Rancho Mirage Writers Festival kicks off with Tom Hanks

The sixth annual Rancho Mirage Writers Festival is kicking off Tuesday with guest speaker, Tom Hanks.

Hanks and Maureen Dowd, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, will appear at the event’s Angel Night, where supporters, who help fund the festival, will meet exculsivley.

According to the events program, Hanks is expected to discuss his book Uncommon Type: Some Stories, a collection of seventeen short stories. All Festival attendees will receive a free copy of this collection.

You can read more about Hanks’ book on the Rancho Mirage Writers Festival website.

RMWF is a gathering aimed to bring together authors and literary enthusiasts together. The event goes from Jan. 30 – Feb. 1 at the Rancho Mirage Library and Observatory and has been sold out for nearly a year. 43 authors and several panels are expected over the next few days.

“It’s a world class writers festival. We bring writers from all over the world and give them the chance to not only talk about their books, but to speak on current events,” said RMWF executive director, Debbie Green.

Anne Sebba is visting from London. She says she’s most ecxited for her presentation and to discuss politics with other presenters.“I just love talking to people about the work I’ve done. It’s communicating, and whether you communicate on the page with the written word or whether you commnuicate by meeting people, that’s why I love festivals. I think it’s really important to meet your reader,” said Sebba.

Author, Peggy Grande, of Los Angeles said she’s excited to meet her audience and network with other writers.

“It’s people who love literature, have a curiosity about authors and about history and there’s a wide range of topics and books on display and I look forward to presenting, but also seeing what other people are going to present about this week too,” Grande said.

Governor Jerry Brown, California’s only four-term governor, will also be a guest speaker, scheduled for Thursday. It will be his first public appearance following the end of his term.
Get a list of all panels and authors here.

From Debbie Green, Executive Producer of RMWF;

New this year:
— Additional video monitors in the Steinbeck Room for better visibility.
— Videotaping of all of the sessions, so you don’t have to miss any of your favorite authors.
— Additional lunch at the conclusion of the Festival on Friday.
— Pop-up store selling RMWF merchandise

— Rancho Mirage Writers Festival Book Club with 10 high quality sessions annually
— Rancho Mirage Writers Festival Writers Series
— Rancho Mirage Writers Festival Film Club