Meet bestselling author Reed Farrel Coleman at Fort Myers Reading Festival

Writer: Carolina Guzman
Published: Updated:

The Southwest Florida Reading Festival is just around the corner and promises to be one of the most anticipated literary events of the year.

The festival will feature a host of renowned authors.

Reed Farrel Coleman, a New York Times bestselling author known for his diverse body of work, will be among the authors attending.

“Whoever pays me the most money,” Coleman joked when asked about his favorite genre to write. “No, actually, though I haven’t written first-person POV novels in a while, they are my favorite. It’s what made me a mystery author in the first place, and they’ll always have a soft spot in my heart.”

Coleman also shared insights on keeping ideas fresh and writing as Robert B. Parker.

“Well, that’s always an interesting question,” he said. “The fact is, I can never live long enough to write the books I have ideas for in a week. Authors never have trouble with their ideas. As far as writing someone else’s character, the interesting thing about that is, especially an iconic character. I wrote six Jesse Stone novels, and you have to find a way into the character because I didn’t create the character. So, you find a way into the character, and then you have to find a way to make that character your own without disrespecting what the original author had done to create the character.”

Melissa Baker, the coordinator for the Southwest Florida Reading Festival, shared how attendees can make the most of their day at the festival.

“The best place to get started is at the festival website,” said Baker. “From there, you can view the schedule and the map; you can read up on the authors, you can download the mobile app, and even sign up for our newsletter.”

One of the festival’s highlights is the tradition of giving away free books to kids and teens.

“Absolutely,” said Baker. “We’ve been giving away free books for 26 years. Kids and teens can choose from thousands of titles on festival day.”

The Southwest Florida Reading Festival will take place on Saturday, March 1, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Fort Myers Regional Library Campus.

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