Westport Library, Public Schools Announce 'Saugatuck StoryFest'

WESTPORT, CT - From the Westport Public Library: The Westport Library and Westport Public Schools are pleased to announce the inaugural Saugatuck StoryFest taking place October 12 – 14, 2018 at the Library on the banks of the Saugatuck and at various locations around Westport. The three-day celebration of writing combines a town-wide multidisciplinary literary festival with a craft-focused, workshop-based writers conference.

“Westport has a long, storied history as a creative community fostering artists, authors, and playwrights,” said Executive Director of the Westport Library Bill Harmer. “We are proud to collaborate with the Westport Schools, and other community partners, to celebrate that heritage and excite and inspire creators and storytellers of all generations with this festival. The Saugatuck StoryFest is a true celebration of reading, writing, ideas and community.”

The Saugatuck StoryFest is unique among literary festivals in that it is the only festival that is a product of a partnership between a public library and a public school system. The Westport Library entertained the idea of creating a literary festival in Fairfield County for several years. The same idea was in the minds of two members of the English faculty at Staples High School, part of Westport Public Schools, and through collaboration and conversation, the StoryFest was born.

“We view the festival as an extension of our commitment to providing students with dynamic, multilayered educational experiences that cultivate emotional and social awareness, principled leadership and the practice of learning always,” said Rebecca Marsick, Secondary Literary Coach at Staples High School. “The festival presents a forward-thinking vision for both the schools and the Library.”

On Friday October 12, the festival weekend kicks off with two headline events. Emmy-winning Former head of HBO Documentaries Sheila Nevins will open the StoryFest with a keynote about her life as a storyteller. Then, Drama Desk-nominated composer/lyricist Joe Iconis will perform an outdoor concert featuring some his favorite compositions and the stories behind them.

Saturday, October 13 will be an outdoor walking festival on the library’s grounds, celebrating story in all its forms through interactive events, panels and performances. National Book Award nominee and recent Newberry Honor recipient Jason Reynolds will offer the day’s keynote. Other headline authors appearing on Saturday include National Book Award winner Robin Benway and National Book Award nominee Nic Stone. Saturday will also include a special children’s event honoring New York Times bestselling children’s author Chris Grabenstein.

Saturday will also feature a number of interactive experiences for festival attendees. Myrmidon Dagohir, a Norwalk-based chapter of Dagorhir Battle Games Association, will perform “Game of Foams” on the Jesup Green, recreating epic battles in George R. R. Martin’s Game of Thrones books. Image Comics, the third largest comics publisher in the country, and Aw Yeah! Comics in Harrison, NY will team up for the StoryFest’s Comics Alley for hands-on activities and opportunities to meet comics creators.

On Saturday evening, the StoryFest will host a Lit Crawl in downtown Westport during which downtown restaurants and bars will host storytellers of all kinds in a walking bar crawl full of literary-themed events.

Sunday October 14 will move to Staples High School and will feature workshops, panels and a mini-BookCon. Sunday kicks off with a local author’s breakfast, featuring a series of conversations between some of our community’s most beloved writers moderated by local authors Charlotte Rogan and Nina Sankovitch. Sunday’skeynote will be given by National Book Award nominee Ibi Zoboi. Other headline authors making appearances on Sunday are New York Times bestselling author Peter Blauner, bestselling author and James Patterson collaborator Andrew Gross, and bestselling thriller writer Riley Sager.

The centerpiece of the afternoon is the announcement of the 2018 Connecticut Book Awards, presented by the CT Center for the Book with a reception to follow. Katie Eber of Connecticut Public Radio will moderate a panel conversation with last year’s winners of the Connecticut Book Award. The day is rounded out by a series of workshops for writers.

Happening throughout the weekend is a visual arts exhibit called “Wearable Books.” The exhibit will feature altered books or book pages that have been transformed to become something wearable -- jewelry, purses, hats, shoes and other garments. These wearable pieces are made exclusively from book pages, spines and covers. The show will feature work by Fairfield County artists, and the work will be displayed in downtown Westport during the StoryFest weekend.

Happening the same weekend as the StoryFest on Saturday, October 13 is Westoberfest, hosted by the Westport Downtown Merchants Association. The event will feature a wide array of regional breweries, air-cooled cars, delicious food from local restaurants, live entertainment plus fun fall family activities, all on the sidewalks of downtown Westport.

The StoryFest will feature many more authors, and the complete list of participating authors will be released later this summer, along with the opportunity to purchase tickets for the StoryFest's ticketed events. To learn more, visit westportlibrary.org or saugatuckstoryfest.com.

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