Book lovers in the Isle of Man will be in literary heaven when the first ever Manx Litfest takes place in September 2012. Manx Litfest 2012 will be staged over the weekend of September 28-30, with organisers aiming to attract a range of authors from around the British Isles, including well-known writers, up-and-coming names and, of course, local talent. The festival is being organised by a small team of volunteers, with Manx Litfest being established as a non-profit organisation, with any proceeds being ploughed back in for future years. One of the organisers, local author John Quirk, explained: ‘Choosing the dates has been a tricky exercise in itself. We’ve been working closely with the Isle of Man Arts Council to find a suitable weekend to stage Manx Litfest. ‘We needed to avoid any major arts events in the Island, and ideally we wanted a weekend that doesn’t clash with any other major local events, such as the End to End Walk or the Food and Drink Festival. We also wanted it to be during term-time, so that schools can get involved too. After careful consideration, we’ve gone with September 28-30. ‘The other factor we had to consider was the festival calendar around the British Isles, which is incredibly busy. There are around 250 festivals each year, so clearly finding a free weekend is out of the question. However, September is, by and large, a quiet month for literary festivals, so it’s worked out quite well.’ Manx Litfest has received an initial start-up grant from the Isle of Man Arts Council, and Athol Street law firm Appleby Isle of Man is on board as a sponsor, looking after details of the festival’s incorporation. Other sponsorship opportunities are available, and the organisers are keen to hear from any company, organisation or individual who would like to support Manx Litfest. The announcement of the dates for Manx Litfest follows a lengthy research period, where the organisers gauged whether people wanted to see a literary festival in the Island. John said: ‘Before we committed ourselves to organising an event, we wanted to test the water and see if people were interested in a Litfest. We primarily used social media for this, via a blog, Facebook page and Twitter profile, and some coverage in the Manx media. ‘There was a literary festival held in the Island about a decade ago, and it ran for a few years. The overwhelming response to our research suggests that the market is there for new festival, and this is what we want to deliver with Manx Litfest. The challenge we have now is to attract a good mix of authors, and deliver a schedule of events that whets people’s appetites. Now we have the dates fixed, we can start to approach authors and firm up details of the festival over the coming months.’ One aspect of the committee’s ongoing research is meeting book clubs around the Island to get feedback direct from avid readers. ‘We’ve been along to talk to a few book clubs so far,’ said John. ‘But there are many book clubs out there that we don’t know about. Most are small groups, friends who meet at each other’s houses every month, or in pubs and restaurants. These avid reading fans are the kind of people we want to attract to Manx Litfest, and for that reason we value their input into what form the festival should take, and indeed what authors they would like to see.’ If you are a member of a book club and would like a visit from the Manx Litfest team, please email manxlitfest@gmail.com with dates and venues of your forthcoming meetings. Book fans can find out more about Manx Litfest 2012 by following us on Twitter (@manxlitfest), searching for us on Facebook or via our blog – http://manxlitfest.blogspot.com/ ENDS