The Baltimore Book Festival – the city’s annual celebration of literary culture – returns to downtown Baltimore this month. The festival takes place in the Inner Harbor from September 28-30, 
2018; it runs from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day.
What to Expect
The Baltimore Book Festival features a wide range of authors and activities – there’s something for every book lover of every age.
The festival will include over 100 exhibitors and booksellers, readings, cooking demos, book signings, panel discussions, kids’ projects and more. There will also be live music and food, beer and wine.
The festival is organized by stage and pavilion, with events related to certain types of books clustered in specific spots, like the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Stage, the Charm City Comic Pavilion and the Maryland Romance Writers Stage.
Every day of the festival is an interesting one, with dozens of activities designed to appeal to a wide range of attendees. We’ve chosen a couple highlights from each day, but there’s much more to see and do than what’s included here.
Friday Highlights
On the Food for Thought Stage, the day is stacked with great chefs sharing their talents with the crowd, including Station North Arts Café’s Chef Kevin Brown at 4 p.m. and the chefs from Horseshoe Casino restaurants cooking recipes from Giada diLaurentiis, Guy Fieri and Gordon Ramsey at 5 p.m.
Other don’t-miss events include “How to Draw Chibi,” a style of anime and manga, at the Charm City Comic Pavilion at 1:30 p.m. and “Who Am I? Creating a Character,” a panel discussion at 2 p.m. on the Maryland Romance Writers Stage.
Friday schedule: http://baltimorebookfestival.org/schedule/friday
Saturday Highlights
Saturday starts strong with “…In Space!” a panel discussion about space-set works, at 11 a.m. on the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Stage and, also at 11 a.m., a kid-friendly
Storybook Parade down the Crafts Corridor.
The day also features a handful of local literary rockstars, including the Baltimore Sun’s TV/media critic David Zurawik, speaking at noon on The Ivy Bookshop Stage, and a cooking demo and talk from Chef John Shields, the co-owner of Gertrude’s restaurant, TV host and cookbook author, also at noon, on the Food for Thought Stage. At 1 pm on the CityLit Stage, hear a talk about “Where are all the Asian Beach Reads?” and at 2:30 p.m. at the Bromo Seltzer Arts Tower, writer and fashion designer Stacy Stube will conduct a workshop on self-publishing.
Saturday schedule: http://baltimorebookfestival.org/schedule/saturday
Sunday Highlights
On the final day of the festival, journalist April Ryan will have a conversation with CBS News’ Bill Whitaker in the Literary Salon at noon. Also at noon, the Inner Harbor Stage will light up Lit & Art, featuring readings from Rafael Alvarez, Shirley Brewer, Katherine Cottle, and Dave Eberhardt.
At 1 p.m., panelists at the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Stage will talk about “The Future of Cities, the Fantasy of Cities” and at the Maryland Romance Writers Stage, authors will discuss “Yoga Pants, Coffee and Word Counts: Writer’s Life.”
At 3 p.m., comic book writer Jordan Clark will discuss “Comics in Culture” at the Charm City Comic Pavilion and, at 3:30 p.m., Ruby Artist grantee and Edith Wharton writer-in-residence Kate Reed Petty will talk with award-winning novelist Elissa Brent Weissman at the Enoch Pratt Free Library Children’s Stage.
Sunday schedule: http://baltimorebookfestival.org/schedule/sunday
Where to Park
Located at 55 Market Place in downtown Baltimore, Harbor Park Garage is an ideal spot to park to make the most of your time at the Baltimore Book Festival.
The garage is located near I-83 and is easily accessible from other major roads in and out of the city. It’s close to many restaurants and bars, so you can schedule a stop for drinks or a meal on your way to or from the festival. Prepay for parking by clicking on the Prepay Button on this page or follow this link – https://goo.gl/2Xn9Xj
It is also safe, well-lit and staffed 24/7 by a crew of friendly, knowledgeable workers who will be happy to answer any questions you might have about where to go and what to see downtown.
Baltimore Book Festival: http://baltimorebookfestival.org
Harbor Park Garage: https://harborparkgarage.com/