Since its inception in 2019, the CT Lit Fest has collaborated with over 200 authors, hailing from across the state, nation, and world. With the intention to create an umbrella organization to celebrate the literary arts in the state, founder Jotham Burrello utilized the network he developed as a professor at Central Connecticut State, publisher, writer, and director of the Yale Writers’ Workshop. The festival initially partnered with Central and now partners with Real Art Ways, a premier art space in Hartford. Their central location in Hartford, a city rich in history, culture, and artistic vibrancy, is the perfect setting for the festival; hosting the event in this vibrant urban area enables the organization to naturally amplify voices that reflect another culture, another country, another way of life, fostering a dynamic exchange of stories. The CT Lit Fest has carved a place in our state’s literary culture, celebrating the diverse voices and stories that shape our community.
The Fest takes over RAW’s galleries and outdoor space to create a literary circus of activity. Each year the programming begins in the RAW Cafe with the playing of Bach Cello Suites. The cafe is one of five galleries featuring readings and music. Signature galleries include participatory installations like the Typewriter Gallery, which gives attendees the opportunity to write their own stories on a collection of manual and electric typewriters; the Tiny Reading Gallery, a showcase of nearly 50 writers in an intimate setting; and culturally relevant panel discussions addressing timely subjects like anti-Asian violence and book banning. This unique convergence positions the festival to not only continue its tradition of promoting community but also to inspire further engagement and creativity.
Past guests have included New York Times bestselling authors Wally Lamb and Amity Gaige, former CT Poet Laureate Margaret Gibson, Yale Professor of History Elizabeth Hinton, dozens of aspiring high school writers, and faculty members from creative writing programs across the state, including Yale University, University of Hartford, Fairfield University, Wesleyan, Manchester Community College, the regional state universities (CCSU, WCSU, SCSU, ECSU), and UConn.
Beyond the festival, our organization also produced a series of virtual panels with authors from across the world during the COVID-19 pandemic, published two literary anthologies of CT writers, and facilitated a reading tour for contributors of the anthology and the CT Book Awards in local bookstores, libraries, and schools. We hosted 21 virtual panels, which engaged more than 1,800 attendees and covered topics from AIDS poetry during a pandemic to imagination and social justice with Mexican-American writers.