Local book festival and poetry slam adds opportunity for authors
KINGMAN – Historic Route 66 will host a 2-day conference on September 20th and 21st, 2019. Attend workshops, pitch to publishers, network with other authors, and more.
“Early bird” price of $65 for one day; $100 for both days if registering before July 1st (student rates available). Vendors also wanted.
An underserved area
Since 2005 KABAM (Kingman Area Books Are Magic) has brought books and author visits to local schools. Poets – local and nationally ranked – attend KABAM’s poetry slam, which is free to enter. In 2018 a one-day writers conference was added and expanded to two days for 2019.
Kingman has a growing artistic community and few, if any, venues to hone their craft. Mystic Publisher’s C.E.O., Jo A. Wilkins, uses her connections and expertise to help create a conference experience similar to the one she began in Las Vegas.
The faculty
Award-winning YA author, Randall Platt, will lead a workshop aimed at students and will teach two other sessions during the conference. Hip-hop artist Myrlin Hepworth will guest star at the poetry slam and work with young poets at local schools. True West Magazine’s executive editor, Bob Boze Bell, will present the Thursday before the conference at the Mohave Community College.
Three publishers will also be in attendance to take pitches from prospective new authors.
The KABAM committee oversees all facets of the festivities and is made up of hard-working volunteers from the Mohave County Library, Kingman’s school districts, Mohave Community College, Mystic Publishers, and Kingman’s local writers’ group.
