Anthology, Inc. traces it's roots back to 1994 and a small literary magazine.
Anthology magazine was originally started in 1994 by authors J.A. Giunta and Bob Nelson. Capitalizing on the desktop publishing revolution, the pair started and grew the magazine to a nationally distributed literary publication, publishing hundreds of writers of poetry and prose during it's ten year run.
Eventually, the magazine would inspire a coffee house in Mesa, AZ as well as a whole history of events and programs.
Spoken Word
In October 1994, Bob woked with Andrew Berger to found the Essenzaslam Poetry Slam, and event that would last 13 years and see hundreds of poets grace the stage of the small suburban coffeehouse from all over the nation and beyond.
Internet Radio
A Wiki Celebrating Arizona Poetry
In 2008, Anthology founded the AZPoetrypedia wiki as a means to document the hostory of poets and poetry in Arizona.
More (and Bigger) Events
Book Festival & Writers Conference
Building a Culture of Literacy
Thank you for your support of the Mesa Book festival. Your continued suport helps us to grow and bring a stronger literacy community to Mesa.
Whether you have registered as a vendor, sponsor or just want to help promote the event, this page is for you. We've gathered all of the assets we can to help you share the love of books, and the Mesa Book Festival. So, surf below, use what you can, and let's build a biffer book festival!
Social Media Info
Twitter Account Tags
- @azanthology
- @MesaBook
Facebook Account Tags
- @AnthologyAZ
- @MesaBookFestival
- @AnthologyAZ
Tag, Tag, Tag
Be sure to tag others in your social media posts that are relevant. Sponsors, Anthology, Mesa Book Festival, DT Mesa, your fellow authors, etc. All of these tags draw additional attention to not just your posts, but to the festival overall. If people notice that other people are talking about it, it will pique their interest.
Hashtags
Use hash tags related to your genre such as #scifi, #ya, etc. To find great tags, just look at the Twitter feeds for your favorite authors in your same genre. Additional hash tags include:
- #MesaAZ
- #Mesa
- #azbooks
- #azauthor
- #BookFestMesa
- #booksforsale
- #anthologyinc
I'm a Vendor
If you have arrive here because you are a vendor for this year's festival- use the information below to announce and share that great news!
Vendor Announcement Graphic
Use this graphic (click it for full size render) to post to social media that you have signed up to be at the Mesa Book festival. You are welcome to customize it as you would lie to include your book cover, brand or other identifiers.
Vendor Success Checklist
Us the linked checklist to amplify your Mesa Book Festival appearence.
Downloadable Assets
Download a Printable PDF Flyer
Promotional Items Order Form
Welcome to the 2024 Mesa Book Festival Registration form.
The registration period for the 2024 Mesa Book Festival is closed.
There are a limited number of spaces that can still be registered by inquiry only. Those interested can
Event Details
- 2024 Festival Date: December 7, 2024 (one day)
- Vending Hours: 10am-5pm
- Vendors are REQUIRED to be set up until 5pm
- Load in is scheduled by staff and sent in email prior to festival date
- 2024 Registration Space Fee: $229
- Space is 10'x10'
- Space is assigned by Festival Staff
- Vendor will need to bring all display and vending materials with them day of, including canopy, tables, chairs and other vending support materials
- Space is NOT considered reserved until all fees are paid
2024 Proposed Site Map
(Subject to change based on Permitting and other requirements)
Hello all,
As we move into March, and Spring, I wanted to share the latest on our flagship events, the Cirque du Livre Writer's Conference, Roadside Book Festival and the Mesa Book Festival. Safety continues to be the first priority, and we remain cautiously optimistic.
Hello-
I thought it would be appropriate to share some updates on Anthology's 2021 plans. The pandemic has had a huge impact on our plans for obvious reasons, but we are far from silent. The pandemic, for all of it's challenges, has forced us to slow down and reassess what we are doing and how we are doing it. So, 2021 will be filled with alot of organization building to set the stage for 2022 and beyond.
Events
There will not be a 2021 Cirque du Livre Writer's Conference. We'll look at 2022 this coming summer.
We have tentative dates for Roadside Book Festival (September) and Mesa Book Festival (December). Right now, we will continue pre-planning for both, with a keen eye towards the progress in combating the pandemic. March and April will be key months for determining the feasability of those events.
Copper State Poetry Slam
There were plans to resusitate this event, but the pandemic derailed those for 2020. We will look to 2021 to reorganize and relaunch that event.
Arizona Book Coalition
We are continuing work on the Arizona Book Coalition site. It is still very much in beta and we flesh out the social aspects and forumulate a plan for the future. Antholgy has created a special page for updates regarding the organization's response to the pandemic.
Arts Giving Day
Needed more than ever, we will carry forward with ArtsGivingDay 2021, with new images and updated verbiage by the end of January.
AZPoetryPedia
AZ PoetryPedia will carry forward as we continue to look to add librarians to continue adding tot he rescrource.
In Summary-
Stay tuned to the Anthology and ABC websites, as they will be wherev most of our information is shared to as it develops. As always, thank you for your support of Anthology.
- Bob Nelson, Executive Director, Anthology, Inc.
Organized by Anthology, Inc., a Mesa, AZ, based literary non profit organization, the Mesa Book Festival is the annual event to showcase the literary arts in the East Valley. The event was founded in 2017 and has grown is size each year, with over 2,500 patrons visiting in 2018.
At the center of the event are 100+ authors, small presses and other publishers across all genres sharing their works. A full day of interactive panels, presentations and performances delivers a fun filled and entertaining experience for book lovers of all ages.
Your direct donation to the festival supports:
- Keeping our costs to vendors, the vast majority are independent authors, as low as possible.
- Affording us the opportunity to provide world class programming, including speakers, guests and others
- Promoting the festival and allowing more people to plan their own attendance to this free event.
- So much more . . .
Please Note:
This item is to make a tax deductible donation for the Mesa Book Festival. If you are interested in being an official sponsor, Click Here.
A fundraising event in partnership with Great Spirit Animal Sanctuary, this unique format book festival literally on the side of the road in Taylor, Arizona is a great way for authors to share their works with new audiences in Northeast Arizona.
The event is free and open to the public, with indoor and outdoor vendors, access to many of the animals currently being cared for by the Sanctuary and day long learning sessions about how you can help neglected and abused animals a thing of the past.
Your Direct donation to the festival supports:
- Keeping our costs to vendors, the vast majority are independent authors, as low as possible.
- Affording us the opportunity to provide world class programming, including speakers, guests and others
- Promoting the festival and allowing more people to plan their own attendance to this free event.
- So much more . . .
