Garland library staff on Oct. 13 reviewed Curiosity Fest — the system’s inaugural literary festival — and the second annual 1 Book, 1 Garland citywide reading program, reporting strong community participation across events.

Adult services librarian Nicole Burton and colleague Daphne Ferris summarized planning and attendance. Staff said 51 local authors submitted interest forms for the Curiosity Fest local-author showcase, 43 authors attended on the day, and the two-session showcase drew about 185 visitors over four hours. Staff split the author showcase into a morning session for children’s/young-adult authors and an afternoon session for adult authors.

Curiosity Fest also included three writing workshops: an adult-focused publishing workshop (23 attendees), a tween/teen workshop led by author-illustrator Sarah Masinga (9 attendees) and a nonfiction-focused workshop in partnership with Garland Landmark Museum (4 attendees). The children’s program — a Pete the Cat story time with activities and a costume character — drew roughly 300 attendees, staff said. The evening author event with debut novelist Marcela Fuentes drew about 91 people for a reading, audience participation and a post-event autograph line.

Staff reported modest program spending: marketing materials and printed flyers totaled $360.42. The meeting transcript includes inconsistent references to speaker honoraria (initially described as $200 total, then later described as $200 each); staff said they paid honoraria for presenters and will provide final figures and author-sales revenue after reconciling event reports. For vendor sales during the event, authors were allowed to sell copies; the participation agreement asked authors to donate 20% of event book sales to the Friends of the Library (the library said this practice was based on prior precedent). Staff said they tracked donations via forms and plan to compile a post-event report, including revenue and written feedback from authors and (pending) patron surveys.

Staff described outreach and promotion: advertising appeared in the library’s Off the Shelf newsletter, social media (Instagram and Facebook), printed flyers distributed downtown and at a Barnes & Noble, and Eventbrite registration for workshops (Eventbrite fees were paid by the library; programs were free to patrons). Staff said they plan to hold Curiosity Fest again with refinements to name/branding, continued author showcases, and expanded outreach to schools and local partners to boost teen participation.

Board members praised the events and encouraged continued coordination with downtown cultural promotion and the city’s economic-development goals.

Attendance and program highlights (as reported in the meeting):
- Local-author interest forms submitted: 51
- Local authors who attended the showcase: 43
- Showcase total attendance (two sessions): ~185
- Pete the Cat story time attendance: ~300
- Evening author event attendance (Marcela Fuentes): 91
- Writing workshops attendance: adult workshop 23; teen workshop 9; Landmark Museum workshop 4
- Marketing cost: $360.42
- Author sales donation request: 20% of event book sales to Friends of the Library (participation agreement)

Staff said they will provide a follow-up report with final revenue totals, author feedback and patron survey results for future planning.