The Waterston Desert Writing Prize will open for submissions on January 1 for the 2016 competition. Now in its second year, the Prize honors creative nonfiction that illustrates artistic excellence, sensitivity to place, and desert literacy, with the desert as both subject and setting.

Inspired by author and poet Ellen Waterston’s love of the high desert of Central Oregon, a region that has been her muse for over 30 years, the Prize recognizes the vital role deserts play worldwide in the ecosystem and the human narrative. Closing date for submissions is April 1, 2016. Submission guidelines are available at The Writing Ranch website. The Prize winner will receive a $1,500 cash award, a reading and reception at the High Desert Museum in Bend and a four-week residency at PLAYA at Summer Lake, Oregon.

The prize is funded from an endowment managed by the Oregon Community Foundation, with the impetus for the creation of the endowment provided by actor Sam Waterston, after whom the prize is named. As the endowment for the prize grows, so will the annual prize amount. The $1,500 cash award for the 2016 Prize is an increase from the $1,000 award in 2015.

Tax deductible donations can be made to the Waterston Desert Writing Prize, a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization and mailed to PO Box 640, Bend, Oregon 97709.

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