Background to the Knysna Literary Festival

Last year local residents and tourists along the Garden Route flocked to the Knysna Literary Festival which was held from 27th to 29th April 2012. Created as an initiative by the founder Ling Dobson of Pam Golding Properties in Knysna in 2009 give back to the community after three successful years the Festival is a well-known, exclusive event on the Garden Route arts calendar. It’s a celebration of South Africa literacy excellence attracting well-known local authors, poets and performers from both the fiction and non-fiction genres.

Aims and objectives of the Festival

The Knysna Literary Festival objectives are to: • inspire the youth of Knysna and foster a passion for reading • expose Garden route residents and tourists to South African literature and the amazing talent South Africa has contributed to the world forum of writers/authors • promote and build awareness of South African literature – its diversity, richness and talent • allow established authors a platform to connect directly with their readers and target audience.

The Festival programme

From face to face interviews and talks, intimate dinners with authors, to lively discussion groups with South Africa’s leading authors as well as the screening of local films, the Festival has delighted audiences over the last three years attracting well known literary celebrities like Mandy Wiener, Mike Nicol, Margie Orford, Ingrid de Kok, Rob Caskie and Ryk Neethling.

Feedback from this year’s festival “What an amazing experience,

I will be back next year” Mandy Wiener “Ling, it really is wonderful that under your leadership Pam Golding is” raising the bar" for educational and cultural activity in Knysna! We need many more similar events to attract a more cosmopolitan and global resident in Knysna.” - New York visitor. “Pam and I will not miss next year’s event, we have it already booked” Andrew Golding and Pam Golding “I have already diarized next year’s dates! Would not miss this for anything” - Deidre Penfold.

An experienced team.

Ling Dobson, Franchisee and Principal of Pam Golding Properties Knysna; is the founder of the event. In her quest to ’Give back to the Community’ and to enhance our children’s futures, she has chosen Literature and Literacy, one of her passions in life. Ling has been the driving force behind all three successful festivals.

Sasha Campbell, Conference Organiser: With over 15 years’ experience in tourism, marketing, sales and corporate social investment Sasha’s hands-on approach , fresh ideas and attention to detail ensures every year’s festival gets even bigger and better! Sasha’s responsible for the Festival’s programme and ensuring the marketing of the event goes according to plan.

Our target market.

Over 800 people attended this year’s Knysna Literary Festival and we aim to increase the attendance by 50% this year with a targeted marketing and advertising plan. The Festival attracts book lovers from across the Garden Route including Mossel Bay, George, Sedgefield, Knysna, and Plettenberg Bay through to Port Elizabeth. Well known for being an affluent area our target market is well read, well-educated customers who are keen to increase their knowledge and understanding of literature in South Africa. The Knysna Literacy Festival provides brands with a unique opportunity to connect with their customers on a different, intimate level – providing them with a real platform to engage and be inspired by a true passion and interest – books! With the added media coverage from the most recent festival, we are now also looking a much wider catchment area. There has been great interest shown for the 2013 Knysna Literary Festival and we feel confident of achieving our target attendance. The programme runs over 3 days at different venues in and around Knysna. With the added media coverage from the most recent festival, we are now also looking a much wider catchment area. (See attached example of this year’s programme)

Giving back to the local communities.

Through ticket sales and donations the Knysna Festival donates approximately 30% of its ticket sale proceedings to the local charities listed below. However, for 2013, we’d like to offer 50% of all ticket sales to our two chosen charities, as well as any further donations, gained for the festival. Beneficiaries of the festival:

• TsiBA Education Campus Eden is a tertiary business school and a NGO situated at the foot of the Outeniqua Mountains in Karatara, a small rural village near Knysna. We are currently assisting with raising funds towards building Tsiba a Library, for their students. For more information visit: - www.tsiba.org.za / NPO number 043-720 “It was very good to meet you at the Literary Festival. Having spent some time at the Festival over the weekend I would like to congratulate you and Sasha and your team for organising such a successful event. Well done, I know how much effort goes into getting an event of this nature to run smoothly. On behalf of TSiBA Eden I would like to thank you” – Penny Costley-White, Student Business Manager

• e’Pap Children’s Feeding Project –. ePap currently feeds in excess of 4, 000 children in the Garden Route area, with its unique fortified porridge. We believe that a hungry child is not able to concentrate or for that matter read which is why we have decided to support this worthy cause. For more information visit: - www. Epapfeeding.co.za / NPO Number 066-865 “Well done on a very happy and successful Literary Festival. All of the e'Pap volunteers who were involved thoroughly enjoyed their participation. We met some interesting people, made some new contacts and gained some additional donors. Perhaps we will be able to assist others to help nourish children in their areas too. Many thanks for giving us the opportunity of being one of the beneficiaries and of being involved in an interesting weekend. We look forward to participating again next year where things will be even better. It really was a well-organized, "top drawer" event.” – Shelley Godsell, Founder and Director Inspiring the youth to read One of our key objectives is to inspire the youth of Knysna to take up reading. To meet this objective as part of the Festival we hold writing workshops, specifically aimed at young people, run a young writers competitions for short stories and poetry and plan to hold community events throughout the year that will enhance young people’s reading and writing skills within the communities surrounding Knysna. We have received amazing support from educators in the area and aim to get further involved with the school curriculum.

Promoting local authors:

This year we take great pleasure in hosting the Literary Lounge where four of the Western Capes best talents – featured on this site - will be on hand to sign copies of their novels and chat informally to people about writing, publishing and their own experiences in writing. There will be snack: Cheese and wine.

The venue in Knysna will be confirmed closer to the time.

Please Like this site and Share it on Facebook, Google and spread the news about the Festival and the worthwhile cause we support.

We look forward to seeing you all there!

071 529 6255
Pezula Golf Estate
Pezula Knysna Heads
Knysna