Dear Festival Friends,

Two weeks ago today, the 2024 Festival wrapped up with Anne Lamott speaking to a sold-out crowd of fans, sending us back into the world thinking about the power of love.

We so hope you all had a wonderful time. Our authors have headed home, chairs, stages, and banners have been put away, and now we want to say a huge thanks to all of you who helped make this year’s Santa Fe International Literary Festival a weekend to remember. Jesmyn Ward and Tracy K. Smith started us off with a profoundly deep and beautiful conversation, and every session after that was equally powerful. Authors like bestselling icons Anthony Doerr, David Grann, Patrick Radden Keefe, and Lynsey Addario shared stories that moved and inspired us and made us laugh—a lot. 

This was our most successful Festival yet, filling more than 15,000 seats with readers from near and far who flocked to Santa Fe for thought-provoking talks, alfresco cocktail hours, morning meditations, literary walking tours, and lively signings at Garcia Street Books’ pop-up shop. Many authors tell us this Festival is their favorite because the audience is so great, and festivalgoers tell us they come for the authors. We’re told the good vibes could be felt from coast to coast. 

Here are a few pictures from the 2024 Festival: 

We also want to give a special shout-out to the 160 tireless volunteers who shepherded us through the weekend seamlessly and with warm smiles, and to the many donors and partners without whom the Festival wouldn’t be possible. We thank the authors, who were just as wonderful in person as they are on the page. And we thank you, the book lovers who are the heart and soul of the Festival. When the world feels unpredictable and out of control, our literary community sustains us and keeps us hopeful.

As we bask in the afterglow of this year’s event, we’re also looking ahead to 2025 and already have a great lineup of blockbuster authors in the works, including:

So mark your calendars for May 16–18, 2025, and keep an eye on your inbox and our website for information about tickets in early January.

And finally, if you can support the Festival financially, it would mean the world. Our ticket sales cover only 40 percent of our costs, and it’s only through generous, tax-deductible donations from individuals, foundations, and businesses that the Festival is able to invite such exceptional writers, keep ticket prices low, and offer 1,500 free tickets to students, educators, librarians, and those who might not otherwise be able to join us. If you can help, please click HERE to donate.  

P.S. Many of you have asked for copies of Hakim Bellamy’s inspired “Weekend Reflection” in verse. You can read it HERE.

This festival would not be possible without the generous support of the Gale Family Foundation, Santa Fe Tourism, and so many other donors and supporters. We couldn’t be more grateful to everyone who bought tickets, made tax-deductible contributions, and attended the Festival in 2024. We hope you’ll want to get even more involved this year. Please consider making a contribution below, no matter the size. It means everything to us!

Donations are tax-deductible