On the Same Page, Ashe County’s Literary Festival, is celebrating its fifth anniversary in 2012 with talented, well-known authors, as well as plans for a festival filled with reading, drama, a book fair, a book release, writing, a gallery crawl, a farmers market, quilts and more.

This year’s festival is scheduled Wednesday, Sept. 12 through Saturday, Sept. 15 in West Jefferson.

“The 2012 On the Same Page festival promises to be our most exciting yet,” said Jane Lonon, executive director of the Ashe County Arts Council and chairperson of the festival. “Starting with an exceptional group of authors who will share their work, to the special events and opportunities that will take place throughout the festival, Ashe County will simply be the place to be this September for those who enjoy the arts and the great outdoors.”

Authors who will read from their works, participate in question and answer sessions, talk with fans at “lunch with an author” events, and/or serve on a panel for a special discussion at venues across West Jefferson, NC, include D.G. Martin, the host of UNC-TV’s “North Carolina Bookwatch,” as well as:

Libby Bagby

After rescuing an injured dog she named Lucky, she decided to make it her life mission to spread the word about North Carolina’s courageous hunting hound. She began by writing a children’s book, Lucky’s Plott, A Plott Hound Tale. It is the heart-warming story of her Plott Hound’s journey into her life.

Tim Gautreaux

He is the author of three novels and two collections of short stories, one of which, Welding with Children, was selected by the New York Times as a notable book of the year. His fiction has appeared in several magazines and also in Volumes of the O. Henry Prize Stories, Best American Short Stories, and New Stories from the South. He is a professor emeritus/writer in residence in the English department at Southeastern Louisiana University and a part-time resident of Ashe County.

Georgann Eubanks

A festival favorite, she returns to give us an update on her literary trails series and to conduct her popular writer’s workshop. She has published stories, poems, reviews and profiles in numerous magazines and journals. She is director of the Table Rock Writers Workshop.

Gyleen Fitzgerald

Both author and artist, she achieved “Best in Show” recognition as an artist, and with Quilts: Unfinished Stories with New Endings, she achieved award-winning status as a writer and publisher.

Vicki Lane

Our mystery lovers’ guest this year is a North Carolina mountain writer. She will read from and discuss her Elizabeth Goodweather mystery series. The latest of her books is Under the Skin.

A.J. Mayhew

With her first novel, The Dry Grass of August, she has captured the attention and loyal following of readers.

Jim Minick

His non-fiction Blueberry Years: A Memoir of Farm and Family was the southeastern independent Booksellers Association non-fiction book of the year in 2011.

Lee Smith

A Southern favorite, she has written twelve novels and four collections of short stories. She is a recipient of the Academy Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the North Carolina Award for Literature and a Southern Book Critics Circle Award.

The festival will be preceded by a community read of Lee Smith’s recent collection of short stories, Mrs. Darcy and the Blue-eyed Stranger.

The 2012 festival focuses on the theme of “journeys,” and festival authors will share their personal journeys of the writing life, the role of journeys in their writing and in the lives of their characters, and attendees will experience the journey of the written word in the capable hands of master storytellers.

For more information about the festival’s history, about Ashe County and more, visit: www.onthesamepagefestival.org.