Journal Entries

A Poetry Reading with Natachee Momaday Gray and Jill Prendergast

WHEN:  Sunday, July 7, 2024 at 5:00 p.m.

COST: Free admission

ABOUT THE POETS:

Natachee Momaday Gray is a Santa Fe native and indigenous poet and performer. Her work focuses on the melding of art and myth, ancestry and nostalgia, food and prayer, glamour, frivolity and time. She comes from a long lineage of storytellers and honors this tradition by bringing a charm and seduction to stories overlooked and undertold. Moving beyond English, Spanish, and the blood memory of the Plains people, she expresses a boundless identity, often using the alias Tatja Lucía. She holds numerous awards including the Lena Todd award for poetry and recently was nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Best of Small Presses. Her debut poetry collection, Silver Box from Finishing Line Press, is widely celebrated and was voted Best New Book by a New Mexico Author in the Reporter’s 2023 Best of Santa Fe issue. A new mother, she is working on a new manuscript chronicling her journey into motherhood. She lives on a small farm with her family in Coyote, NM. 

Jill Prendergast has published three books of poetry and prose from anywhere but her writing desk in Santa Fe, NM. Her writing has been featured in Elephant Journal, Folk Rebellion, Sivana East, Snapdragon Journal, Linden Ave. Lit Journal, P.O.M.E., Santa Fe Literary Review, Ropes lit journal and local newspapers. She is a bookseller and runs a cafe for the largest independent, women-owned shop in New Mexico. She is best surrounded by books, the woods, or bright pub conversation. Originally East-coast born, Jill grew up in Minneapolis and did an out-of-body stint as a firefighter in VA. She received her AS in Outdoor Education from MT Hood College, OR, and her BA in Outdoor Sustainability Studies from Colorado Mountain College in Steamboat Springs, CO. She taught snowboarding and rock climbing in programs for children, Veterans, and Adaptive Sports throughout the west. Most recently she interned with the Santa Fe Literary Review while working on her Creative Writing Certificate, continually learning the precious balance of ruthless writing.

Teatro Paraguas has hosted poetry readings and a monthly poetry open-mic (sponsored by New Mexico State Poetry Society) since 2013.