance, sci-fi, westerns, non-fiction, fantasy, action, history, humor, etc. SWW is devoted to helping both published and unpublished writers improve their craft and further their careers. SWW serves its 329 members and all writers of all skill levels in every fiction and nonfiction genre.
SWW knows a bit about MWSA. Last year, nine SWW members were finalists in the annual published book contest and were then awarded medals in Charleston, SC. In the past, the MWSA director of education, Jack Woodville London, spoke and taught classes at SWW. Similarly, members of SWW have spoken and taught classes at MWSA conferences. Jim Tritten, Larry Greenly, Jack London, Joe Badal, Brinn Colenda, Pat Walkow, and Tom Neiman are all members of both organizations and have volunteered their services to develop a program that is sure to inspire everyone.
This year’s joint conference in Albuquerque will also include an awards ceremony where both organizations will recognize highly talented authors who have published a book.
Anyone with specific recommendations for the program are welcome to contact the Conference Coordinator, Jim Tritten, at jimtritten@comcast.net. Of course, Jim welcomes hearing from anyone interested in helping at any level.
Things to do in Albuquerque
Looking for more to do while in Albuquerque? Try this website: https://www.newmexico.org/
Larry Greenly has provided a short list of further suggested activities while you’re in the city of Albuquerque. Click here to read Larry’s suggestions (PDF).
Book Sales
Registered attendees for the joint SWW/MWSA writing conference can sell their books during the conference via a routine process for SWW – a table on which the authors put their books with a price marked, and someone manages the sale of those books – in this case SWW will manage the sales at tables that will be provided. For those who want SWW to manage all sales, there will be a 10% cost to defray credit card charges to SWW for the transaction. There will also be a separate table where authors can simply display their books. If another attendee wishes to buy a book from that table, the author is free to work out the sale with the purchaser.
NOTE: SWW is a pass through entity, therefore we will not collect nor pay any tax on the sale of the books. We are a service which will sell the book for the amount the author wants us to sell it for. We will collect 10% to cover our expenses only. Knowing this, the author must decide how much they want SWW to sell the book for. The author should handle any sales tax according to the laws of the state they live in as they would for any sale.
Agenda
Please check back often, as we makes changes and updates to our agenda.
Conference Presenters & Mentors
Courtesy of SWW’s website. Click the link below for the most current information.
Click here for short bios of all presenters (opens SWW website in new window).
Click here to see more details about our mentoring program (opens a PDF document in a new window).
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Menu
Thursday 9/12
Reception
Green Chile Quesadillas
Mini Beef Wellington
Jalapeno Chicken skewers
Tomato Basil Bruschetta
Friday 9/13
PM Break
Red Chile Roasted Nuts
Chocolate Popcorn
Assorted Sodas
AM break
Bagels
Coffee
Tea
Lunch
The New Mexican Buffet
Saturday 9/14
Plated Dinner [Awards Banquet]
Salad:
Farmer's Market Salad
Entree Selections:
Herb Crusted Chicken Breast
Kyzer Farm Pork Chop
Seared Atlantic Salmon, Ginger Lime Butter
Vegetarian option
Dessert:
Salted Caramel Mousse with Candied Pecans
Dark Chocolate Mousse & Strawberries
AM break
Bagels
Coffee
Tea
Lunch
The NY Deli Buffet
PM Break
Cheese board
Hand-crafted trail mix
Soda