THIS year’s Wigtown Book Festival aims to be an event for every age and interest – using digital technology to make it more accessible than ever before.
It features Wigtown YA, the UK’s largest young adult literature festival, which sees some of the best YA authors around taking part in free online discussions.
Among them are: Dean Atta author and co-director of Scottish BAME Writers Network; 2020 YA Book Award winner Juno Dawson and Dara McAnulty winner of the 2020 Wainwright Prize for UK Nature Writing.
Wigtown YA has been programmed by six young volunteers, aged 14-25, and is led by Andy Stewart (pictured), who volunteered for several years before being employed as Wigtown Festival Company’s young people’s co-ordinator.
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He said: “Our digital programme aims to showcase the welcoming and accessible nature of our usual physical YA programme, and maybe even share it with a wider audience because this year it all has to be online.
“This year’s Wigtown YA programme has been curated with themes of resilience, diversity and looking to the future very much in mind.
“It features some of the most well-known YA authors of the last decade, and we hope that it will appeal to an intergenerational audience.”
Anne Barclay, Wigtown Book Festival operational director, said: “We want Wigtown to be a festival for everyone, so we are trying to make the most of digital technology. One advantage is that you don’t even have to be in Wigtown to hear readings, take part in discussions or enjoy interactive events.
“Another is that events will be available online for at least a month, so people can enjoy them anytime – whether it’s live in the living room or in their pyjamas over breakfast.”
The festival started on Thursday and runs until October 4. Events are free but donations are requested as part of a £20,000 fundraising drive to assure its future.
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