Book lovers rejoice! The Edinburgh International Book Festival will have a hybrid-style format for the second year in a row, providing a breadth of virtual participation opportunities.
Specifically for those who can’t make it to Edinburgh for in-person attendance, over 200 events will be broadcast online according to this year’s program line-up.
Per the Edinburgh International Book Festival (EIBF) website, you can claim your spot for any event you wish to virtually attend. Tickets to the various broadcasts run on a “pay what you can” basis to ensure that finances don’t inhibit interested individuals.
According to the festival director, Nick Barley, last year’s online engagement was in the hundreds of thousands. This display of wide-scale remote interest in the proceedings is something the festival wants to encourage, thus establishing their literary event as wholly inclusive to those who can’t afford to travel, are struggling with anxiety or chronic illness, etc.
The bookish community is diverse, and this international festival wants to fully take that into account in structuring its annual celebration.
Festival Dates and Online Registration
The Edinburgh International Book Festival runs for over two weeks every summer, providing a wide variety of events for adults, teens, and kids. The official dates this year are August 13th-29th.
To peruse the span of events offering online engagement, click here. For convenience, you can narrow your search to the day of broadcast using the small calendar on the left-hand side. Each event with a “watch online” option allows you to conveniently book your spot through the EIBF website. All you have to do is register or log in to your free account.
When claiming your spot, you can choose a donation amount or select “watch for free.” The recommended donation amount is £14 (equivalent to about $17 USD). The EIBF notes that individual contributions significantly aid their work as a non-profit, and to “please give what you can afford.”
Finally, after confirming your registration, you will receive an email confirmation with a watch link. For all virtual events, there will be a live chatroom as well as a live Q&A to enhance remote audience engagement.
Notable Events
Given there are pages upon pages of events to search through, here is a short list of some highly anticipated appearances:
- 8/14: Patricia Lockwood: Postmodernism for the Internet Generation.
- 8/14: Meg Mason: Femme Fatalistic.
- 8/19: Leave the Land of the Living with Melinda Salisbury & V.E. Schwab.
- 8/20: Emily St John Mandel: Parallel Worlds and Artistic Possibilities.
- 8/21: N.K. Jemisin: Ancient Evil on the Streets of New York.
- 8/22: Anthony Horowitz: Shaken, Not Stirred.
- 8/22: Torrey Peters: The Remaking of the Family.
- 8/23: Diana Gabaldon: The Outlander Phenomenon.
- 8/23: Ottessa Moshfegh: Power, Cruelty, and Savage Faith.
- 8/26: Noam Chomsky: Dissent Across the Decades.
- 8/27: Ocean Vuong: I’m Here to Stay.
- 8/29: Brian Cox with Nicola Sturgeon: The Lion of Dundee.
Although we can’t all make it to beautiful Edinburgh, Scotland, there’s no need to miss out on this year’s offerings! The hybrid-style event line-up looks to include bookworms from all over the globe. With hundreds of “watch online” options, the festival truly has something to appeal to every literary niche.
Looking to search for an event based on your particular bookish interests? Click here to access the EIBF program broken down by theme, and book your spot!