Maria Melendez Kelson
Maria Melendez Kelson is author of two collections of poetry from University of Arizona Press: How Long She'll Last in This World (2006), and Flexible Bones (2010). She has been a finalist for the PEN Center USA Literary Award in Poetry, a two-time Honorable Mention recipient for the International Latino Book Awards, and a finalist for the Colorado Book Award. Her essays appear in Ms. Magazine, Sojourns and elsewhere, and her poetry and essays are widely anthologized, most recently in Colors of Nature: Culture, Identity & the Natural World. NPR’s American Democracy Project broadcast several of her essays on arts & activism, and she currently edits Pilgrimage, a literary magazine emphasizing the themes of spirit, witness, and place. As an independent editorial consultant, she helps new and established writers create dynamic manuscripts.