Semicolon Bookstore in Chicago, Ill., will host the inaugural Lit Fest, a one-day street festival devoted to literature, this fall, Block Club Chicago reported.
Scheduled to run from noon to 8 p.m. on Saturday, October 22, the festival will take over a section of Division Street in Chicago's Wicker Park neighborhood and will feature author talks, vendors, cocktails and live music.
Danielle Mullen, owner of Semicolon Bookstore, told Block Club Chicago she wants "people to get excited about literary festivals like they do about festivals like Lollapalooza, or, you know, Taste of Chicago. And so we had to create it; that's what we're interested in doing."
Authors José Olivarez, Jessamine Chan and Sidik Fofana are slated to attend, with more appearances to be announced. Among the vendors will be Black-owned independent bookstores from around the U.S., and there will be food trucks and a DJ.
Attendance is free, but the bookstore is offering VIP tickets that will give access to all author signings as well as specialty cocktails or mocktails paired with each author. The VIP tickets will go on sale this Friday, and all benefits will go to Parenthesis, a literacy nonprofit run by Mullen.
"We wanted something that will allow people to actually interact with the authors they love, but also in a fun atmosphere, where we would be able to just share our love of books, among other things," Mullen said.