Photograph courtesy Savannah E book Competition
The annual Savannah E book Competition boasts some spectacular numbers
Written by COLLEEN ANN MCNALLY
FOR A GATHERING OF WORD LOVERS, the annual Savannah Book Festival boasts some spectacular numbers — fueled by a lean employees, beneficiant assist of donors and volunteers, and a few very detailed spreadsheets to tug off one of many metropolis’s most anticipated weekends of the 12 months. Right here’s all the pieces you have to know in regards to the SBF at a look.
2008
Because the first Savannah E book Competition (SBF) assembled at Trinity United Methodist Church 17 years in the past, the nonprofit continues to current nationally acknowledged nationwide, regional and native authors to hundreds of book-loving attendees.
2024
The 2024 fest takes place over Presidents’ Day weekend, Feb. 15-18.
600
Greater than 600 authors and counting have participated within the SBF, together with James Patterson, Stephen King, Jodi Picoult and Walter Isaacson.
34
SBF is invitation-only, which means the 34 authors who accepted to take part within the 2024 schedule have been hand-selected. The rigorous planning course of begins with the Writer Choice Committee, which incorporates native booksellers, writers, bibliophiles and extra. The invite checklist goals to create an interesting and various mixture of genres and authors who printed books throughout the previous calendar 12 months.
912
An arm tattooed with the native space code seems on the duvet of “Pritty,” a debut novel by Savannahian Keith F. Miller, one in every of this 12 months’s featured authors.
$0
There isn’t a value to attend “Competition Saturday.” The occasions are free and open to the general public, with restricted seating accessible on a first-come foundation.
30
Throughout Competition Saturday, authors every give a free 30-minute presentation, adopted by a Q&A and guide signing. Presentation subjects can differ from the inventive course of to their life as a author to “Methods to Promote a Haunted Home,” which Grady Hendrix — the writer of the guide of the identical title — plans to do that 12 months.
30
This 12 months marks three many years since John Berendt printed “Midnight within the Backyard of Good and Evil.” Have a good time with him on “Competition Saturday” throughout his free 30-minute presentation, adopted by a Q&A and guide signing in Telfair Sq.. (Authors will solely signal copies of books purchased on the Competition.)
7
The schedule unfolds throughout seven venues round Telfair, Chippewa and Wright Squares.
5
The minimal variety of minutes it’s best to plan to reach earlier than an writer’s presentation. No entry is allowed after a session begins.
3
Along with the free “Competition Saturday,” the SBF additionally consists of three ticketed headliner occasions. This 12 months’s lineup options a gap deal with by Ruth Ware, a keynote by Jeannette Partitions and a closing deal with by David Grann.
$250
To enhance the probability of scoring entrance to the ticketed occasions, buy a Literati membership beginning at $250. Together with the perks of early entry to ticket gross sales and most well-liked seating, members obtain a ten% low cost on books bought on the SBF, an invite to the Literati appreciation get together and extra.
5
In 2020, John Grisham offered out his keynote deal with inside 5 minutes of the tickets occurring sale. (If you happen to missed it, you possibly can watch the complete presentation on SBF’s YouTube channel.)
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