What I Love about Literary Festivals (and Writing Conferences or Book Fests!)
by Judy Larsen, author of All the Numbers
http://www.judymerrilllarsen.com Blog: http://notafraidofthefword.blogspot.com
All the Numbers, released July 2006 by Random House/Ballantine
—Featured in the Target 3-for-2 promotion, January 2007 —Selected by Target as a “Breakout Book,” September 2006 —Featured in the Border’s 3-for-2 promotion, Fall 2006 —Literary Guild and Doubleday Bookclub selection
When I first started attending literary festivals almost ten years ago, I was an unpublished writer hoping for a big break. That’s one of the reasons people attend such events—to meet authors, agents and editors and be “discovered.”
And for me, a reader and writer, it was wonderful to be among “my people”—others who loved to read and write, who relished talking about books and writers they’d just discovered. I was trepidatious about introducing myself to authors—would I be intruding? To my delight, I found that authors are friendly and helpful and fun. And so are most agents and editors (positions that had also always intimidated me!). I went to two-day festivals and weeklong conferences. I learned from everyone—the professionals and the people like me who weren’t yet published. The writers, both published and not, encouraged me and affirmed what I was doing. I also came away from each of them with books to read from writers I didn’t know yet. And, at one of the conferences, I met an editor who offered to introduce me to an agent. My big break!
Now, I attend festivals as an invited guest—an author. And the tables have turned—I was nervous about meeting readers. Would the ones who’d never heard of me want to meet me? What about those who had read my book? Would they have expectations of me that I couldn’t possibly live up to? Well, once again, I’ve been pleasantly surprised. I’ve met new readers who are thrilled to discover my book and I’ve been lucky enough to meet those who’ve already read it and help me to fall in love with my characters all over again. And, I find that I’m in the position of offering encouragement and affirmation to writers who are in the position I was in a few years ago—struggling to write, wondering if they’ll ever be published.
I take that role, of mentor, very seriously. I know how fortunate I am, and I want to emulate the writers who helped me along the way.
I recently was lucky enough to be invited to the Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival where I made a presentation with both my agent and editor called “Three Women and a Book: From Idea to Reality.” We chronicled the journey of my novel, All the Numbers, from the author’s dream to its publication. We offered information about our respective roles in its successful publication. It was amazing to me to find myself on the presenting side of the table-this was a festival I had attended a year earlier before I’d been published. But even though I was on the program this year, I still went to as many of the other panels as I could-and that’s one of the neat things about book fests-writers are there to learn from each other, too.
When I got back, I wrote about it on my blog:
”...Here’s what I love about this festival (and most others, too) people who love to read and people who write are among the nicest, most interesting people in the world. And I always come away with new favorites, like Ron Rash—if you ever get a chance to listen to him read, jump at it. His voice, a soft Appalachian accent with words that resonate to your soul, will leave you hoping his stories will never end.
I was also glad to see that Calvin Trillin is just as charming and witty as I’d hoped, and Richard Ford is smart and funny and embodies my definition of “patrician”—plus he wore rose-colored cashmere socks. Michael Lewis is smart and hot. And, Bev Marshall, who I already knew but wish lived next door, has got to be the most fun, most supportive fellow writer I could ever imagine. Plus, she’s got more pairs of cute shoes than Imelda Marcos. And I have to put in a plug for The Garden District Bookshop; they took care of selling everyone’s books and somehow, magically, managed to rearrange the table during each session so the books of whoever just spoke were always front and center.
Two other authors I met who just catapulted to the top of my “to be read” pile are Louise Shaffer and Margaret Sartor.
I love attending book festivals—both as a writer and as a reader…” Book festivals are really for all booklovers—readers and writers. We have such basic things in common that from the very first, it’s like being at a reunion, among friends some of whom we just haven’t met yet. If there’s a festival advertised near you—or near somewhere you want to go, stop by, we’d love to see you there!