Mabel Pedrozo

On January 23, 1965, Mabel Mercedes Pedrozo Cibils was born in Asunción, Paraguay. She grew up in the Paraguayan capital in a family of 7. She entered the Law Faculty at the Universidad Nacional de Asunción, graduating and becoming a professor at the same university.

In 1986, she began working as a reporter for the newspaper “La Tarde” and later worked at the newspaper “Popular”.  She published her first book of short stories with her sister Amanda Pedrozo,  "Mujeres al Teléfono y otros cuentos" (Women on the Phone and other stories) in 1997. Short stories was a genre to which she dedicated herself most.

Her first publications were collective works of poetry in 1984, and short stories in 1991. She is known for her journalistic work and her texts that use Jopara (a colloquial language that mixes Guaraní and Spanish, common in the Paraguayan capital). Additionally, she participated in several cultural groups, such as NIRE (Núcleo de Integración Regional de Escritores).

She founded Casa del Escritor-Escritor Róga ( Writer's House) with David Galeano Olivera, Mario Casartelli, Chiquita Barreto, Rubén Rolandi, Pablino Gómez, Amanda Pedrozo and Delfina Acosta.

She received several distinctions and awards for her notable work: the “Amigos da Arte” Prize (1984), the “Roque Gaona” Prize (2002), the “Bienio” Prize (2002-2004), the “Solidarity Friend of the Language Guarani of the Ateneo de Língua e Cultura Guarani” (2016), and “Honorable Mention - National Literature Award” (2021).

Mabel Pedrozo passed away in Paraguay on January 12, 2022, at age 56.