Fall for the Book Wins Inaugural ArtsFairfax Arts Innovation Award

Banner featuring Amor Towles, Brendan Slocumb and Around the World In Five Novels

All text from the ArtsFairfax Press Release. Read it here. 

Arts Innovation Award: Fall for the Book

New in 2022, the Arts Innovation Award recognizes an organization that has implemented nontraditional or inventive approaches to their art form and has uniquely engaged audiences in the arts. In recognition of their forward-thinking literary programming, Fall for the Book is the Arts Innovation Award’s inaugural recipient.

Based at George Mason University, Fall for the Book is the nonprofit literary arts organization redefining the notion of what a book festival can be. They annually attract 20,000 live and on-demand attendees as well as a notable roster of authors including Kristin Hannah (Firefly Lane), Rainbow Rowell (Eleanor & Park), Angie Thomas (The Hate U Give) and Amor Towles (A Gentleman in Moscow), among numerous others.

In addition to the Festival, Fall for the Book hosts “Pop-Up Lit Nights,” a spring series of monthly readings in the City of Fairfax. During the pandemic, they offered inventive virtual offerings including “The Extraordinary Educational Journey of Frederick Douglass,” an invaluable online curriculum resource for Fairfax County Public School teachers, and “Around the World in Five Novels,” a continent-jumping dialogue featuring authors from Chile, England, India, and the U.S. With the motto, “A Writer for Every Reader,” Fall for the Book is committed to diverse representation of writers from every genre, walk of life, part of the globe, and stage of their career, and they extend those values to other programs they’ve fostered, including a Writers-in-the-Schools program and a small press.

About the Awards & the Celebration

The 2022 ArtsFairfax Arts Awards, to be held on Friday, October 28, 2022, will honor Capital One Hall; philanthropists Gary and Tina Mather; actor, director, and playwright Mark Brutsché; and Fall for the Book for their visionary contributions in Northern Virginia. The annual event supports ArtsFairfax programs and services.

The ArtsFairfax Arts Awards recognize outstanding arts contributions and arts supporters throughout Fairfax County and the Cities of Fairfax and Falls Church. Each year, approximately 300 people attend this premier event, including local, state, and federal elected officials, as well as private supporters, business professionals, and arts and community leaders.

“We are delighted to honor the remarkable contributions of this year’s Arts Awards honorees, who have all demonstrated a deep commitment to our community and to making Fairfax arts and culture more accessible,” says Linda Sullivan, ArtsFairfax President & CEO.