Book buffs – both writers and readers alike – spent the past four days indulging the cathedral of the mind at the Knysna Literary Festival.
Thursday 14 April marked the official launch of the Literary Festival, culminating on Sunday evening. A vibrant programme of author talks; book readings; book signings and demonstrations, one of which, entitled “Delicious Word Journey,” meant that no one was going hungry; figuratively or “literary”.
One of the festival’s sponsors, Pam Golding Properties Knysna, had this to say, “Here was a perfect opportunity to contribute and assist in generating this awareness for the children of Knysna. They are our future community leaders. We could contribute both monetarily as well as promoting the “˜tools’ with which to stimulate better libraries, general creativity, reading and writing of Knysna’s heritage.”
Shaun van Eck, CEO of Knysna Tourism added, “It links to the town’s branding of being a lifestyle leader in South Africa with rich literary roots.”
Authors from diverse genres shared the plots and plans of their characters in the comfortable Literary Lounge. Children listened as stories were read to them at local libraries and schools in the vicinity. Others proffered their knowledge on book making, from traditional methods to high tech processes. There was also a Young Writer’s Competition based on the “Naturally Knysna” theme, with an emphasis on the environment. The winner of this competition will have their efforts converted into either a rap song or ballad, which will be performed at the Naturally Knysna Festival later this year.
I was really disappointed we were not able to attend each and every session. With so much variety on offer, I can only imagine that the annual Knysna Literary Festival is set to become a popular attraction of choice.
