Photo by Angie Contini from The Salons, Sydney, Australia
Dear friends,
I have been away from this website for a long time, relying on social media to post news, updates, readings, but there is news to share! And it is big big big. Website worthy!
I have two books coming out in 2026!
And no! It should not be this way!
I want each book to have its own year, its own lifetime, but this is a fantastic problem to have with my two DREAM TEXAS PRESSES: Flowersong Press and Arte Público Press!
When You Were Human is my forthcoming poetry collection, a full length collection of poems dedicated to the Virgin Mary, an extension of my chapbook, VirginX. This new book has taken quite some time to do, and it will come out with the fabulous people at Flowersong Press, Edward Viduarre, Avery Castillo, and their dedicated dream team.
Pub date is March 3rd, 2026!
I am overjoyed, thrilled, and look at this cover art by Celeste de Luna and designed by Cloud Cardona. San Antonio artists are in the HOUSE here! The art and design could not be more perfect for these poems.
When You Were Human, Flowersong Press
Art by Celeste De Luna Design by Cloud Delfina Cardona
“When You Were Human by Natalia Treviño makes the ordinary and the sacred sing in beautiful harmony. In Treviño’s world, miracles and mercy wear sneakers; woes and wonders are joined at the hip.”
Later in March, my FIRST NOVEL will come out, The Road Back, and wow, has it been a road! (I am the only one allowed to say that by the way!) Arte Público has been my dream press since I knew I wanted to write a book one day. It was because of their book, Chants by Pat Mora.
Here was a poet I was studying who knew Spanish? Who used it? Reading this book helped me see that I could use my experiences, my language, my whole mind. I think of this book as the greatest ear piece I could have received when I was a young undergrad. Pat Mora gave me permission to hear my whole MIND on the page, to be bilingual, to paint pictures of my home, my family, to see my observations as worthy of literature. I would not be the writer I am without these lessons from Pat Mora and the press that believed in her back in the 80’s.
While I am slow at writing and even slower at editing, I dreamt that having my name on ANY document that had the Arte Público logo would mean I did it. I reached the heights of my writing career, and to think it happened with a novel and not poetry!?
Well, that is nothing short of a miracle. Novel writing is no picnic! There are so many moving parts, and its engines must keep it moving in time.
Lyric poetry can look into a sinkhole or a cenote for a long time and keep discovering what is there, what it is like. It can linger in the mesmerized state. It can make an impression and leave the reader with questions, with possibilities, with nuance, discomfort, but a novel can only take a brief look at what is under the tip of the iceberg. It cannot linger far too long on an image, or a moment in time because our characters have to keep moving! The novel is train, passenger, actors, sound crew, lighting crew, and cinematographer, all in one package, and this train has many moving parts that ALSO must engage ALL of the senses! It’s had my head spinning for YEARS. And I love sensory writing as much as anyone loves their maple syrup and butter on their pecan blueberry lemon ricotta pancakes, but alas, my novel is not very sweet. It is about a bitter struggle. You will see.
My hat is off to the many novelists who helped me along the way, but I made it down this road for novel #1, and I hope you enjoy it. May The Road Back help us look at the issues of immigration, asylum, oppression, and family separation more honestly. This is a story I have wanted to tell for a very long time.
I am glad it is coming out now at this time in history.
It is a story of humanity, love, motherhood, and life for an undocumented women struggling with the US-Mexico borderlands.
Be ready. It is not an easy story to swallow. You can order it here.
The Road Back, Arte Público Press
Art by Celeste De Luna
“Natalia Trevino writes with profound tenderness, weaving an intimate portrait of maternal devotion. It is a story of unwavering love pushed to its limit, exploring the weight of a sacrifice no mother should ever have to bear.”
Notice the colors of both covers? Notice the artist of BOTH covers? Notice how much I admire the work of Celeste De Luna, a San Antonio artist who has made waves with her socially conscious work. Her use of blue should be studied for centuries.
I am so delighted both presses agreed with me to feature her work on the covers of these books, independently of each other.
And in a way, the books are fraternal twins, not by any means identical, but they both look at similar themes that matter to me: borders, motherhood, racism, and the sacred dignity that exists in every human being.
I will be announcing events for these two beauties on my Instagram account!
Thank you for spending time with me on this page!
To contact me for events, workshops, or to learn more, email me at nataliaotrevino@gmail.com.