George Mason University issued the following announcement on Aug. 5
After a landmark virtual 2020 festival with more than 15,000 viewers, Fall for the Book is pushing the envelope with a new hybrid format for its 23rd festival, which runs from October 14-31.
This year’s virtual headliners include book club sensation Brit Bennett, author of “The Vanishing Half”; Norwegian master of suspense Jo Nesbø; poets extraordinaire Maggie Smith and Victoria Chang; Pulitzer Prize-winning environmental writer Elizabeth Kolbert; Netflix docuseries Inside the World’s Toughest Prisons host Raphael Rowe and a soon-to-be-announced headliner who will appear in person at George Mason University. Fall for the Book will also host an in-person preview event on Oct. 7 featuring Mason alumni authors.
Other virtual featured authors are true crime writer Dean Jobb, essayist Elissa Washuta, economics whiz Azeem Azhar, children’s author Tom Angleberger and more.
The 2021 festival will also feature the fourth annual Institute for Immigration Research’s New American Voices award ceremony, featuring the three finalists and judges Irina Reyn, Justin Torres and Melissa Rivero.
“Fall for the Book did more than pivot last year,” said Gregg Wilhelm, vice chair of Fall for the Book’s board and the director of Mason’s Creative Writing Program. “It took flight from the foul line and scored a slam dunk. The virtual formula was too successful not to have online programs as part of the festival moving forward.”
By keeping the festival partly virtual, Fall for the Book can innovate and create dynamic programming not possible for an in-person festival, such as the event titled “Across the World in Five Novels,” featuring writers from India, Chile, Mauritius, Saudi Arabia and England. Festival events will be held on Crowdcast, YouTube, Soundcloud, and in-person on Mason’s Fairfax Campus.
Fall for the Book is Northern Virginia’s oldest and largest festival of literature and the arts. All events are free and open to the public thanks to the generous support of sponsors, including the Mason, the Fairfax County Public Library, the Fairfax Library Foundation and the City of Fairfax. Find the full schedule with details at fallforthebook.org.
Original source can be found here.
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