Dear Author,

Before deciding whether our festival is “right” for you, please carefully read the information below, paying particular attention to the “Festival Peculiarities.” After reading, if you decide to apply, please email us at cmlitfest.selection@gmail.com.

Our Mission

TO FOSTER COMMUNITY BY SUPPORTING AND CELEBRATING LITERACY AND THE LOVE OF LITERATURE IN THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS

Festival Peculiarities

Session authors are given a stipend as donations and grants allow. Workshop teachers; the banquet and keynote speakers; special program; and outreach authors will receive a stipend.

The festival may provide housing at locally donated AirBnbs. Or we can provide a list of area motels, inns and airbnbs.

Authors are not tied down to a table all day, but are free to roam the town, attend other sessions, or gab with other authors in more sequestered areas.  Some authors prefer to attend the festival while others choose to leave after their sessions, which is equally acceptable.

Our events are spread all over our small town— in galleries, small stores, the Town Center, library, nearby churches, and other various venues. Events are scheduled simultaneously.  As many as five different events may be occurring at any one time.

Malaprop’s Bookstore is the sole vendor at the festival – authors do not sell their books on their own.  (Therefore, if books sales are high on your list of priorities or you enjoy pitching your books, you will not find this event to your liking—and vice versa.)

Authors gather for morning and afternoon-session book-signings as a group.  No individual authors will have their own signings.

We expect our participating authors to carefully read and respond to our communications with them in order to best serve the needs of the authors, festival attendees, and planners.  Information we send will include the program schedule, your schedule, the contract pertaining to communications with the Author Liaison as well as arrangements pertaining to lodging, meals, and other important accommodations.

Author presentations are limited to two consecutive years.  Exceptions may be made if an author has a new, significant work.  At the same time, we welcome past participants as attendees or to assist us as session moderators or introducers if they wish.

Please keep in mind we are a festival for readers, not necessarily other writers.

 

FOLLOW THESE GUIDELINES TO APPLY:

1. Submit request to cmlitfest.selection@gmail.com by October 1st of the year before the festival in which you want to participate – only requests submitted during this time frame will be considered.

2. Include a one to three paragraph bio of published works including dates, publishers, descriptions, and reviews.  Please identify works by fiction, non-fiction, and poetry as well as theme, e.g., historical fiction, mystery, young adult literature, memoir, etc.

3. Submit a description of what presentation or presentations you would like to provide such as a reading, a discussion of techniques or research, etc.

4. Let us know if you have presented at the festival before and if so, what year and what topic.

5. Tell us how you heard about the festival and why you would like to participate.