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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 23, 2015)
S EPT . 23, 2015 • F LORENCE F ESTIVAL OF B OOKS A Brief History BOOK FAIR EVOLVES OVER THE YEARS T he Florence Festival of Books has evolved into more than a book fair for authors and publishers. Here’s a little history. Since the first year was such a steep learning curve, no major changes took place the second year. In response to several requests from authors who wanted to read from their books, we added a Reader’s Corner during our third year. We located it within the display area, which turned out to be too noisy, and we didn’t have microphones available. We also didn’t publicize it enough, so there were few people to listen to the authors read. Last year, the fourth year, we worked out those problems, and the Featured Readers was a grand suc- cess. We also added Friday evening activities — a Meet and Greet and a Keynote Speaker. We didn’t publicize the Keynote Speaker enough and ended up with a rather small audience for a really terrific speak- er. So this year we increased the publicity. I think, by now, everyone knows that Jane Kirkpatrick is coming to speak Friday evening. And we’ve changed the Meet and Greet to be only for the book fair participants and their family members. We do have something new this year — it’s the Publisher’s Panel. It takes place on Friday in the after- noon from 3 to 4:30 p.m. The panel is in response to the many queries from attendees about how to become published. The panelists include the following: • Ellen Traylor, from Florence, is a bestselling author of 19 books. Her company, Port Hole Publishing, presently publishes about 30 authors. Traylor will discuss current trends in the publishing world, including how traditional publishers are incor- porating subsidy terms in standard royalty contracts. • Dr. Veronica Esagui, from West Linn, is a chiro- practic physician, author, playwright, and founder/CEO of NW Writers and Publishers Association, NW Annual Book Festival and Papyrus Press Publishing Company. She will speak on the snags of publishing — how not to fall in the hands of so-called traditional publishers, what type of editing do you need, and how to promote your book through a press release. • Patricia Marshall, from Eugene, is the owner of Luminare Press, a boutique publishing company that helps authors self-publish high-quality books. She will talk about tools that are available to self-publishing authors, and what steps are crucial as you take your manuscript to a printed book. • Karen D. Nichols, from Florence, has published three novels through CreateSpace and a new novel has just completed the process. Nichols has also written and illustrated a number of children’s books and given several workshops in writing and drawing. She will talk about self-publishing through CreateSpace and give tips for going through the process.. We are very pleased to have four qualified panelists for our first Publisher’s Panel, and we feel like we pulled off quite a coup in having New York Times bestselling author Jane Kirkpatrick as our Keynote Speaker Friday evening. She is a popular Northwest author of primarily historic fiction with 22 novels and five non-fiction books to her credit. So plan to attend both the Publisher’s Panel in the afternoon and the Keynote Speaker at 7 p.m. Tickets are $8 in advance or $10 at the door for Kirkpatrick. Unlike last year, this year a full house is expected, so get those tickets. For more information or to purchase tickets, call 541-997-1994 or go online to eventcenter.org. We hope you attend both Friday and Saturday events and let us know what you think. That’s how we evolve and improve. —Judy Fleagle, Co-founder & Secretary Florence Festival of Books An Evening with Jane Kirkpatrick O n Friday, Sept. 25, at 7 p.m., join fellow readers and writers at the Florence Events Center for a spe- cial evening with acclaimed, best- selling author Jane Kirkpatrick. Tickets are $8 in advance. Kirkpatrick will speak about her life as a writer, her upcoming book “Memory Weaver” (scheduled for publication this month), as well as one of her most beloved books, “Where Lilacs Still Bloom,” a fic- tionalized account of Hulda Klager and her beautiful lilac gar- dens. Reviewers and readers alike acclaim her work as unique in a world of storytellers. Moving from being a mental health professional, rancher and rattlesnake fighter to a full-time writer has resulted in 29 books with 24 novels and five non-fic- tion titles to her credit. Included are such popular titles as “A Land of Sheltered Promise,” “A Light in the Wilderness,” “A Sweetness to the Soul,” “The Daughter’s Walk,” the memoir “Homestead” and “Aurora: An American Experience in Quilt.” Creating stories from the lives of actual historical women or events, Kirkpatrick’s focus is on telling stories that inspire. “I like helping people from the distant past step from their genera- tion into our own to teach us and touch us with their lives,” she says. She lives with her husband Jerry and two dogs near Bend in central Oregon. Her works have sold over a mil- lion copies, been translated into foreign languages, won literary awards and have been New York Times bestsellers. COURTESY PHOTO 5