VENTURA — On the heels of having won the 2012 PEN Oakland Josephine Miles Award for her début novel, Ocotillo Dreams, local author and poet Melinda Palacio returns to sign her new book of poems, “How Fire Is a Story, Waiting,” at 1 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 19 at Bank of Books, 748 E. Main St., Ventura.
Palacio grew up in South-Central Los Angeles. She holds two degrees in Comparative Literature (a B.A. from UC Berkeley and a Master’s from University of California, Santa Cruz). She writes a column for “La Bloga.” She is a 2007 PEN Center USA Emerging Voices Fellow, and a 2009 poetry alum of the Squaw Valley Community of Writers. Her poetry chapbook Folsom Lockdown (Kulupi Press 2009) is the Sense of Place winner. In 2011,?she published her debut novel, Ocotillo Dreams (Bilingual Review Press). How Fire Is A Story, Waiting is her first full-length poetry book.
Future California readings feature three Bay Area Stops including Moe’s in Berkeley, Jan. 24, Readers Books in Sonoma, Jan. 27, and a speaking engagement at UC Merced Jan. 28. Beyond Baroque and Avenue 50 Studio, March 17-18. Recently added, Melinda Palacio will be a featured author at the 2013 Los Angeles Times Book Festival.
February speaking engagements include NSU, Natchitoches, Louisiana, Lorelei Books in Vicksburg, MS, and the Latter Library in New Orleans.
Click here or visit http://melindapalacio.com for more information.