The National Writers Union national office in New York can provide you with contract assistance and help with grievances. Our Tucson, Arizona, chapter is here to answer questions; update you on issues like copyright protection and how new technology affects writers; and help you make contact with other members at events like our Friday breakfasts and our Monday readings.

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Words and Work: a New Weekly NWU Tucson Podcast

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In addition to our monthly reading and open mic, the Tucson chapter of the National Writers Union is now presenting a weekly broadcast program and podcast on union and writer’s issues titled “Words and Work.” Hosted by NWU member Ted Prezelski, it features interviews with authors and labor leaders.

It’s broadcast at 11:30 a.m. on Sundays on Downtown Radio. It’s at 99.1 on the FM dial but it’s LPFM which means that it reaches only a few miles outside of Downtown Tucson. It can also be heard streaming at downtownradio.org.

The podcast is posted the Monday after the broadcast. It can be found on Anchor, Breaker, Google Podcasts, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic and Spotify. Please see the links below.

Guests so far have been David Hill (writer and 1st Vice-President of the NWU), A. J. Flick (free-lance journalist, former crime reporter for the daily Tucson Citizen), Fred Yamashita (Executive Director, Arizona AFL-CIO), Lydia Otero (historian and author), and the organizers of the United Campus Workers of Arizona (CWA).

Links to the podcasts:

Anchor: https://anchor.fm/ted-prezelski
Breaker: https://www.breaker.audio/words-and-work
Google Podcasts: https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy81MTdiMjY5NC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==
Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/3435puy4
RadioPublic: https://radiopublic.com/words-and-work-WPDb0k
Spotify: Words and Work

Check Out the National Writers Union Website

You’ll find it at www.nwu.org. You can use it to:

  • Build your talent profile on our new searchable database
  • Submit news items about your writing—or any relevant event—for publication by tagging your NWU chapter.
  • Apply for a press pass
  • Renew your membership
  • Request contract advice

Monday Readings

The National Writers Union will be hosting a reading and open mic on Monday, May 20, starting at 6:00 p.m. This month the event will only be held in person, but the Zoom option will return in June.

This month, Nooshie Motaref will be reading from and discussing her latest book, The Girl Raised in Bull Blood, which is a historical novel covering the time of 20 BC through 4 AD. Its protagonist is a young slave girl that flees a royal Roman household, which begins a mystical, harrowing adventure across time and the power centers of Rome and Persia.

Nooshie is the author of the award-winning novel, Tapestries of the Heart. She grew up in a family of strong women... and men. Her father owned a newspaper in Tehran. She was encouraged to pursue education and to make her own decision about marriage.  She grew up in Persia, and studied in Iran, Germany, Switzerland and United States. She received her master’s and doctorate degrees in American Literature and Folklore from Florida State University. Her dissertation is a proof of Carl Jung’s theory, the “ Collective Unconscious,” through Persian fairytales and folktales.

The open mic is for spoken word only, but is open to all forms of spoken word (fiction, essays, poetry, articles, polemics, etc.). So bring something to read!

The event will be held at the UFCW Union Hall at 877 S. Alvernon Way in Tucson (where we met from 2016 to 2020). The building is on the east side of the street (opposite the Randolph Park golf range) and is a couple of blocks north of 22nd Street. There is ample parking. The room is on the first floor and we will have signs up to point the way.

Hope to see you there!

Friday Morning Breakfasts

NWU Tucson Friday morning breakfasts will be on hiatus until further notice. Check back for dates. They take place at 9:00 a.m. at Laverna's Coffee Shop. The address is 220 S. Plumer, which is one block south of Broadway, on the west side of Plumer.

Steering Committee
Our elected Steering Committee members are Co-Chairs Keith Bagwell and Barbara Wright; Secretary Alice Whittenburg; and Events Coordinator Greg Evans. The Steering Committee usually meets on the first Monday of each month. Contact us at nwutucson@yahoo.com to confirm the date and location of the next meeting.