by Dennis Mont'Ros
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Grain alcohol. Must be Lit Fest.[/caption]
The 10th annual Lit Fest is underway, and let there be no doubt that Denver’s top literary event has leveled-up. Big time. We’re just a few days in and my head is already spinning because …
It’s the brightest. Lighthouse staff, faculty, and supporters have lured mega-talents to teach and read, including Kim Addonizio, Steve Almond, Robin Black, Meghan Daum, Andre Dubus III, Major Jackson, Mat Johnson, and Emily Rapp.
It’s the biggest. This year’s calendar is absolutely packed. I’m not just talking fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and drama. They’ve got agents galore. They’ve got youth programming. Business panels are dishing on the quirks, trends, and necessities of getting published. You can even get your Namaste on with a yoga-oriented workshop.
It’s the bookiest. The Tattered Cover has once again partnered with Lighthouse, selling books in the tent from noon to close every day.
It’s the smartest. The Lighthouse team continues to innovate, with awesome programming like Lighthouse Goes Psycho: A Night At the Movies, presented by award-winning director and writer Alexandre Phillipe.
Somebody passed around a bottle of Everclear at Friday’s kickoff party. Saturday was unkind to a few of us. With readings, talks, or panels every night, the party is not going slow down. Lit Fest is the craziest.
Dennis Mont’Ros is in the fiction track at University of South Florida’s MFA program. He has been in the Lighthouse Writers Workshop family since 2010. He may or may not have drank Everclear on the Milheim House porch.
