IF JIM McGillen has his way, the upcoming Carmel Authors and Ideas Festival will rival the much revered, long-standing Sun Valley Writers Conference once it gets off the ground late next month.

Scheduled to take place in Sunset Center Sept. 28-30, the festival will center around national and international celebrity authors who will put forth their ideas and writing experiences, sign books, and mingle with those attending the festival and at break-out sessions for smaller groups.
Pulitzer Prize winners and New York Times Best Sellers List authors are slated to appear at the festival. Included in the top-ranking writers are:

- Frank McCourt, author of “Angela’s Ashes;”

- Elizabeth Edwards, wife of presidential candidate John Edwards and author of the memoir, “Saving Graces;”

- Doris Kearns Goodwin, presidential historian and winner of the Pulitzer prize;

- Irshad Manji, who wrote “The Trouble with Islam Today” and whom the New York Times called, “Osama bin Laden’s worst nightmare;”

- John Grogan, whose story of his Labrador retriever swept the country under the title “Marley & Me,” and

- Douglas Brinkley, editor of “The Reagan Diaries.”

More than 30 other authors will appear and be accessible to attendees, according to the festival’s organizers.

Masterminds of and indefatigable workers for the Carmel project, Jim and Cindy McGillen, who have resided in Pebble Beach and Carmel for the past 30 years, were so impressed by the Sun Valley Writers Conference they haven’t missed one session in the 15 years the event has been running.

“We have a second home in Sun Valley,” McGillen said, “and I thought Carmel, with its literary history, would be just the venue for a similar festival. We’ve modeled our event on the fantastically popular annual Sun Valley Writers Conference. They have 1,000 tickets to sell, and they always sell out.”

McGillen said tickets to the Carmel festival are limited to 705, and each ticket costs $500, plus a small handling fee. “I’m so sure anyone attending the sessions will enjoy them, I’m guaranteeing it. If someone buys two tickets and that person sells two more tickets, I’ll refund the price of the tickets if the festival isn’t as compelling, inviting and entertaining as we’ve said it will be.”

McGillen continued, “This is a challenge to the community. We want to have a full house at Sunset Center. We’ve put up over $320,000 of our own capital to finance the festival — to rent the entire Sunset Center, to pay for speaking and travel fees for the major authors, accommodations for most and a luncheon for all attendees on Saturday.”

Acknowledging the ticket price is steep, McGillen pointed out that a couple may split a ticket, with one person attending at a time. A concierge desk in Sunset lobby will be set up for this purpose.

“Further, those who can are encouraged to buy one more ticket than expected and donate it so that local educators and school children can attend,” he said.

“The response to date has been overwhelming,” McGillen continued. “Some people have called to order 10 tickets at a time and have even offered to host a dinner party.” For the really enthusiastic, various donor categories have been set up, ranging from $1,000 to $20,000.

McGillen, who is semi-retired, said, “Cindy and I consider this an investment in our community. If the festival is as successful as we anticipate, we want to schedule it every year, possibly for a full week of speakers. I want people to plan their vacations around this.”

The McGillens have been involved in television. Cindy McGillen was president of the local NBC affiliate, KSBW-TV, for six years but retired 10 years ago. McGillen has produced movies and movies for television for years and still does projects now and then.

“If there is one thing I want to leave with your readers,” McGillen said, “it’s that those who attend will have an extremely enjoyable weekend. Frank McCourt will be the featured speaker the first night of the festival. He’s a wonderful writer, but an even better speaker. He’s funny and insightful. I think of him as a Mark Twain and Will Rogers rolled into one.”

McGillen said they first met McCourt in Sun Valley and subsequently in Donegal, Ireland, where they own a farm.

To order tickets, send a check to the Carmel Authors and Ideas Festival, P.O. Box 2424, Carmel, CA 93921, call the Sunset Center ticketing service at (831) 620-2048, or log on to www.carmelauthors.com.