Founded in May 2024 by authors Luca DiMatteo and Andrea Petitte, Connecticut Book Festivals (CBF) is an author-run organization that has grown to more than 600 members and associate members dedicated to promoting writers and aspiring writers who live in Connecticut.

Among its members is Neil Randle of Newtown, the author of three novels and a member of the CBF board. Randle’s hometown will be the next to host a new Connecticut Book Festivals event, this fall.

DeMatteo and Randle sat down recently to talk about CBF, its mission and goals, and how Newtown found its way onto the CBF calendar.

DeMatteo said any time CBF starts looking for a new location, it considers three things.

“When we look for a new location,” he began, ticking points with his fingers, “it has to be a three-way win. It has to be a win for the venue. Secondly, it has to be a win for the authors. And third, it has to be a win for Connecticut Book Festival.”

DiMatteo said the win for the venue includes the host town. “It needs to be something they want,” he further explained.

The second point means each event will benefit the authors and readers.

“We’re authors ourselves,” he said of himself and co-founder Petitte. “We took a long time to slowly build our name and our reputation.”

DiMatteo and Petitte met about six years ago at a book signing event “that was just horrible,” he said. The two began talking about how such events could be presented better, how they could better benefit authors and readers alike. They continued attending lackluster events until 2023, when they decided it was time to stop just talking about the topic.

Connecticut Book Festivals initially welcomed 60 authors when it was founded in May 2024. Today there are more than 600 Connecticut authors under the CBF umbrella, DiMatteo said August 7. The group hosts everyone from traditional to hybrid and self-published authors, he added.

A six-person board guides Connecticut Book Festivals.

“It’s a small board, with a really diverse set of skills,” Randle noted. One person is very strong with scouting, another does fundraising, he said. DiMatteo’s wife, Laura Piria, has nonprofit experience.

“Collectively, it brings structure to us,” Randle added.

The goals of CBF are to sell books, make friends, and have fun at book fairs, book signings, and workshops organized across the state; provide resources to help members improve their writing skills, and better understand and navigate the complex processes that get a book over the finish line; provide opportunities for authors to sell (and learn how to sell) their finished works in venues of various sizes; and search out and contract resources such as high quality cost-effective podcasts, production facilities, etc, to increase sales and further the careers of members.

CBF caters to authors and aspiring authors of all genres from 8-80 years of age and beyond. Full members are those who have been published, while associate membership denotes those authors who are still working toward their first published title. A Professional Partners page on CBF’s website provides legal assistance and other guidance for its members.

“Our belief is every author should have access to all the resources out there,” DiMatteo said.

Members do not pay for membership nor to participate in CBF events.

“We survive on sponsorship, we’re looking for grants, and donations,” DiMatteo said.

Randle said the organization has met “some very generous people along the way.” Among those people is podcaster Jed Doherty (a/k/a Jedlie), host of “Reading with Your Kids.” Doherty is now hosting the weekly Connecticut Book Festivals podcast, which has regularly reached into the top 100 and top 50 across the country on all major platforms, Randle said.

The 501(c)(3) organization also relies on the generosity of host locations to allow the use of venues at little to no cost.

Members are also expected, DiMatteo said, to share social media posts concerning events they sign up for. CBF creates flyers, which its members share to social media and websites “wherever they can, starting six weeks out from an event they sign up to participate in. That’s all they have to do.”

The online sharing circles right back to the win-win-win formula DiMatteo outlined earlier.

“It gets the event out for the venue, it gets the event out for the authors, and it gets Connecticut Book Festivals’ name out,” he said.

An Educational Aspect

DiMatteo said Connecticut Book Festivals may have started as a book signing organization, but it has already expanded to include an educational aspect.

“By our nonprofit status we are mandated — and that was by our own hand — to do educational programming,” he said.

CBF has also launched a scholarship fund. This year’s recipient will be an MFA student who will receive guidance from writing their book and editing their book to publishing and ultimately selling their book, according to DiMatteo. The organization hopes to expand the program next year to include a high school student, he added.

The organization also hosts Writer Sneak Peek events, where authors present their works in progress to a live audience for feedback. The monthly events are held at coffee shops, libraries, and other locations in Milford, New Haven, and Norwalk, free of charge.

“It has been wildly successful,” DiMatteo said. “We’ve taken three unpublished authors to published, and we are working on more education programs.”

Randle said one of the benefits of being an author-led group is “we can ask ourselves the questions we had when we were getting started.

“You can go on the internet and get 1,000 pieces of advice,” he said, “but to talk to people face-to-face who have done it, you can ask those tough questions: How do I publish? How do I improve my writing?

“The whole publishing world is very complicated and is changing at a rate nobody in the industry would have expected,” Randle continued. “How do you navigate that, in a way that won’t bankrupt your bank account? Those are all the bits and pieces of education that will help the writers that are in our membership.”

CBF member authors also agree to be called on to serve as a mentor, continuing the educational outreach DiMatteo and Petitte want as part of the organization.

CBF In Newtown

On Saturday, October 17, from 10 am to 3 pm, Connecticut Book Festivals will hold a Book Fair in the Great Room of Newtown Congregational Church, 14 West Street. This will be the first CBF event in town. DiMatteo often does the initial research into a new town, including its population and potential venues, often based on member recommendations.

“Our authors live in all 169 cities and towns, so we also rely on them for location suggestions,” he said.

Research into potential new locations begins months in advance, well before an invitation for authors to participate is issued.

“When authors sign up, they know we’ve done our homework,” DiMatteo said.

CBF events have ranged from one author signing books to 100 authors in a setting.

DiMatteo and Randle said they expect 30-35 authors to participate in what they hope will be just the first of many Newtown events. Their conversation included excited outbursts as each suggested possible subsequent local opportunities.

In addition to everything else, the festival’s board members also work with authors on their communication skills.

“A lot of authors are very good at writing,” DiMatteo said. “The business end, however, it can be a challenge.”

CBF event organizers strongly encourage interaction between not just readers and potential customers, but also fellow authors at events. For most presentations, at least two authors will share a table.

“We tell our authors, ‘Know your tablemate’s work. You can help,’” DiMatteo said. If one author decides to stretch their legs, the other can watch the full display until their partner returns. If a potential reader approaches with questions, the authors should be able to answer basic questions about each other’s work.

“At the very least, you can tell someone the other author will be right back. You can also point readers toward other tables if they’re looking for a different author or genre,” DiMatteo said. “Authors are learning this now: you can pass someone off to someone else at these events. That karma will return to you.”

The author list has not yet been built for Newtown but both men are confident it will fill quickly.

“We’re very fortunate,” DiMatteo said. “We put out a call for authors for an event, and we usually have it filled within ten hours. Then we start a waitlist. We’ve never had to do a second call.”

“These events are always a lot of fun for the authors and the readers,” Randle said.

Many CBF events also include a collection to assist a local nonprofit; the Newtown event will include a food drive, it was confirmed this week. Additional details concerning that element of the October event are still TBD, Randle said August 18.

Next month, CBF and The Ronald McDonald House Charities will co-host Read For A Reason, a book and vendor fair at East Rock Park in New Haven. On Saturday, September 26, from 11 am until 4 pm, the event will host 70 local authors, craft vendors, and food trucks, while accepting donations of nonperishable items, new toys for up to age 4, and cleaning supplies.

For more information visit connecticutbookfestivals.com.

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Managing Editor Shannon Hicks can be reached at shannon@thebee.com.