20th Louisiana Book Festival celebrates readers and writers. Here’s what you need to know.

Planning the Louisiana Book Festival is like planning a Mardi Gras parade, the festival’s executive director Jim Davis said. He’s been coordinating book festivals for 15 years. As soon as the festival is underway, he and his team have to start thinking about the next one.

The Louisiana Book Festival is in its 20th year, and according to Davis, it’s a celebration of readers, writers and books in Louisiana.

“Readers come first because that’s our focus,” he said. “We try to make our festival very relaxing and accessible. I think we create a really good environment for people who come to the book festival to have a somewhat intimate relationship with the authors who are presenting.”

On Friday, the day before the festival, attendees also have the opportunity to learn from authors in “WordShops” where select authors will be presenting on topics ranging from the business of publishing to writing children’s books.

The festival schedule at a glance is coming soon, but until then, you can check louisianabookfestival.org for more information.

This year, poet David Kirby is receiving the Louisiana Writer Award. Many former award recipients will be returning as presenters, and there is also special programming for children such as face painting and storytelling. Costumed characters Waldo, Bruce the Bear and Zoom Squirrel will all be making a special appearance.

We caught up with Davis ahead of the festival to chat about special programs, how to prepare and how books are selected. The Louisiana Book Festival is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 2, in downtown Baton Rouge.

Tell us a little bit about the festival. What can people expect?

It’s been held annually since 2002. There were a few years where we had to cancel it: after Katrina, and then during the pandemic, we had to cancel it one year. The next year, we had to have an all virtual festival, but we were able to go back live in 2022.

The festival is a full day of programming with authors presenting their books, either on panels or solo. It’s designed for readers of all ages. We have programs for adults, a children’s pavilion with children’s authors, crafts that relate to the books that are being featured, a teen headquarters, a cooking demo tent with folks who have a book out about cooking and a music stage.

We have a book tent where all of the featured books are available for purchase through our partner, Cavalier House Books in Denham Springs. After each program, the authors are scheduled for a book signing in the book tent, so you can hear an author and then go to the book tent and get your book personally signed by the author.

How are books/authors selected?

We have a selection committee within the library. It’s kind of an informal process, and anybody can recommend a book to us to consider.

It’s an ongoing process from one festival to another. As we find out about books, we start inviting authors continually throughout the year. We try to have something for everybody.

Part of our mission is to be supportive of Louisiana authors and Louisiana publishers.

So, we always find out from Louisiana publishers what books they have coming out in the next year before the festival. We get those lists, get those copies and make decisions as we go. But Louisiana readers don’t just read Louisiana writers, and they don’t just read books about Louisiana, so we’re looking at what’s being sold, what’s coming out nationally, and we try to get some big names from national best sellers.

Just when we think we’ve completed our roster, we find out about another book that we didn’t know was out there, and we try to squeeze another one in. It winds up that the festival’s kind of bursting at the seams.

Is there any special programming this year?

We have someone coming to the festival who is an internationally recognized expert on the Beatles, Bruce Spizer. He’s done a series of books on different albums by the Beatles.

One thing special that we’re doing this year — this is a one-off, we always have live and in-person programs — James Lee Burke, a very national bestseller, popular author from Louisiana, doesn’t travel any more and he lives in Montana, so we’re going to be able to do a virtual, live program with him.

We have a full day of poetry too. The Louisiana Poet Laureate, Allison Pelegrin, will be hosting two panels that feature Louisiana poets. The National Student Poets will be with us. Each year, five poets are selected from five regions throughout the country, and they’re all going to be with us. I think it’s their only appearance this year outside of the ceremony where they were announced.

What advice do you have for people as they’re looking at the festival schedule and deciding what to go to?

Work ahead of time.

Print the schedule out and have your pen ready and make notes. Your source for finding out about those names and authors listed is the website because of the two wonderful resource pages for the festival: Featured Authors and Featured Books.

So a title or a book cover may catch your eye, and you can click on that book and it will take you to the author’s page where not only do you find out about the author, but read a description of the book that’s being featured.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.