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Seattle Bookfest

News   October 23, 2009 at 10:44 am Heidi Broadhead

This weekend, 80 or so authors and more than 60 local literary institutions (bookstores, publishers, the Seattle Scrabble club), will converge upon the Columbia City Event Center for the Seattle Bookfest, an attempt to bring back the old Northwest Bookfest—except with a smaller, indie feel. (Seattle’s former book and author extravaganza that fell apart in 2004.)
bookfest flyer

This Bookfest is super indie (look at the flyer… Scotch tape, cute!). The NW Bookfest on the Pier was never this DIY, at least not that I can remember.

So far, the event has received hopeful, glowing press or faced skepticism about whether it’s even worth a visit. On October 12, for example, Paul Constant said on the Slog, “…there isn’t a single participant who doesn’t read in Seattle all the freakin’ time.”

That’s partially true, although that’s probably because those people live here, and now—unlike during the heyday of the Northwest Bookfest in the late ’90s—publishers are unlikely to fly their authors out for free, particularly with no guarantee of attendance.

Elliott Bay won’t be there (although this flyer was in their window). But Pilot Books will be. So will Third Place, Secret Garden, Fremont Place Books, and Seattle Mystery Bookshop. And Fantagraphics, Sasquatch, and Copper Canyon. Also, the kids from 826 Seattle: Who doesn’t want to hear funny essays about monsters or homework read by 12-year-olds?

The panels seem the most promising. (Although it’s hard to tell from some of the dreadful (sorry…) descriptions, like this one: “Are you destined to be a writer? Is your child?” Good lord. Haven’t you heard? All of our children will be writers.)

Back to the more promising panels: Gary Groth, founder of Fantagraphics Books, will be there with two of his authors, Ellen Forney and Megan Kelso, talking about graphic novels. On Saturday, there’s John Marshall (co-owner of Open Books) with Sam Hamill (the man who made me fantasize about moving to a shed in Port Townsend to run a press), and Sarah Mangold (editor of Bird Dog, a great litmag published here in Seattle) in “Is Seattle Hostile to Literary Innovation?” On Sunday, you have Matt Briggs and Tim Elhajj talking about flash nonfiction, and “Meet the Critics,” a panel featuring, among others, Paul Constant, someone we also hear from “all the freakin’ time,” and yet, we still want to go see him. I do!

It’s not Brooklyn, but it is a chance for Seattle’s often fragmented literary community to be together in one place for a weekend. That’s worthwhile, right?

It’s also “free” (suggested donation is $5). Full schedule here.

Today’s BookNerd brought to you by Kim Ricketts Book Events:

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  • Michael M.

    Nobody commented on this post. Sad.

  • Michael M.

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  • Michael M.

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  • Michael M.

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  • Michael M.

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  • alight

    It’s really just an old elementary school, when did they start calling it an “event center”? I felt bad for the publishers out in the old portables, who had to tape up handwritten signs on the wheelchair ramps so people would know they were out there.
    Seemed like a reasonable turnout for a first-time festival. It does have some problems–primarily, terrible placement of signs on the classroom doors so they’re only visible from one direction. It was really difficult to find any of the stages or specific publishers, unless you walked really slow, faced the right direction, and squinted.
    Bonus: food! Gert’s BBQ truck, Patty Pan, Island Soul and Starbucks.

  • alight

    It’s really just an old elementary school, when did they start calling it an “event center”? I felt bad for the publishers out in the old portables, who had to tape up handwritten signs on the wheelchair ramps so people would know they were out there.
    Seemed like a reasonable turnout for a first-time festival. It does have some problems–primarily, terrible placement of signs on the classroom doors so they’re only visible from one direction. It was really difficult to find any of the stages or specific publishers, unless you walked really slow, faced the right direction, and squinted.
    Bonus: food! Gert’s BBQ truck, Patty Pan, Island Soul and Starbucks.

  • alight

    It’s really just an old elementary school, when did they start calling it an “event center”? I felt bad for the publishers out in the old portables, who had to tape up handwritten signs on the wheelchair ramps so people would know they were out there.
    Seemed like a reasonable turnout for a first-time festival. It does have some problems–primarily, terrible placement of signs on the classroom doors so they’re only visible from one direction. It was really difficult to find any of the stages or specific publishers, unless you walked really slow, faced the right direction, and squinted.
    Bonus: food! Gert’s BBQ truck, Patty Pan, Island Soul and Starbucks.

  • alight

    It’s really just an old elementary school, when did they start calling it an “event center”? I felt bad for the publishers out in the old portables, who had to tape up handwritten signs on the wheelchair ramps so people would know they were out there.
    Seemed like a reasonable turnout for a first-time festival. It does have some problems–primarily, terrible placement of signs on the classroom doors so they’re only visible from one direction. It was really difficult to find any of the stages or specific publishers, unless you walked really slow, faced the right direction, and squinted.
    Bonus: food! Gert’s BBQ truck, Patty Pan, Island Soul and Starbucks.

  • alight

    It’s really just an old elementary school, when did they start calling it an “event center”? I felt bad for the publishers out in the old portables, who had to tape up handwritten signs on the wheelchair ramps so people would know they were out there.
    Seemed like a reasonable turnout for a first-time festival. It does have some problems–primarily, terrible placement of signs on the classroom doors so they’re only visible from one direction. It was really difficult to find any of the stages or specific publishers, unless you walked really slow, faced the right direction, and squinted.
    Bonus: food! Gert’s BBQ truck, Patty Pan, Island Soul and Starbucks.

  • alight

    It’s really just an old elementary school, when did they start calling it an “event center”? I felt bad for the publishers out in the old portables, who had to tape up handwritten signs on the wheelchair ramps so people would know they were out there.
    Seemed like a reasonable turnout for a first-time festival. It does have some problems–primarily, terrible placement of signs on the classroom doors so they’re only visible from one direction. It was really difficult to find any of the stages or specific publishers, unless you walked really slow, faced the right direction, and squinted.
    Bonus: food! Gert’s BBQ truck, Patty Pan, Island Soul and Starbucks.

  • Chris J

    Very good attendance (particularly for a small grass roots festival) and a chance to see many local authors in one place.

    Signage could be improved. The authors’,and poets’ readings, and panels were very good to excellent. There was even the addition of a last minute open mic poetry ‘cabin’ that featured poets from Bellingham, Olympia,and Seattle.

    A couple of the small publishers I talked with were very excited about attendance and sales.. they can’t wait to do it again.

    We need a book festival, it’s been too long. Bravo.

  • http://www.rosealleypress.com/ David D Horowitz

    Thank you Paul Doyle and Molly Horne-Brine for organizing the 2009 Seattle Bookfest. I participated as a publisher, Panel Stage speaker, Poet’s Stage performer, and poetry cabin performer. The crowds were uniformly supportive and courteous, as were the volunteers. Free admission to the public reflect welcome inclusivenees. For exhibitors, the $150 table fee is the best deal in the country for two-day urban book festivals. I sold forty-two books and made back over $300.

    Surely, improvements to Book Fest could be made. The signage was amateurish, and several publishers were placed in trailers too far from the crowds to sell adequately. I root, though, for this festival to succeed. Granted, the venue is not luxurious, and most of the authors are local. Well, at least this suggests the event organizers have a sustainable model for book festival survival. Paying for fancy convention halls and star authors has recently meant doom for a lot of book fairs. I respect their decision to spend within their means and keep the festival free to the public and affordable for poorer exhibitors. And there were some fabulously talented performers on display, too! Just because someone is not “famous” and “a name” does not mean he or she cannot perform better than the expensive “names.”

    Here’s an additional shout-out to Paul Nelson, Chris Jarmick, and Anna Tokonogui, all of whom helped Paul Doyle and Molly Horne-Brine produce a fine weekend of literary entertainment. Molly has already indicated a 2010 Seattle Bookfest is being planned. Hooray!

  • http://www.rosealleypress.com David D Horowitz

    Thank you Paul Doyle and Molly Horne-Brine for organizing the 2009 Seattle Bookfest. I participated as a publisher, Panel Stage speaker, Poet’s Stage performer, and poetry cabin performer. The crowds were uniformly supportive and courteous, as were the volunteers. Free admission to the public reflect welcome inclusivenees. For exhibitors, the $150 table fee is the best deal in the country for two-day urban book festivals. I sold forty-two books and made back over $300.

    Surely, improvements to Book Fest could be made. The signage was amateurish, and several publishers were placed in trailers too far from the crowds to sell adequately. I root, though, for this festival to succeed. Granted, the venue is not luxurious, and most of the authors are local. Well, at least this suggests the event organizers have a sustainable model for book festival survival. Paying for fancy convention halls and star authors has recently meant doom for a lot of book fairs. I respect their decision to spend within their means and keep the festival free to the public and affordable for poorer exhibitors. And there were some fabulously talented performers on display, too! Just because someone is not “famous” and “a name” does not mean he or she cannot perform better than the expensive “names.”

    Here’s an additional shout-out to Paul Nelson, Chris Jarmick, and Anna Tokonogui, all of whom helped Paul Doyle and Molly Horne-Brine produce a fine weekend of literary entertainment. Molly has already indicated a 2010 Seattle Bookfest is being planned. Hooray!

  • http://www.rosealleypress.com/ David D Horowitz

    Thank you Paul Doyle and Molly Horne-Brine for organizing the 2009 Seattle Bookfest. I participated as a publisher, Panel Stage speaker, Poet’s Stage performer, and poetry cabin performer. The crowds were uniformly supportive and courteous, as were the volunteers. Free admission to the public reflects welcome inclusivenees. For exhibitors, the $150 table fee is the best deal in the country for two-day urban book festivals. I sold forty-two books and made back over $300.

    Surely, improvements to Book Fest could be made. The signage was amateurish, and several publishers were placed in trailers too far from the crowds to sell adequately. I root, though, for this festival to succeed. Granted, the venue is not luxurious, and most of the authors are local. Well, at least this suggests the event organizers have a sustainable model for book festival survival. Paying for fancy convention halls and star authors has recently meant doom for a lot of book fairs. I respect the organizers’ decision to spend within their means and keep the festival free to the public and affordable for poorer exhibitors. And there were some fabulously talented performers on display, too! Just because someone is not “famous” and “a name” does not mean he or she cannot perform better than the expensive “names.”

    Here’s an additional shout-out to Paul Nelson, Chris Jarmick, and Anna Tokonogui, all of whom helped Paul Doyle and Molly Horne-Brine produce a fine weekend of literary entertainment. Molly has already indicated a 2010 Seattle Bookfest is being planned. Hooray!

  • http://www.rosealleypress.com David D Horowitz

    Thank you Paul Doyle and Molly Horne-Brine for organizing the 2009 Seattle Bookfest. I participated as a publisher, Panel Stage speaker, Poet’s Stage performer, and poetry cabin performer. The crowds were uniformly supportive and courteous, as were the volunteers. Free admission to the public reflects welcome inclusivenees. For exhibitors, the $150 table fee is the best deal in the country for two-day urban book festivals. I sold forty-two books and made back over $300.

    Surely, improvements to Book Fest could be made. The signage was amateurish, and several publishers were placed in trailers too far from the crowds to sell adequately. I root, though, for this festival to succeed. Granted, the venue is not luxurious, and most of the authors are local. Well, at least this suggests the event organizers have a sustainable model for book festival survival. Paying for fancy convention halls and star authors has recently meant doom for a lot of book fairs. I respect the organizers’ decision to spend within their means and keep the festival free to the public and affordable for poorer exhibitors. And there were some fabulously talented performers on display, too! Just because someone is not “famous” and “a name” does not mean he or she cannot perform better than the expensive “names.”

    Here’s an additional shout-out to Paul Nelson, Chris Jarmick, and Anna Tokonogui, all of whom helped Paul Doyle and Molly Horne-Brine produce a fine weekend of literary entertainment. Molly has already indicated a 2010 Seattle Bookfest is being planned. Hooray!

  • Chris J

    Very good attendance (particularly for a small grass roots festival) and a chance to see many local authors in one place.

    Signage could be improved. The authors',and poets' readings, and panels were very good to excellent. There was even the addition of a last minute open mic poetry 'cabin' that featured poets from Bellingham, Olympia,and Seattle.

    A couple of the small publishers I talked with were very excited about attendance and sales.. they can't wait to do it again.

    We need a book festival, it's been too long. Bravo.