Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the origins and management of literary festivals in Ireland from the perspective of their founders or those involved in managing these festivals.

Design/methodology/approach

This qualitative research study explores six literary festivals across the island of Ireland. The research and data collection instruments include bibliographic research and a series of in-depth interviews with festival founders, directors and managers.

Findings

The festivals in this study have evolved from a range of origins and are strongly influenced by the artistic vision and strategic approach of their founders and/or directors. Generating adequate revenue remains a constant challenge for these festivals as they rely on three primary sources of funding, i.e. ticket sales, sponsorship and grant support. Volunteering at literary festivals provides an opportunity for increased community involvement, participation and a sense of co-creation. Building strong partnerships and positive stakeholder engagement is fundamental to successful festival support and funding, ensuring that festivals can deliver well-structured programmes that will attract a loyal and engaging audience.

Research limitations/implications

This exploratory research is limited to six literary festivals in Ireland and there is potential to extend this into a more comprehensive study.

Practical implications

This study provides insights into this increasingly popular festival sector and identifies practical strategies for developing and managing literary festivals and related events.

Originality/value

Even though literary festivals have proliferated in Ireland over the past twenty years, there is a dearth of academic research in this area. The research study focuses on literary festivals, primarily from a “supply” rather than “demand” perspective.

中文翻译：

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探索爱尔兰的文学节

目的

本文的目的是从创始人或参与管理这些节日的人的角度探讨爱尔兰文学节的起源和管理。

设计/方法论/途径

这项定性研究探讨了爱尔兰岛的六个文学节。研究和数据收集工具包括书目研究以及对节日创始人、导演和管理者的一系列深入访谈。

发现

本研究中的节日有着不同的起源，并受到其创始人和/或导演的艺术视野和战略方法的强烈影响。对于这些节日来说，产生足够的收入仍然是一个持续的挑战，因为它们依赖三个主要资金来源，即门票销售、赞助和赠款支持。文学节志愿服务提供了增加社区参与度、参与度和共同创造感的机会。建立强有力的合作伙伴关系和积极的利益相关者参与是成功的节日支持和资助的基础，确保节日能够提供结构良好的节目，吸引忠实且有吸引力的观众。

研究局限性/影响

这项探索性研究仅限于爱尔兰的六个文学节，并且有可能将其扩展到更全面的研究。

实际影响

这项研究提供了对这个日益流行的节日领域的见解，并确定了开发和管理文学节及相关活动的实用策略。

原创性/价值

尽管过去二十年来爱尔兰的文学节数量激增，但该领域的学术研究却很匮乏。本研究主要从“供给”而非“需求”的角度对文学节进行研究。