BEND, Ore. — The clock is ticking for writers inspired by the world’s arid landscapes as the High Desert Museum prepares to close submissions for the 12th annual Waterston Desert Writing Prize.
Entries for the nationally recognized award are due by May 1, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. The prize offers a $3,000 award and a creative residency at PLAYA in Summer Lake, Oregon, for a writer whose work explores the ecological and cultural dimensions of desert environments.
The Waterston Desert Writing Prize honors proposals for literary nonfiction that examine both the literal and symbolic aspects of desert landscapes. The 2026 winner will also be celebrated during a reception and reading at the museum in Bend on Sept. 17, 2026.
“Now in its 12th year, the Waterston Desert Writing Prize continues to elevate stories that honor the complexity of arid landscapes,” said Executive Director Dana Whitelaw. “We are eager to discover new, eloquent voices that challenge and expand our understanding of these vital ecosystems.”
Serving as this year’s guest judge is Charles Hood, a poet and essayist with more than a dozen books to his name. Hood, the 2025 Obsidian Award winner and a five-time finalist for the prize, has had a wide-ranging career that includes work as a factory laborer, ski instructor and birding guide in Africa. His recent works include Nocturnalia and A Salad Only the Devil Would Eat: The Joys of Ugly Nature, which was named Nonfiction Book of the Year by Foreword Reviews.
The prize was established in 2014 and is inspired by author and former Oregon Poet Laureate Ellen Waterston, whose decades-long connection to the High Desert shaped the award’s mission.
“The Waterston Desert Writing Prize serves as a catalyst for discovery, the writers’ and, ultimately, the readers’,” Waterston said. “It brings to the fore new perspectives on everything from the ‘desertification’ of our oceans to the ingenuity of desert flora and fauna to the human narratives that are inscribed across these landscapes.”
Writers at all stages of their careers — emerging, mid-career and established — are encouraged to apply. Submissions should demonstrate artistic excellence, a strong sense of place and a deep understanding of desert environments. The prize supports authors working on or proposing a book-length nonfiction manuscript, with writing samples ideally reflecting the larger project.
Recent winners include Heather Quinn (2025), Leath Tonino (2024), Anna Welch (2023) and Caroline Tracey (2022). Quinn’s winning proposal, This is How You Disappear, explores trauma, ecological collapse and memory in California’s desert regions, particularly around the Salton Sea, blending personal narrative with historical research and reportage.
More information about the Waterston Desert Writing Prize and submission guidelines is available on the High Desert Museum website.
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