Every year thousands of enthusiastic book readers, authors, booksellers and publishers gather at the State Fairgrounds to celebrate the vibrant literary community in the Twin Cities. Including author readings, a huge book fair and various panels, it is one of the biggest literary events of the year.  

This is the Twin Cities Book Festival.

The event is put on by Rain Taxi, a local organization that publishes an award-winning print quarterly and puts on various literary events throughout the year. Rain Taxi started the event in 2001 and it has been steadily growing since then, with attendance swelling up to about 6,000 people during the past few years. Eric Lorberer, the executive director of Rain Taxi, as well as the person who runs the magazine and the events, recalls the early days of the Twin Cities Book Festival.

“Back in 2001 we brought in one guest from out of town—Robert Creeley, and that was such an honor—and it’s grown from there,” he said.

To illustrate how much it has grown, this year there are 20 authors presenting, including Senator Amy Klobuchar and fiction author Joy Williams, as well as an Author Hub, where people can meet local authors and attend various panels and mini-events.

This growth is partly due to the vast array of events and activities. Lorberer believes that everyone will find something that they enjoy doing at the Festival.

“There is stuff for every age group here,” he said.

In addition to all the events and activities, the Twin Cities Book Festival is also a place for people who love writing and books to interact and communicate. Patricia Weaver Francisco, Creative Nonfiction Editor for Water~Stone Review and Hamline faculty, believes that all of these interactions help to create an exciting buzz at the festival.

“There is so much energy in one room, and so many conversations and so many things to look at and get excited about,” she said.

An additional exciting event that happens every year at the Festival is that Water~Stone Review, a literary annual published by The Creative Writing Programs here at Hamline, debuts their new issue of the publication. The debut of the lit review happens at The Creative Writing Programs at Hamline/Water~Stone Review booth, where many creative writing faculty and staff will be relaxing and interacting.

As well as this Hamline-affiliated booth, there will also be many other exhibitors at the Festival, including Graywolf Press, Milkweed Editions and Coffeehouse Press. Lorberer believes that all of these exhibitors, authors and attendees help to accomplish the mission of the Twin Cities Book Festival.

“The goal is really to bring the community together for one big day,” he said.

Francisco believes that Rain Taxi is pivotal in helping to bring out this sense of togetherness.

“Rain Taxi—the publication and the book festival—is a huge part of that, of maintaining that sense of community and allowing the community to grow,” she said.

The community also had a chance to get together earlier this year when a large conference held by the Association of Writers & Writing Programs (also known as AWP) took place in Minneapolis for the first time in years. The national event brought in more than 12,000 people and lasted for four days. Although the Twin Cities Book Festival is smaller, Lorberer believes it is still a hugely fulfilling and mesmerizing experience.

“It feels magical to watch individual people have an exciting experience,” he said.

Francisco believes that these people help make the Twin Cities a great place to be if you are interested in literature.

“I don’t think there is a better literary community in the country,” she said.

With the large amount of local community members excited about AWP earlier this year and The Twin Cities Book Festival this weekend, as well as all of the literary events that occur throughout the year, Francisco’s statement certainly seems to ring true. Lorberer hopes that these people, as well as anyone who is curious about the literary world, will make the Twin Cities Book Festival the place to be on Saturday.

“As many people who want to come experience the world of books—they are welcome, and we hope that a lot of people will show up and celebrate this with us,” he said.

The Twin Cities Book Festival will be on Saturday, Oct. 17 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. Admission is free. For more information, head over to www.raintaxi.com.