Marcela Paz

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Marcela Paz (February 28, 1902-June 12, 1985) was the pen name of Esther Huneeus Salas de Claro, a Chilean writer. She also used the pen names of Paula de la Sierra, Lukim Retse, P. Neka and Juanita Godoy.

Paz was born in Santiago, Chile, the second child from a wealthy family. She studied at home. In 1926 she traveled to Paris to study arts and returned to Chile at the age of 24, when she started her literary works. She started at magazines like El Peneca, Ecran, Zig-Zag, Eva and Margarita, and newspapers like La Nación, El Mercurio and La Tercera. In 1933 she published her first book, Tiempo, papel y lápiz. The same year she was married to José Luis Claro.

In 1947 Paz wrote her most famous character, Papelucho. Between 1964 y 1967, she directed the Asociación Internacional del Libro Juvenil (IBBY).

In 1968 she received the Hans Christian Andersen Award. In 1979 she received the gold medal from the Instituto Cultural de Providencia. In 1982, she received the Premio Nacional de Literatura de Chile.