Mary Alice Monroe

The Pat Conroy Literary Festival began as Pat Conroy’s 70th birthday celebration in October 2015 and now continues as an annual signature event of the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center. The 8th Annual Conroy Festival will be held on Thursday, October 26, through Sunday, October 29, as a series of free and ticketed events in Beaufort, SC, featuring author discussions, writers workshops, a poetry reading, a screening of the film The Lords of Discipline, and a musical performance by Beaufort Mass Choir.

Presenting writers, poets, and instructors include bestselling authors Ron Rash (The Caretaker), Mary Alice Monroe (The

Ron Rash

Summer of Lost and Found), Mary Kay Andrews (Bright Lights, Big Christmas), Victoria Benton Frank (My Magnolia Summer), Cassandra King (Tell Me a Story), Homeria Quaderi (Dancing in the Mosque), and Mitchell Zuckoff (The Secret Gate); screenwriter Thomas Pope (The Lords of Discipline); Galley Books executive editor Carrie Feron; poets Jennifer Bartell Boykin (Traveling Mercy), Freya Manfred (When I Was Young and Old), and Tim Conroy (No True Route); English professors and literary scholars Valerie Sayers, Sean Heuston, and Ellen Malphrus; and many more.

The 8th Annual Pat Conroy Literary Festival is made possible by the generous support and collaboration of the Robert S.

Handler Charitable Trust, the South Carolina Arts Commission, The Cunningham Team – Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, Bank of America, Oyster Cay Collection, Eugene A. Rugala & Associates, Hahn Family Wines, Lowcountry Real Estate, Bay Street Jewelers, Grayco, Alpha Graphics, the Rhett House Inn, Lucius and Darryl Laffitte, Patricia A. Denkler, Mike McFee, Marly Rusoff and Mihai Radulesco, and others.

Homeria Qaderi

Advance registration is requested. If a festival event is not sold out beforehand, tickets will also be available for sale at the door on the day of. (There is no cost or advance registration needed for students to attend author presentations events.)

For all details on the Pat Conroy Literary Festival’s schedule of events, presenter and instructor lineup, sponsors, and how to register in advance for author events, workshops, the film screening, and reception, please visit www.patconroyliteraryfestival.org or https://patconroyliteraryfestival2023.eventbrite.com.

To learn more about the year-round educational programming of the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center, please visit www.patconroyliterarycenter.org. The Conroy Center is located at 601 Bladen Street in historic downtown Beaufort and open to the public for guided tours on Thursday through Sunday, noon to 4:00 p.m. (or other times by appointment).