After many years of bringing thousands of readers and hundreds of authors together at the UWM-Waukesha campus, the Southeast Wisconsin Festival of Books will continue its mission in the virtual era. For the second year, the Festival will be streaming through its partners, Books & Company of Oconomowoc and MC Services of Pewaukee.
The free book festival, presented by the UWM at Waukesha Foundation, encourages the public to enjoy presentations and performances from national and Wisconsin authors who share their work in a broad range of genres and topics. The Festival’s 2021 theme, “Pages, Passports & Panels,” will be covered in a keynote presentation by best-selling author Elizabeth Berg, Friday, Nov 5, and author panels on travel, nature/environment, history and Wisconsin on Saturday, Nov.6, according to Program Chair Kathie Giorgio. “Each panel will include novelists, non-fiction writers and poets presenting their take on the four subjects,” she said.
AllWriters Workshop and Workplace, founded and operated by Giorgio will provide four free classes for book writers. Each session has a panel of authors with experience on the subject, Complete listing of author panels, times and registration will be available Oct. 1.
In addition to the programming on Nov. 5 and 6 , this year’s Festival include:
- Two Wisconsin writers will introduce their newest books in solo programs in September and January.
- A Waukesha Reads program will be featured in October.
- Middle and high school student writing contests will again offer young people recognition and cash prizes for their work.
“The two contests present an opportunity for students to become involved in the Festival by writing essays, poetry and short stories, “ Giorgio added.. The Century Fence Student Essay and Poetry Contest, is open to all middle and high school students in Waukesha County. To be eligible for cash prizes up to $250, students must submit an original essay or poem based on the Festival theme. Wisconsin students under 19 years of age can compete in the Duane Stein Short Story Contest by submitting an original story of up to 2,500 words. The Short Story contest offers a $2,000 first prize, $1,000 second prize and $500 third prize. Complete details on contest rules and deadlines are available here.