Kwame Dawes said his constant disappointment has been the low level of support that has come from the ordinary Calabasher - the act of pledging financially to support the festival each year. - File

From May 25-27, the parish of St. Elizabeth will come alive as literary giants from Jamaica and overseas converge on Jake's and its surroundings for the annual feast of books and writers. And then there's music.

But how did it all begin? Flair spoke with one of the 'fathers' of Calabash, a distinguished poet, author and professor, and he shares the story.

BE: Exactly when, why and how did Calabash come about and what were your goals when Calabash was in embryo, have you achieved them or are you on your way to achieving them?

KD: Colin Channer, the founder, and I were travelling through the U.K. on a train in 1999 talking about ways in which we could contribute to the arts in Jamaica. We talked about writers' workshops and opportunities to model professionalism and excellence in the arts. Colin proposed a festival. The more we talked, the more convinced we were of this. Later that year, Colin would meet the Henzells, who wanted to share in this vision, and they offered us Jake's.

Soon the trio that would come to shape Calabash was formed: Colin, Justine Henzell and myself. We began as friends with the intention of producing the best for the literary festival we have ever entered. We believe we have managed to do this by bringing the best writers from around the world to Calabash. Year after year, the wish list is being realised.

BE: Did you imagine it would grow in scope and numbers so fast (especially in terms of tourism attraction potential)? The room stock has expanded since its inception and there are websites with hotel links etc.

KD: Yes, we expected it. Colin's vision always entailed a basic strategy of expanding the project, especially through a savvy engagement with media and a careful management of media relationships both locally and abroad. Some of the best media we have received as a festival has been the reporting by Jamaican publications like The Gleaner. Once the newspapers reported on the first Calabash, we began to get a great deal of air play on radio; the second year saw a massive boost in numbers. We were always confident that once word got out by the people who were there in the first instance, the festival would grow.

In terms of the international support, we decided to use our invited authors as our best PR mechanism. We ensured that they had an excellent experience at Calabash and to write blurbs on their experience and share with us the names of people they thought might be interested in attending. We increased significantly the profile of the festival around the world. For our first year we invited people we knew. Now the network has grown exponentially. Prominent people are asking to be invited.

The support of the JTB and other government entities has been invaluable. We are especially excited about the support of the Treasure Beach community - their sense of ownership and engagement has been superb. It is not something we take for granted.

BE: Any surprises, disappointments, high points?

KD: The celebration of reggae songwriters has always been something I look forward to each year. Steve Golding, Ibo Cooper, Billy Mystic, and Seretse Small, among others, have always touched me with their generosity and enthusiasm and their artistry. The open mic is always full of startling surprises and pleasures.

But my constant disappointment has been the low level of patronage that has come from the ordinary Calabasher. I mean the act of pledging financially to support the festival each year. Each year we announce the need for support but they have not been responsive. There have been a few wonderful exceptions, but this lack of support at this level has been a disappointment.

I remind myself that arts patronage has not been part of the culture of giving in Jamaica in the past and it will take time for people to realise that even a gift of $1,000 represents an important articulation of the belief in a festival that is determined to remain free and open to the public.

BE: Talk about the next levels: You offer a lot to writers and musicians. What else do you have in mind?

KD: The literary festival is what it is. The model and formulae are basic and we have stayed with it because it works. The book is the important thing. We want people to buy and read books. Each year the excitement for us comes from knowing who will be attending that year - and the names grow more and more impressive.

Programming is an exercise in the imagination, and exercise in trying to find the best vehicle to showcase the best writing in the world, and we will continue to do so. But we have learned how to use the profile and support of the literary festival to boost the work that we do with writers' workshops, seminars and mentoring systems which include publication. This is not glamorous work but it will strengthen the writing level among Jamaican writers.

Calabash is a brand. Colin Channer's gift is in developing a brand and then making it one that can shape and direct other related projects. We believe in sharing some of what we have learned with others, and so we encourage other festivals to sprout up and to do some of the things that we just can't do. From the inception of Calabash, we discussed and drew up plans for a children's based festival feature at Calabash. But this is exactly the kind of thing that some other organisation could do and do well.

BE: Will you take it to the region (other Caribbean islands)?

KD: We would love to work with any organisation that is interested in establishing a festival in other parts of the Caribbean. Calabash is not just the festival, it is intelligence and experience that can, in a consultative capacity, benefit others. People routinely visit Calabash from various parts of the world, to study what we do, to meet with us about how we have done what we do, and to learn about ways in which they can replicate some of what we have done in their own regions. We are often invited to discuss strategies with such organisations and individuals and we are happy to do so.

BE: Will you drop anything from the roster?

KD: We are always mixing and matching and trying to fine-tune things to meet the needs of a given year. This year the Commonwealth Writers' Prize will be announced at the festival and the gift related to that, apart from the honour that the Commonwealth Foundation approached us and asked us to host, is that we have eight writers to slot into our programme. This has meant making some changes for this year.

But we do that kind of thing each year. In the first year we had a staged reading. This year we do have some drama with Roger Guinevere Smith's Who Killed Bob Marley?. We will continue to celebrate Caribbean classical works as we have done in the past.

This year, we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the publication of V.S. Naipaul's touching and witty novel The Mystic Masseur. And the roster of writers is quite hot: Maryse Conde, Michael Ondatjee, Caryl Phillips, Elizabeth Alexander, Terrence Hayes and Patricia Smith will all share the same stage!