Cheltenham Literature Festival: The Inner Sanctum

In the first of her reports from the Cheltenham Literature Festival Jen Tomkins picks up her press pack and gets to eat cake:

In the four hours that I have been at the festival, the crowds have begun to swarm to the main hub around Imperial Square. Luckily for me, I have access to the Writer's Room, an inner sanctum of calm and quietude. Yet gaining my press pass wasn't quite an easy as it could have been: I was shimmied from the box office to the information point to the press office to the Writer's Room, no one could find my press pack. Eventually the (slightly ineffective) walky-talky operating system that is in operation behind the scenes of the festival located the person, my pack was discovered and here I am, writing away in the Writer's Room: a beautifully decorated Georgian room, full of large white sofas, glass tables and the literary folk of Cheltenham (and a collection of frantic journalists and festival organisers) . It is here that I am hoping to ask some of the festival guests a few questions. I just need to pluck up the courage. I am sure that the delicious selection of cakes, fresh coffee and waiter service may help the situation. Let's just hope I don't spill coffee over any of the VIPs.

Posted by Jen Tomkins