Since this has been a hot button discussion on social media this year with book events not delivering what they promised, newer events popping up, our worsening economy I've had a lot of discussions with author friends and reader friends alike.
I saw a discussion on Threads recently that I felt was misconstrued asking if some of these book festivals are just a money grab or if people are actually trying to curate experiences outside of author signings and panels. When it comes to my favorite authors I watch/listen to/read many of their interviews. And often they get asked the same questions over and over again. There's only so many times you can make the same answer sound fresh. And to my authors of color the questions they are asked usually center around diversity. So what are the people planning these events doing to constantly bring fresh discussions and perspectives to these spaces? Are the activities apart of the festival in any way connected to the books or are they just the activities that everyone else is doing at their festival?
Let's talk about the COSTS. It's important to note there's a difference between the free to attend book festivals that are filled with many locals vs the larger ticketed events. These book events are not cheap. If you don't live in a major city near an airport those costs increase even more. And these tickets are usually sold a year in advance and often sell out quickly. So attendees have to decide is this book festival that they want to attend giving them the most for their money. Are their enough activities that create a unique experience to justify day passes costs, transportation costs, food and drink costs, and miscellaneous purchases? Because those costs can easily run someone upwards of thousands of dollars.
As someone who prefers more personal experience, if I'm going to spend thousands of dollars on a book event I would rather spend it on a more intimate reading retreat where I have the chance to connect with other readers or writers. And it doesn't necessarily have to be people with people who read exactly like me either. I went on a reading retreat with people who came from different countries and backgrounds and sometimes we still send messages to each other to this day. Some of us have even been able to meet with each other after the retreat.
I've spoken with authors who have said much of the traveling they've done to promote their book has been paid for themselves. Even those with a big publisher behind them have to opt out of events when they're publisher isn't willing to cover the costs. Which is why sometimes you'll only see your faves come to the bigger cities and more popular events.
Some festivals stagger releasing the names of the authors attending and what types of panels are being offered which also makes it hard to decide whether to buy tickets or not when the tickets for some events are in high demand and sell out immediately.
Is the main focus of the festivals just panels and book signings? What should repeat attendees look forward to? What is it about this festival that separates it from the main others that also feature similar lineups? Is there any type of local presence/involvement? How are the festival planners including local authors and vendors in the mix?
As we continue to see mass layoffs and a struggling job market it will be interesting to see if some of the events last. Especially with creators saying these events haven't generated a profit for them yet to balance off the spending. As someone who used to work in events I'd love to see people rewarded for their labor. If a ticketed event is not generating profit it's not going to be a long running event because eventually the costs to put on the event will be too much.
Ultimately it's up to the individual person to decide person to decide which events are worth their wild. A pro-tip I've been given is to find events close by and attend those first. Or to find events held in places you're interested in visiting and exploring. That way if the event sucks at least you have backup plans.
