The annual Red Line Book Festival is set to operate a bit differently this year due to coronavirus restrictions. That being said, the wide range of events that the festival is set to roll out from October 12th until October 18th are sure to attract a lot of attention from avid readers right across the country. The entirety of the festival will take place online this year, with the exception of one event – a Where’s Wally treasure hunt for children, which will take place in person with the implementation of social distancing.
Festival Programmer Mark Ward says that the online sphere has boasted such advantages for the Red Line Book Festival format that he doesn’t know “if [they]’ll ever go back to a fully in-person festival”. Speaking to The University Times, Ward explains that by moving aspects of the festival online, admission to all of the events is now opened up to a much wider audience. “I think from now on there will always be some online components – because you can reach some people that you otherwise couldn’t, perhaps people in different areas that can’t be at the festival physically.”
The events scheduled for this year’s celebration range from conversations with popular authors including Rob Doyle, Doireann Ní Ghriofa, and Deirdre Sullivan, to fiction and poetry writing workshops, which Ward believes are “perfect for aspiring and emerging authors”. Targeted at the young adult bracket in particular, there will also be a zine workshop facilitated by Sarah Maria Griffin, as well as a writing workshop led by the Paper Lanterns literary journal.
Red Line Book Festival is continuing in its mission to celebrate the very best of local, national and international writing, in spite of the extraordinary obstructions that it – along with many other festivals – has faced this year. While the writers involved will be mainly local, Ward expressed gratitude for the technological advancements which will allow international authors to engage remotely from different parts of the globe.
Red Line Book Festival will take place from October 12th to 18th . All events are free of charge to attend. To find the full programme of events for the 2020 festival, visit www.redlinebookfestival.ie.
