:Georgia Literary Festival:
Breaking News!
The 2011 Georgia Literary Festival will be held at the Sautee-Nacoochee Community Center near Helen on the weekend of October 15, 2011. This will mark the first GLF to be held in Northeast Georgia.
The 2010 Festival
The 12th annual Georgia Literary Festival in 2010 moves to Statesboro for the first time. The event is scheduled for October 22-23 at the beautiful, spacious Nessmith-Lane Continuing Education Building on the campus of Georgia Southern University. The festival is sponsored locally by the Statesboro Regional Library and Georgia Southern University. Initial funding is provided by the Georgia Humanities Council through the Georgia Center for the Book.
More than 20 noted authors have already agreed to take part in the festival including a Pulitzer Prize winner and honorees in both adult and children’s writing. For details on the authors, accommodations and festival opportunities, please click here.
The Georgia Literary Festival is a “moveable feast” that celebrates the rich literary heritage of the state in a different city each year. The 2009 event was held in Rome. The festival includes lectures, workshops, panel discussions, book signings and activities for readers of all ages in addition to vendors offering book-related items and food.
A committee representing a variety of interests and organizations in Statesboro, Bulloch County and neighboring counties began planning for the event in early 2009. The co-chairs of the 2010 festival are Bede Mitchell, Dean of Libraries at Georgia Southern University, and Sharon Rowe, director of the Statesboro Regional Library.
Several notable authors have already accepted invitations from the committee to speak at the event. Others will be named later, by invitation only. The early list of featured writers includes:
Lori E. Amy, director of Women’s and Gender Studies at Georgia Southern University, is author of the new book, The Wars We Inherit: Military Life, Gender violence, and Memory;
Tina McElroy Ansa, prize-winning author of novels including Baby of the Family, and Taking After Mudear, a resident of St. Simons Island;
David Bottoms, Poet Laureate of Georgia, award-winning author of nearly a dozen books of poetry including Shooting Rats at the Bibb County Dump;
Max Cleland, former U.S. Senator from Georgia, author of Heart of a Patriot: How I Found the Courage to Survive Vietnam, Walter Reed and Karl Rove, one of the books included on the 2010 list of "25 Books All Georgians Should Read;"
Rebecca Davis, who teaches at Georgia Southern University, is the author of Judge Faye Sanders Martin: Head Full of sense, Heart Full of Gold, a biography of the first woman appointed to the Georgia Superior Court;
Janice Daugharty, the well-known chronicler of South Georgia lives, is the author of six novels and trwo story collections including Pawpaw Patch, Like and Sister and The Little Known;
David Dudley, author of The Bicycle Man, a popular novel for young adults;
Nate Evans, popular Georgia author and illustrator of 35 books for children including the national bestseller, The Jellybeans and the Big Dance;
Damon Lee Fowler, author of six popular cookbooks including The Savannah Cookbook, Damon Lee Fowler’s New Southern Kitchen and Damon Lee Fowler’s New Southern Baking, a resident of Savannah;
Erica Glaesner, horticulturist, author and columnist , she has hosted “A Gardener’s Diary” on HGTV for 14 years, and her new book is Proven Plants for Your Southern Garden;
Lauretta Hannon, a commentator on NPR’s “All Things Considered,” is the lively author of the bestselling memoir, The Cracker Queen: A Memoir of a Jagged, Joyful Life;
William C. Harris, bestselling Georgia author of acclaimed novels including No Enemy But Time and Wassaw Sound;
Raven Hart (Susan Goggins), is the author of the wildly successful Savannah Vampire romance series of books. Those hugely popular titles include The Vampire’s Seduction, The Vampire’s Secret and The Vampire’s Kiss;
Sonya Huber, teacher and essayist, author of Opa Nobody, a “nonfiction novel” drawn from powerful scenes in the author’s challenging life here and abroad;
Annette Laing, author of the popular series of books for young readers, The Snipesville Chronicles, and a frequent consultant to schools and professional educational councils across the country;
Jack McDevitt, acclaimed sci-fi author of many bestsellers including Time Travelers Never Die, Odyssey, The Devil’s Eye and Polaris;
Pamela Bauer Mueller, coastal Georgia resident, author of prize-winning books, many aimed at younger readers including Neptune’s Honor, Aloha Crossing and An Angry Drum Echoed;
Eric Nelson, professor at Georgia Southern University and author of several acclaimed books of poetry, among them Terrestrials, The Light Bringers and The Interpretation of Waking Life;
Walter Reeves, known to gardening fans all over the state for his weekly program on Georgia Public Broadcasting, “Gardening in Georgia,” his seven bestselling gardening books include Month-by-Month Gardening in Georgia co-authored with Erica Glaesner;
Sally Russell, biographer, teacher, genealogist, author of A Heart for Any Fate: A Biography of Richard B. Russell Sr. and Latitude of Home: A Storytelling Journey;
Ferrol Sams, the popular Georgia author of many wonderful bestsellers including Run With the Horsemen, Down Town, The Whisper of the River and When All the World Was Young;
Natasha Trethewey, won the Pulitzer Prize for her collection of poetry, Native Guard. She is the author of three volumes of poetry and teaches at Emory University;
Karen White, author of 11 award-winning novels including a pair of books high on the bestseller charts, The House on Tradd Street and The Girl on Legare Street;
Philip Lee Williams, winner of the prestigious Michael Shaara Award, and twice Georgia Author of the Year, a novelist, poet and essayist whose books include A Distant Flame, The Heart of a Distant Forest and The Campfire Boys.
Vendors are welcome to apply for tables at the 2010 festival. All vendors will be centrally placed inside the Nessmith-Lane Continuing Education Building, where the event venues are located. Space is limited and we suggest applying early. The vendor form may be downloaded and mailed to the local sponsors.