8th Annual Rosemount Writers Festival and Book Fair Takes Place on Saturday, March 16, 2024 at the Steeple Center

(Rosemount, MN) – The 8th Annual Rosemount Writers Festival and Book Fair takes place on March 16, 2024, between from 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. at The Steeple Center, located at 14375 South Robert Trail in Rosemount. David Bruns and J. R. Olson, who are both retired Navy officers, will do the Keynote this year. The men co-write best-selling national security thrillers that seem to predict what's going to soon be happening in the world. Their latest book is “Covert Action,” which releases in early March. Bruns’ and Olson’s talk will kick the event off right at 9 a.m. After the Keynote wraps up, the annual book fair will get underway.

This year’s event features 60 authors and vendors, including David La Vaque, a long-time Star Tribune sports reporter. He co-authored “Tourney Time,” a book recently published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press.

Also appearing, John Noltner, author of “Lessons on the Road to Peace.” His book was just nominated for a Minnesota Book Award in the General Non-fiction category. Susan Thurston, author of “Sister of Grendel,” winner of a Midwest Book Award in 2023, will be at the event too. Other authors participating in the Rosemount Writer’s Festival this year include Brian Lutterman, Chris Norbury, J.J. Harrigan, Lynne M. Kolze, Alan Miller, Mark Ristau, Mary Perrine, Alicia Schwab and Amy Zellmer.

There will also be tables at the Book Fair for local publishers Kirk House Publishers, Calumet Editions and Sigma’s Bookshelf. The latter is a free book publishing company that since its founding in 2016 has published 22 teen authored books. Company founder Justin M. Anderson, who is now 22 and a recent graduate of Macalester College, will be at the event answering questions about the company, and signing copies of his two books: “Saving Stripes: A Kitty’s Story” and “Nothing But Trouble.”

While the Book Fair is happening downstairs, a series of writing-related workshops will be taking place in the Steeple Center’s upstairs classrooms. There will be 12 classes offered. Several will be taught by publishers.

“The workshops are for all levels of writers—whether already published, or just taking their first steps on their writing journey,” said Festival Chair Sue Stein.

Classes available include First Steps in Writing Picture Books; How a Book Can Help You Stand Out; The Writer’s Ultimate Treasure Chest; Building An Authentic Author Platform; Writing, Publishing, and Selling Memoir; and Clever Ways to Build Awareness and Promote Your Book.

A complete list of workshops can be found online at Rosemountwritersfestival.com/events--workshops

Admission to the Book Fair is free. Cost to attend the Keynote is $15. The fee to attend any of the workshops is $15 per class. Register online for the Keynote or Workshops here: Rosemountwritersfestival.com/register-paypal

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