Georgia’s Ninth Annual Dahlonega Literary Festival, the free festival centered on Appalachian and southern literature, will take place in Dahlonega, Ga. this weekend.Known for its southern hospitality, author panels, and author luncheon, the festival aims to cater to readers, authors, and children.
With a wide array of bestsellers, from Georgia native Kimberly Brock to JT Ellison and Faith Hunter, readers are guaranteed a chance to sit down and get to know their favorite southern storyteller. The authors are also looking to sit down with readers. As JT Ellison shares, "I am thrilled to be a part of the 2012 Dahlonega Literary Festival! I look forward to a weekend filled with books, readers, and fall in the north Georgia mountains." (Dahlonega is located about one hour outside of Atlanta).
Among the 23 panels on Saturday are Appalachia in Fact and Fiction featuring Ann Hite, Walton Young, Nick Wynne, Mary E. Kingsley, and Katie Crawford, and Creating Characters That Readers Care About with Cindy Woodsmall, Gregg Loomis, Kimberly Brock, JT Ellison, Faith Hunter, and A.J. Hartley. Not solely focused on the southern landscape, there are also panels on The Appeal of Steampunk in Contemporary Fiction, Crafting Thrillers, and Sunday’s Writing Humor.
While many regional authors will be presenting, Saturday’s keynote speaker is Episcopal priest and New York Times bestseller, Barbara Brown Taylor. The draw to this southern festival is more than a great lineup. It’s the combination of each literary facet. Kimberly Brock sums it up as, "In the gold and red rolling hills of autumn in north Georgia, there is wine and there is gold and there is the Dahlonega Literary Festival. Every fall they pitch a tent and cook up every good thing on earth: good books, good food and the truest kind of literary communion."
