How Not To Run A Literary Festival
Really excellent blog entry by Amanda Craig pointing up some fundamental courtesies and organisational requirements from an author's point of view.
Required reading...
Recently in Fairs/Festivals Category
The Northern Children's Book Festival 2009
• The biggest children's book festival in Europe.
• Two weeks of events over the North-East each November.
• 12 local authorities participate in the festival.
• 33 authors / illustrators taking part in events with schools and libraries 9th-20th November 2009
• 12 authors / illustrators at the Gala Day 21st November at Stockton Riverside College.
• Around 20,000 children will benefit from the fortnight of fun sessions.
• An exciting bookshop selling books by authors involved in the festival giving children an opportunity to have their very own signed copies.
• 3,000 plus expected to attend the 26th Gala Day.
Check the webiste for more details of this November fesitval.
Michael Morpurgo, Julia Donaldson and Caroline Lawrence are among the five children's authors set to record interactive audiobooks as part of the children's series of events, Hay Fever, at Hay Festival.
Brighton Children's Book Festival
19th-20th April 2008
Just received a post from festival director Laura Atkins flagging up this admirable website, which includes online booking for events.
Children's Books Ireland Festival (3 - 26 Oct) events listing
The Bath Festival of Children's Literature
Exactly 2 weeks to go till the start of the first ever Bath Festival Of Children's Literature. The website has full details of how to book for events.
One of the verdicts on the Auckland Writers & readers Ferstival:
Philip Ardagh (children's author) was hysterically funny. He could be a stand-up comedian...
Some authors, it seems, are falling out of love with the Hay Festival, including sometimes children's author Terence Blacker:
Leading the charge is the novelist Margaret Drabble, who attended the first festival in 1988 but has vowed never to return. The author of 17 novels, two biographies, a television play and winner of the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize told The Independent on Sunday it had become too "celebrity conscious". "It's a pity," she said. "The whole thing has become a celebrity festival, not an author's festival. Of course there are some very fine writers there this year. But the whole thing of festivals has become about book sales and marketing, nothing to do with meeting readers. They argue that if they're selling your book then you don't get a fee. But I like to get a fee unless I choose to be a patron or a friend which I am to one or two small festivals. I don't want ?100K and I don't see why Bill Clinton did, and he's not an author." The author Terence Blacker, who has written numerous novels, said he was "bemused" by the reaction he received when he suggested giving a reading of his biography of the theatre impresario and author Willie Donaldson. "I've loved Hay in the past, as performer and audience," he said, "but this year my new biography of Willie Donaldson was rejected on the grounds that a reading from it could only work if it was 'glammed up a bit' - direct quote - with celebrity readers. I can't help feeling that something about the festival may have changed in some way and I'm sad that I'll never be glam enough for it."
ACHUKA is not going to Hay for the Red House Children's Book Awards this year. Lovely as it was to be there last year in the end-of-festival heat (I hope, for the sake of those who are attending this year, the weather will look up as this week goes on, just as it did in 2006) and to be able to follow up the awards themselves with those brilliantly entertaining star appearances by Eoin Colfer and Daniel Handler (see our report from last year), it is, as I hinted might be the case at the time, partly the new venue's inaccessibility that has discouraged us from going. To attend the festival in any degree of comfort requires considerable pre-booking, with regard to accommodation, travel etc.
So, instead of clicking away with the ACHUKA camera in the tent at Hay, I'll be travelling a similar distance to get first sight of our second grandchild. Well, I did say the venue was only part of the reason for non-attendance this year ;)
Apologies then to the shortlisted authors and illustrators and eventual winners for the fact that coverage of the awards this year will be limited to a short blog entry and main page listing.
John McLay, director of the inaugural Bath Festival of Children�s Literature, taking place between 21st-30th September 2007, has announced two major headline sponsors.
The Daily Telegraph will be the national media and title sponsor for the festival. Waterstone�s are on board as headline sponsor and will handle book sales throughout the 10-day series of events for children, young adults and families.
The Daily Telegraph Bath Festival of Children�s Literature has lined up many of the biggest names in children�s publishing. Festival confirmations so far include present Children�s Laureate Jacqueline Wilson, Eoin Colfer, Lauren Child, Anthony Horowitz, Allan Ahlberg, Louise Rennison, Garth Nix, Darren Shan, Julia Donaldson, Francesca Simon, Geraldine McCaughrean, Martin Brown, Cathy Cassidy, David Almond, Jenny Nimmo, Philip Reeve and Joanne Harris.
THE BATH FESTIVAL OF CHILDREN�S LITERATURE
21st-30th September, 2007
One of the biggest new literary festivals announced in recent years will take place in Bath this Autumn.
The Bath Festival of Children�s Literature will be a 10-day celebration of children�s books and reading. Its director, John McLay has already put together a programme that features some of the biggest and most creative names from the world of children�s publishing.
Headlining guests include :
� Jacqueline Wilson, the current Children�s Laureate, who was born in Bath.
� Eoin Colfer, author of Artemis Fowl (his only UK festival appearance of 2007).
� Anthony Horowitz, author of the Alex Rider novels. Stormbreaker, the first title in the series, was made into a film in 2006.
� Louise Rennison, popular teenage author and creator of the Georgia Nicholson books.
� Darren Shan, whose Cirque Du Freak and Demonata series for young horror fans have earned him a worldwide audience.
� Lauren Child, creator of BBC TV�s Charlie & Lola.
� Julia Donaldson, author of popular picture book The Gruffalo.
� Francesca Simon, author of the Horrid Henry series.
� Tony Ross, illustrator of Horrid Henry and author of the Little Princess books, now a cartoon series on TV.
� Garth Nix, Australian Fantasy author, his only UK festival appearance of 2007).
� Brian Jacques, author of the Redwall series � which celebrates its 30th Anniversary in 2007.
� Geraldine McCaughrean, author of the official Peter Pan sequel, Peter Pan in Scarlet.
� Joanne Harris, author of the book Chocolat, which became a film starring Johnny Depp. Her first book for children is published in Autumn 2007.
� Lucy Hawking, daughter of Stephen Hawking, who has collaborated with her father on a new children's book, also published in the Autumn.
"The festival is all about getting as many authors and illustrators - local, national and international - in front of as many children as possible,� says Bath-based International Literary Scout, John McLay. �We want to inspire, to entertain and to educate, but most of all to have fun."
Continue reading MAJOR NEW CHILDREN�S FESTIVAL.
Red House Children's Book Awards 2006
Author signing gallery from Hay.
APOLOGY: The Hay picture galleries were not functioning properly earlier in the day. The links to the larger images are now working as they should :)
