New Words 2014

Information for Promoters

The Event

This is not meant to be a complete guide to running an event — we assume that you are experienced event promoters and know all about looking after your artists and audiences to produce a successful event.

Rather it is a guide to aspects of the established practice we have evolved specifically in relation to New Words events.

Bookstall

We try to make the festival bookstall present at all events. This presents a wide range of publications by writers appearing at the festival, other local writers, and those who have appeared at previous festivals.

Please make sure that your performers are aware that they can bring material to sell on the bookstall, and that they can leave stock to be sold at other events during the festival. They should also, if necessary, make arrangements to collect unsold stock at the end of the festival. We try to ensure payments are made within a few weeks of the end of the festival, but this can sometimes take longer. We ask for a contribution of 20% of the price of items sold, though this may be waived at launch events for new publications.

At the event, please make sure that a large table is available in a prominent location for the bookstall. Make sure that you also know who will be bringing the bookstall stock to your event, who will be operating the bookstall, and who will take it away to the next event.

A little disclaimer: we will make every effort to handle bookstall stock with care, but we cannot accept responsibility for any items lost or damaged. It doesn't happen often, but occasionally there is the audience member with the wobbly hand trying to drink their interval coffee and browse the bookstall at the same time....

Feedback

Data monitoring is an essential part of running an event and the results will be useful to you and to us in planning future festival activities.

Please tell us after your event (a) the number of people who attended, (b) the total takings in ticket money or donations, and (c) how much of that revenue will go to North East Writers towards our operational costs.

We plan to produce audience questionnaire forms for the festival. Please hand these out to the audience at the end of your event. People can either fill in the form and leave it with you, or send it to the address on the form. If you collect forms, please post them on to North East Writers, who will process the data and return a collated summary for our (and your) use.

Reviews and Photos

Please arrange for someone to take photographs at your event and email them to reviews@newwords.co.uk afterwards.

Please also ask someone to write a review of the event and send it to the same address.

Make sure the review and photos are sent as soon as possible after the event. Nowadays people will expect to see them within a few hours — if you let days pass the impact will be lessened.