Waiting for Bookfest's first lines

Saturday and Sunday the Seattle Bookfest will bloom in Columbia City.

And it's organic, nurtured by people who love books and folks who want to promote their neighborhood.

It grew from a small idea in spring to a fall harvest of literature feeding some of the hunger that's grown since the last Northwest Book Fest six years ago. Northwest at its height drew 20,000 people, but costs rose as the festival grew. It went into debt and added an admission fee that helped shrink attendance by half. The Seattle Times was among some sponsors that withdrew.

The new festival started as a smaller idea. Paul Doyle wanted to put on an event to keep people thinking about the Columbia City Cinema, the neighborhood theater he started in 2004.

Doyle said there are at least five published writers who live within a few blocks of the movie theater, so he thought he'd get them together for a reading in the theater's lobby.

"When I started talking to these folks it gradually became bigger," Doyle said. "Why not have a Columbia City book festival?" Then it got bigger than that.

"I missed the old Northwest festival," Doyle said, "and it became clear everyone else missed it, too."

People offered ideas and volunteered to work at the festival; neighborhood business groups, and writers from around Seattle, along with bookstores and presses, lent their support. More than 120 Northwest authors (Garth Stein, Kathleen Alcalá, William Dietrich, Sam Hamill, among them) are participating, and about 60 small presses and booksellers will be present.

Molly Horne-Brine, a young teacher, came looking for work at the theater, and Doyle signed her up as Bookfest coordinator.

Ballooning costs helped bring down the Northwest Bookfest, but Doyle said he's keeping things small.

He said small book sellers and local presses are funding festival events and the Seattle School District provided a huge boost by donating use of the former Columbia School (where Orca used to be). "We chose a business model for the times," Doyle said.

Authors will read from three stages sponsored by Third Place Books, Bookworm Exchange, Seattle Mystery Bookshop and Fremont Place Books. The Secret Garden Bookshop is supporting the Children's Stage, and The Northwest SPokenword LAB (SPLAB) is sponsoring the Poetry Stage.

Poet Paul Nelson, a co-founder of SPLAB, moved to Columbia City from Auburn in August. He joined the festival effort and took on responsibility for getting the poetry section together.

"We looked at a few neighborhoods and this one was the one that was most culturally dynamic, most culturally diverse," he said. "Great art and great culture comes with diversity."

There will be workshops, panels and events on stage. Learn "How to Write A Novel in a Month," listen to a marathon reading of Marcel Proust's "Remembrance of Things Past."

The Seattle Scrabble Club will have boards set up so you can challenge yourself against a master, or just play for fun.

In addition to food for the soul, there will be food for the body from Skillet, Island Soul and Maximus Minimus, and a hot-dog vendor.

The organizers are hoping the new light-rail line will bring a good number of people from outside the area because the Columbia City stop is only a block from the festival site, 3528 S. Ferdinand St. You can find details at www.seattlebookfest.com.

We have a lot of great festivals around here; some have grown so big that I sometimes miss what they were in the beginning. I'm looking forward to tasting this one fresh from the ground.

Jerry Large's column appears Monday and Thursday. Reach him at 206-464-3346 or jlarge@seattletimes.com.