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    AWP conference still on, despite state of disaster in San Antonio due to coronavirus.

    Jonny Diamond

    March 2, 2020, 5:08pm

    In a tweet by executive director Diane Zinna, AWP has announced that despite concerns over the coronavirus—and a recently declared public health emergency in San Antonio—the conference will continue.

    If you’d been hanging out on literary Twitter for the past few days (hi) you’d have noticed a lot of anxiety and uncertainty as writers wondered aloud whether or not they should travel to San Antonio in the midst of ongoing and increased concerns over a COVID-19 outbreak (aka coronavirus). For many small presses and their writers, who rely on the annual event—which draws something approaching 15,000 people—for exposure and sales, any decision to cancel comes with a significant financial hit.

    UPDATED: Full statement from AWP here.

    (Head to the World Health Organization site for ongoing updates and resources on the coronavirus.)

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