Most students can only imagine the possibility of standing before the pop artist that composed their favorite song or the sports team they have followed religiously, but for literature aficionados, this opportunity is fast approaching.
At the third annual Trinity Prep Author Festival on Feb. 9 in Trinity’s Rich Library, members of the Trinity family and the local community will have the opportunity to listen to and learn from writers from across the US. These authors are excited to share their love for writing with audiences and the paths they followed to bring their stories to life on the pages.
Organized by Librarian Reba Gordon and English teacher Georgia Parker, Author Fest will include returning authors who have participated in the previous festivals as well as new arrivals hoping to impart their love for the literary world to Trinity’s students.
“Almost all of these authors have been with us since the very first festival,” Gordon said. “Which is why I reached out to them first because they’ve always been so open and giving and supportive.”
Gordon and Parker were initially influenced by Trinity’s annual trip to YALLFest in Charleston, South Carolina. Three years ago, they decided to bring a piece of what they experienced back to Central Florida, allowing a larger group of students to get a glimpse into the writing process.
“There’s something about meeting an author that makes the story more real, that makes writing more real, that makes the possibility of being a writer more real,” Gordon said.
Their deep-rooted involvement in the literary world has motivated Gordon and Parker to build and grow a festival that they hope will encourage students to pursue the possibility of writing and reading for pleasure and occupation, as shockingly few tend to do today. With a waning interest in reading and writing among adolescents, Gordon believes that Author Fest will act as a catalyst against the multiplying number of concerning statistics.
“Among 17-year-olds, the number of non-readers has doubled, and nearly half of Americans ages 15 to 24 don’t read books for pleasure,” Gordon said. “This is a problem, and we wanted to try and address that.”
In past years, the Author Festival has had an extremely positive turnout with 300 audience members attending to meet the authors and hear about their stories. Gordon hopes that these guests are able to walk away with the feeling that reading and writing are universally accessible forms of enrichment and art.
“I want [students] to be inspired,” Gordon said. “I want them to be inspired to read, I want them to be inspired to try a new genre that they hadn’t thought of because they met an author, and they thought that author was exciting. I want kids to be inspired to write.”
Not only has Author Fest received an astonishing number of enthusiastic fans, but it has also evoked a lasting change in students, prompting them to continue to indulge their rejuvenated love for literature.
“After Author Fest, my [book] circulation usually goes up by about 300 percent,” Gordon said.
Attending authors will speak to the audiences about the writing process and the steps that follow, leading to the complete publication of their work. To highlight these operations, Gordon and Parker have arranged to have a variety of writers as well as an agent, Lucienne Diver. The authors will also participate in a new addition to the Author Fest: seven different panels guiding aspiring writers through the development of their own stories and ideas.
“These young adult authors are the best,” Gordon said. “They really want to connect with their readers, and they will answer every question you have.”
Gordon and Parker hope to see Author Fest evolve into a larger, more in-depth event to prompt a greater portion of the surrounding community to attend.
“What we’d like to see is for this be a multi-day event so there will be more options for kids to delve into learning about the authors,” Gordon said. “We also want to get more community involvement, so we’re trying to reach out…to get more people who aren’t just part of the Trinity family to come here and take advantage of this.”
Vivi Barnes’s books “Paper or Plastic” and “Olivia Twisted” have been available to Trinity students since the very first Author Fest, and Barnes is eager to meet a whole new audience and share her passion. She has attended every Author Fest and is most excited for the one-on-one interactions with the students.
“I love being able to chat with TPS students,” Barnes said. “They are so enthusiastic and have such a fresh take on the world! I love when they ask thoughtful questions during panel discussions and when they share their own aspirations with us.”
Jeff Strand, author of “The Greatest Zombie Movie Ever” and “Stranger Things Have Happened,” claims that he is most excited for “the sheer chaos of the mass signing.”
Authors and audiences are looking forward to the chance to meet one another and discuss their mutual love for words. Many students emerge with a greater knowledge and appreciation for new writers and the craft itself. Authors are able to gain insight from one another and foster a love for their stories in the students they inspire.
“It’s everything to me to think that something I do or say or write might have that effect on someone else,” Diver said.
