Readers and Writers Festival adjusts format to make program more accessible
Milford. Festival featured all main-stage authors on one day to allow more visitors to experience the program’s key events.
Milford /
| 29 Sep 2026 | 11:35
Festival Vice President Brian Carso in conversation with Emily Sneff about the “Living “Declaration of Independence. (
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Judy Kentrus, a self-published author with a full line of romance novels, at the Readers and Writers Festival (
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Bob Eckstein talking with Michael Kosta. Behind them is a photo Kosta as a baby with his mother who taught him to play tennis. (
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President Carol McManus interviewed author Mary Beth Keane. (
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The tent where all the non-main stage authors were in one place. (
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Stephen Fishbach (right) with moderator Matthew Hinton. (
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One of the main goals of the 11th Milford Readers and Writers Festival was to make the festival more accessible to its audience.
To achieve this goal, the leadership made several changes, including having the main-stage-author presentations all on one day, starting a bit later (12:30 p.m. instead of 10 a.m.) and ending a bit later, (6 p.m. not earlier). This change, as were many of the others, was based on feedback organizers received from last year.
Brian Carso, vice president of the festival said, “Many people who lived outside of Milford could only come for one day and they wanted it to be something where they could just come and spend the day. Many felt it was just the right amount of time.”
While the main presentations occurred on Saturday, Sept. 19, the full festival ran from Sept. 18-20, starting Friday with free events about the business of writing and concluding Sunday with Genre Day at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, where various authors explored genres such as poetry, romantasy, and historical fiction and opera.
New this year was a huge tent just outside the theater, where attendees could meet all the non-mainstage authors without having to walk to various venues around town to see them.
“I liked the fact that you could walk around and see all the authors in one place, walk up to them and learn about what they did, who they are, their motivations, etc. It was really interesting,” festival attendee Carol Needleman said.
Four authors took the main stage at the Readers and Writers Festival
Emily Sneff, who has a doctorate in history and is a leading expert on the Declaration of Independence, brought the document to life giving its history, talking about the signers, the printers, and the culture. The interest was fortuitous in this 250th year of U.S. history. She was in conversation with Carso.
Stephen Fishbach turned his reality TV experience into a best-selling novel called “Escape” which won praise in “The New Yorker” and “Atlantic. He was in conversation with playwright Matthew Hinton.
Mary Beth Keane, an award winning novelist who writes with great emotion about Irish families, was interviewed by Carol McManus, President of Milford Readers and Writers Festival. Keane is a New York Times best-selling author and has won citations from the National Book Foundation and PEN America. Her forthcoming book, “Whale Harbor,” will be published in November.
Michael Kosta was the star of the day. He started life as a tennis player who wrote jokes during brakes, until he decided to go on the standup comedy circuit. He also currently appears on “The Daily Show,” which deals with politics and comedy. Kosta has a house in the area. New Yorker cartoonist Bob Eckstein interviewed him or tried to—between the laughs.
Kosta had some advice for people, “I believe this country would be in a better place if people would read a well-researched book. Put the phone down and start reading.”
Leaders praise event’s success
McManus proudly said, “The feedback on this year’s festival was 100 percent positive. There was something for everyone. We are proud of the 11-year history of this amazing event.”
Carso added, “I’m thrilled by the festival– great programs, great authors, and a really interested and informed audience. Milford is a great community and it’s great to welcome people who are interested in the literary arts.”