This year’s graphic for the Louisiana Book Festival is done in the comic book style, with readers perusing the State Capitol of Baton Rouge grounds and thought bubble hearts rising from their heads. The image also brings to mind a sense of adventure, which the Louisiana Book Festival certainly delivers on.
Book and literature lovers alike will consider it no small feat to fly from more than 125 programs with over 230 authors attending on Saturday, Nov. 2. As the State Capitol looms large overhead, tents on the grounds of Capitol Park offer programming for kids and teens, live music, food, books for sale and lots more. The State Library hosts additional programming, along with WordShops on Friday during the day.
Aspiring writers can hone their skills with authors like Michael Knight and Steph Post, but they’ll want to rest up before the marathon that is the book fest on Saturday.
This year presents another amazing lineup, with plenty of big-name authors from Jami Attenberg to Minrose Gwin (The Accidentals), Snowden Wright (American Pop) and Samantha Downing (My Lovely Wife).
I have the pleasure of presenting two panels on Southern literature. The first is “Celebrated Authors of Southern Literary Fiction” with Jami Attenberg, Michael Knight, Maurice Carlos Ruffin and Jeremy Finley. The second is “Southern Literary Standouts” with Samantha Downing, Margaret Wilkerson Sexton, Minrose Gwin and Hannah Pittard.
Sexton’s book The Revisioners has been selected as a 2019 Fall Okra Pick by the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance. Emily Roberson, who will also be in attendance this year, has a YA debut Lifestyles of Gods and Monsters that’s another Okra Pick.
Festival organizers also want to tout that two nonfiction National Book Award finalists, Sarah M. Broom (The Yellow House) and Albert Woodfox (Solitary) will be attending the festival as well. (There will be five authors from our Fall/Winter Reading List there too!)
If you want to make a weekend of it and attend a WordShop and the Authors Party (each have a $50 ticket price) on Friday, then book a room at the official hotel Hilton Baton Rouge Capitol Center. Rooms are still available at a special rate of $129 per night, plus you’ll be staying with all the authors.
I hope to see you at the 2019 Louisiana Book Festival!
