Congratulations to the Winners of the 2021 Arizona Literary Awards in NONFICTION category

FIRST PLACE NONFICTION - Military Wives in Arizona Territory: A History of Women Who Shaped the Frontier - by Jan Cleere

When the U.S. Army ordered troops into Arizona Territory in the 19th century to protect and defend the new settlements established there, some of the military men brought their wives and families, particularly officers who might be stationed in the west for years. Most of the women were from refined, eastern-bred families with little knowledge of the territory they were entering. Their letters, diaries, and journals from their years on army posts reveal untold hardships and challenges faced by families on the frontier. These women were bold, brave, and compassionate. They were an integral part of military posts that peppered the West and played an important role in civilizing the Arizona frontier. Combining the words of these women with original research tracing their movements from camp to camp over the years they spent in the West, this collection explores the tragedies and triumphs they experienced.

Author, historian, and lecturer Jan Cleere writes extensively about the people who first settled in the desert southwest. Always on the lookout for the stories of early pioneering women, her books reflect her love of the west and her knowledge of western history.

Her monthly column, "Western Women," appears in Tucson's Arizona Daily Star newspaper, and she is a presenter for the Arizona Humanities program Arizona Speaks. The Arizona Newspapers Association honored Jan for a series of historical profiles she wrote for Phoenix Woman Magazine, and the Nevada Women's History Project names her to its Roll of Honor for her significant contribution in the preservation of Nevada women's history. Her freelance work appears innational and regional publications.

SECOND PLACE - NONFICTION - ONE HUNDRED SIXTY ACRES OF DIRT - by Marsha Arzberger

One Hundred Sixty Acres of Dirt tells the tales of remarkable people―farmers, cowboys, pioneer women and schoolmarms and their journey dealing with rustlers, droughts, Apaches, and straying husbands. It is the story of how they persevered and survived.

It was their dream to own their own land. The pioneer families traveled a thousand miles to claim their homesteads in Arizona Territory. It is a beautiful country, but a tough life. Those who persevered met the challenges, raised their families, and prospered. Their determination was inspiring. They were strong and they left a legacy of courage. The histories came from personal journals and scrapbooks. One Hundred Sixty Acres of Dirt is a carefully researched historical account of these stories that are filled with the emotions and passions of the people that lived them: their daily lives, joys, and tragedies.

Marsha Arzberger flies her Cessna Skylane when she travels from the ranch near Willcox, Arizona. She is a rancher, a cowgirl, a retired Arizona State Senator, a former Dean of a Junior College, and an author. She has a Bachelor's degree and a master's degree. She was an elected State Senator for four terms and Senate Minority Leader. She and her late husband flew search and rescue for Civil Air Patrol. Marsha published a historical romance novel in 1982, switched careers, and then came back to writing.

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THIRD PLACE - NONFICTION - REMOVE TO PLAY by Lia Woodall

Lia Woodall (she/her) is an award-winning essayist who experiments with form to explore her experiences of twin loss to suicide and the roles played in her family of origin. Her hybrid chapbook Remove to Play (The Cupboard Pamphlet, 2020) was the 2019 contest winner. Words published or forthcoming in Best American Experimental Writing 2020 (digital edition), under the gum tree, Literal Latté, Sonora Review, Crack the Spine, The Rumpus, and South Loop Review. She has been recognized with Pushcart Prize nominations and as notables in The Best American Essays series. She currently lives in Phoenix on territories of the O'odham Jewed, Akimen O'odham (Upper Pima) and Hohokam Peoples, where she is at work on a collection-across-genre called "Leaving Twinbrook: A Memoir of Duality."

HONORABLE MENTION - NONFICTION - MY DOG IS MY RELATIONSHIP COACH - by Maureen Scanlon

Explore the answers to relationship questions no matter what stage of the love game you are in.

My Dog Is My Relationship Coach is a guide to relationships that takes its lead from the pets in our lives and the unconditional love they offer. In our search for love, companionship, and "the one"-as well as during our maintenance of a romantic relationship-we often lose sight of our true selves and what we deeply desire in a life partner.

This book will help you to see clearly what it takes to heal yourself, enhance your marriage or romantic relationships, and realize the whole person you were meant to be while in a relationship or searching for that perfect mate. With tips, examples, and anecdotes, this guide shares the meaning, clarity, and deep connections that enhance the journey of finding or loving "our person."

Author Maureen Scanlon, certified in life coaching, NLP practitioner training, is a relationship expert and spiritual coach who is passionate about teaching and guiding us to nurture our relationships. Through her books, workshops, and YouTube videos, Scanlon has found that following our furry friends' outlook on relationships adds warm and relatable clarity and inspiration to those who are stuck on the "relationship hamster wheel."

Maureen Scanlon is the founder and CEO of Maureen Scanlon Life Coaching. She is an author, relationship expert, motivational speaker, positive change integrator, and spiritual coach who has successfully helped many people, from experienced professionals to young adults, make positive changes to overcome past experiences and negative thinking. When Maureen is not working to change the world, you can find her at home relaxing in Mesa, Arizona, with her husband, Dennis, and her furry babies, Jade and Brodie. She is also the mother of three adult children and grandmother to three grandchildren whom she adores

Congratulations to the winners of the 2021 Arizona Literary Awards in Published Fiction category

FIRST PRIZE - FICTION - BLOOD AND SILVER - by VALI BENSON

What is a twelve year old girl to do when she finds herself in the silver boom town of Tombstone, Arizona, in 1880, and her only home is a brothel and her only parent is a drug-addicted mother? If she is Carissa Beaumont, she outsmarts the evil madam and figures a way out.

After tricking the madam, Miss Lucille, into summoning a doctor for her mother, Lisette, she discovers that Miss Lucille has been drugging her. She and the kind doctor make a plan to try to save Lisette by dosing her down on the drug.

Doctor Henderson tells Carissa that the only source for the drug is a Chinese immigrant named China Mary, who lives in Hoptown, at the other end of Tombstone. Carissa has no choice but to go to the powerful woman for help. Many say that China Mary is the one who really controls Tombstone.

China Mary admires Carissa's brave spirit, and uses her influence to get her a job at the new Grand Hotel, which will free Carissa from her many duties at Miss Lucille's. She will work along with Mary's twelve year old niece, Mai-Lin. The two girls become fast friends.

Then, disaster strikes, and the two girls must work together to stay alive.

Vali grew up in the Midwest. She now lives in Tucson with her husband, two sons and grandchildren.

After graduating from the University of Illinois, Vali started and sold two successful businesses before she decided to pursue her real passion of writing. She published several articles in a variety of periodicals, including History Magazine before she decided to try her hand at fiction.

In April of 2020, Vali published her first novel, “Blood and Silver”. That same month, she was also made a member of the Western Writers of America.

SECOND PLACE - ON TRAIGH LAR BEACH - Stories by DIANNE EBERTT BEEAFF

Erica Winchat, a young writer overwhelmed by the stress of her first book contract, discovers thirteen curious items tangled in the flotsam on the Scottish beach of Tràigh Lar. Erica tells the intriguing story of the owner of each of these items, uncovering a series of dramatic events—from a Chicago widow’s inspiring visit to Quebec City to a shrimper’s daughter facing Tropical Storm Ruby in North Carolina.

Dianne Ebertt Beeaff has been a free-lance writer for many years, beginning in the area of magazine journalism. More recently she has had six books published, from memoir to poetry to historical fiction. Her latest book is the short story collection ON TRAIGH LAR BEACH (She Writes Press 2020)

THIRD PLACE FICTION - DESERT FOUNTAINHEAD - A Tale about the Borderlands - by ROBERT MAREK

Water spells life on the high desert: A migrant is found and rescued at the point of death; a village finds its supply failing; a rancher loses his water source in a drunken card game; a developer's reckless plan to build grandiose winter homes arouses a deadly protest; and an end-of-life experience inspires a hapless desert wanderer to find redemption through altruism and forgiveness.

About the author:

Robert Marak, writing as Marek Friedl, has lived a dozen years south of Tucson, where he has hiked many dozens of miles in the arid hill country near the border. He learned to cherish this spectacular landscape, both precious and precarious. He found time to work with a nonprofit charity and learned of the challenges presented by immigration, water scarcity, and development. The Groundwater Management Act of 1980 forms the underlying context of the novel. The writer has pursued interests in document conservation, the environment, woodworking, and public policy.

HONORABLE MENTION - NEEDLES ARIZONA by Bill Coates

Billy Olson is an Arizona cactus cop on the hunt for a pair of misfit brothers on the run with a rare crested saguaro. The McFinneys leave a trail of assault and mayhem wherever they go. They're suspected in the murder of the man who stole the cactus from the estate of a dollar-store magnate. Olson is joined by Jane Fillmore, a sheriff's deputy who's fit and handy with firearms. Olson, not so much. It didn't help he abandoned the traditional Pima diet handed down by his grandmother. Instead, he dines on high carbs and beer. He can still follow a clue, as he and Fillmore chase the McFinneys to the desert sanctuary of one William Upchurch, leader of a cult of cactus worshippers. He awaits the crested, the cristate, hoping to tap into another dimension.

Bill Coates was born at St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix, August 1950. His mother had struggled to lift a gate to irrigate the lawn. She slipped and fell into the irrigation ditch. She went into labor. So began Bill's first day. He attended high school and college in Phoenix and Tempe. Later, in Tucson, he received a master's in journalism. Coates worked for a number of newspapers in the years since. They included a monthly that covered Arizona Indian tribes, the Phoenix Gazette, the Arizona Capitol Times and lastly, the Casa Grande Dispatch. He has written three books, including Needles Arizona.