The recent drop in temperature signals a change in seasons, and with it comes the migration of authors throughout the state.With review copies of their latest books in tow, they're traveling in hopes of finding new homes for their hardcovers and paperbacks.
There are a good number of these authors at the Sarasota Reading Festival on Nov. 2. Many of these authors are also at the Times Festival of Reading on Nov. 3. Then they"ll do some readings at bookstores and colleges before heading south again for the Miami Book Fair International Nov. 17-24.
The Times Festival of Reading, sponsored by the St. Petersburg Times, takes place at Eckerd College from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and is the most convenient opportunity for Bay area residents to encounter these authors in their natural, bookish environment.
The 10th annual event draws thousands of book lovers with its author talks, signings, Children's Story Land, bookseller marketplace, panel discussions and open-air stages for theater and spoken word.
The 23 participating authors includes Peter Matthiesson, one of the few American writers ever nominated for the National Book Award for both fiction and nonfiction. He's best known for his Everglades trilogy: Killing Mr. Watson, Lost Man's River and Bone by Bone.
Another writer not to be missed is Campbell McGrath, a poet and Guggenheim fellow currently teaching at Florida International University. His latest collection is Florida Poems, some not too scholarly riffs on our state's outlandishness and charm.
Of any of the performance areas, the Spoken Word/Theater Stage may well draw the most attention this year. The Festival of Reading Poetry Slam takes place at 10:45 a.m. and features local poets Gary Drilling, Walter Ivey and Art Moore reciting their latest works in a round-robin format. Then, at 12:15 p.m., Venue Theater Collective brings to life four central characters from Matthiesson's novel Killing Mr. Watson. At 2:30 p.m., local African storyteller Kwabena Denizulu weaves folklore and stories of African culture and history. And at 3:15 p.m., four professional actors from Stageworks present monologues from the play Talking With by Jane Martin (not in attendance).
For complete festival info, author bios and event schedules, visit www.festivalofreading.com.
This article appears in Oct 30 – Nov 5, 2002.