The 33rd Annual Nevada Writers Hall of Fame will look a little different this year. Due to the limitations of the pandemic, the University Libraries will be trading in its typical pomp and circumstance to bring the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame to literary lovers at home, virtually. The 33rd Annual Nevada Writers Hall of Fame will celebrate Nevada’s literary voices in a light-hearted and fun fashion at 7 p.m. on Thursday, November 12. The event is free, will take place on ZOOM, and all are welcome. Advance registration is required. To register, please visit Eventbrite.
Author, educator and 2015 Silver Pen awardee Mark Maynard will host the virtual event which will include a variety of live and pre-recorded segments showcasing our authors’ literary and musical talents.
The event program includes music by 2018 Nevada Writers Hall of Fame Inductee Robert Leonard Reid. Remarks will be given by University Libraries Dean Kathy Ray. There will be a recitation of 2016 Nevada Writers Hall of Fame inductee Gailmarie Pahmeier’s new poem Where Do You Go From Tonopah? Hall of Fame honorees participating in the performance include: Alicia Barber, Phyllis Barber, Christopher Coake, Carolyn Dufurrena, Shaun Griffin, Tupelo Hassman, Clay Jenkinson, Teresa Jordan, Mark Maynard, Richard Moreno, David Mullins, Gailmarie Pahmeier, Douglas Unger, Willy Vlautin and Lindsay Wilson.
Other participants include 2013 Silver Pen awardee Christopher Coake, 2011 Nevada Writers Hall of Fame Inductee Waddie Mitchell, and 2017 Silver Pen awardee Michael Branch along with his daughter Hanna Branch.
"We really want the evening to feel like an intimate social gathering, something we've all been craving in our socially distanced world,” Maynard said. “The vision of this year's virtual event is to connect literary fans across the state and beyond to share in a collective moment for an hour or so.”
Additionally, special guest Lucas Huff, director of brand advocacy for Bently Heritage Estate Distillery, will demonstrate how to create the 2020 Nevada Writers Hall of Fame signature cocktail, a Maple Old Fashioned using Bently Heritage Source One Single Estate Vodka rested in oak sherry casks. All registered participants will receive the cocktail recipe in advance of the event. Signature cocktail ingredients are available for purchase locally at Raley’s Supermarket.
“Much like other event organizers across campus, the Libraries were challenged to rethink the 2020 Nevada Writers Hall of Fame event,” Dean of the University Libraries Kathy Ray said. “Our virtual celebration is sure to entertain, inspire and enlighten guests as we embrace this unique, virtual, variety-show format. I am looking forward to sharing the ‘stage’ with our talented host and note-worthy guests, and hope the event creates conversation and connection among literary lovers, friends of the Libraries and the greater community.”
The Nevada 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 Nevada’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. Thank you for joining us for this first-ever virtual version of the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame.
For a complete list of Nevada Writers Hall of Fame inductees and Silver Pen awardees, please visit the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame website.
The 33rd Annual Nevada Writers Hall of Fame event would not be possible without the generous support of our sponsors including: Shauna Adams, DeLores and Dave Aiazzi, Kelly and Annette Bland, NAI Alliance, Joe and Cathy Guild, the Clark Guild Family Trust, Bobbi & Dale Lazzarone, Lise Mousel, Janice Pine and Joan Zenan.
“As happens when you put a group of creative people together, it has really started to take its own shape,” Maynard said. “We wanted to have some stories and poems, some ‘behind the scenes’ tours of where authors and poets do their creative work, and then we realized we've got Nevada writers that are talented musicians as well.
“Variety shows always had a feeling of families and friends gathering around the tv set and inviting live performers right into their living rooms,” Maynard added. “There was always an element of ‘you don't know what might happen.’ We want the same thing for the 33rd Annual Nevada Writers Hall of Fame event!”
For questions about the event or information about supporting the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame, please contact Robin Monteith.
About the University Libraries
The University Libraries embrace intellectual inquiry and innovation, nurture the production of new knowledge, and foster excellence in learning, teaching and research. During each academic year, the Libraries welcomes more than 1.2 million visitors across its network of three branch libraries: the Mathewson-IGT Knowledge Center, the DeLaMare Science and Engineering Library and the Savitt Medical Library. Visitors checked-out more than 80,000 items and completed more than 2 million database searches.
