Roberto Lovato

Creative Nonfiction Writer

Las Vegas, NV
Nevada US

Author's Bio

Roberto Lovato is the award-winning author of Unforgetting (Harper Collins), a “groundbreaking” memoir the New York Times picked as an “Editor’s Choice.” Newsweek listed Lovato’s memoir as a “must read” 2020 book and the Los Angeles Times listed it as one of its 20 Best Books of 2020. Lovato is also an Assistant Professor of English at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. In addition to receiving a reporting grant from the Pulitzer Center, journalist Lovato has reported on numerous issues—racism, criminal justice, psychedelics and health, violence, terrorism, the drug war and the immigration and refugee crisis—from across the United States, Mexico, Venezuela, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Haiti, and France, among other countries. His essays and reports from around the world have appeared in numerous publications including The New York Times, Guernica Magazine, The Believer,  the Boston Globe, Foreign Policy magazine, The Rumpus, the Guardian, the Los Angeles Times, Der Spiegel, La Opinion, and other national and international publications.

Literary agent: 

Publications & Prizes

Book:
Unforgetting (Harper Collins, 2020)
Prizes won: 

Awards & Honors for Unforgetting

2022 San Francisco Public Library’s (SFPL) On the Same Page program’s book of the month. Hundreds of copies distributed to every branch for checkout, discussion and book clubs.

2022 Honored at Berkeley Public Library’s Annual Authors Dinner

2020 Editor’s Pick, The New York Times

2020 Best Books of 2020, The Los Angeles Times

2020 “Must Read 2020,” Newsweek

2020 International Latino Book Award for Nonfiction

2020 Silver Nautilus Award for Nonfiction

Other Awards & Honors

2020 ModNomad Residency for Artists

2019 Logan Nonfiction Program Fellowship

2019 Individual Artist Grant from the City of San Francisco’s Arts Commission

2018 Mesa Refuge Residency

2011 Pulitzer Crisis Reporting Grant for Journalism on the drug war in El Salvador 

2004 George Washington Williams Fellowship for journalists of color

Personal Favorites

Favorite authors: 
Roque Dalton Audre Lorde Italo Calvino Adrienne Rich James Baldwin Dionne Brand Eduardo Galeano
What I'm reading now: 
Trace by Laurent Savoy

More Information

Gives readings: 
Yes
Travels for readings: 
Yes
Identifies as: 
Latino/Latina/Latinx
Prefers to work with: 
Any
Fluent in: 
English, Spanish
Born in: 
San Francisco, CA
California
Raised in: 
San Francisco, CA
California
Please note: All information in the Directory is provided by the listed writers or their representatives.
Last update: Oct 25, 2023