Eoin Colfer to Open Wexford Sci-Fi Festival with New Book

WexWorlds, Ireland’s biggest science fiction and fantasy fiction festival, opens this Friday 19 June at 7pm at Wexford Town Library with the book launch of  Eoin Colfer’s third and exciting final installment of his young adult Sci-Fi drama series W.A.R.P. (Witness Anonymous Relocation Program).

The festival, which takes place on Friday 19 June & Saturday 20 June 2015, has a great line-up of talks, workshops and critically acclaimed authors and illustrators for all ages which are expected to attract some 3,000 sci-fi fans to the town and to WexWorlds venues Wexford Library, Wexford Arts Centre and Whites Hotel Wexford.

Celebrated author and Laureate na nOg, Eoin Colfer, is patron of the festival and he explains that the initial concept was born out of the former Wexford Book Festival. On discovering an especially strong interest locally for all things sci-fi, the organisers opted to hone in on catering for this particular niche.

“Wexford punches above its weight in terms of sci-fi and fantasy”,says Colfer. “We have a mini hub of writers and artists here that are known throughout the country and even the world. I am delighted to see us all getting together to promote the genre and indeed the town under the Wexworlds’ umbrella.”

Over both days of the festival, featured events include a comic book workshop with Wexford-born Marvel & Transformers illustrator Nick Roche, paranormal investigation with Michael Benson of Wexford Paranormal,  Star Trek Vs. Star Wars debate and film screening, schools workshops with author and illustrator Oisín McGann and a final special guest panel with Eoin Colfer, Nick Roche & Ben Hennessy (illustrator) to close the festival.

Speaking ahead of his launch of W.A.R.P. 3: The Forever Man, Colfer says it will be a bittersweet time for him. “This launch is the beginning of The Forever Man’s journey but the end of the road for WARP, so it is a bittersweet time for me. I would never mark an occasion like this anywhere but Wexford as there is no better way to launch a book than with all my family and friends around me in our spectacular library.”

Join Eoin Colfer & WexWorlds for a spectacular launch at Wexford Town Library this Friday 19 June at 7pm. Those who attend in sci-fi or fantasy costume, or as a character from Colfer’s W.A.R.P. series, will be entered into a draw to win the first singed copy of W.A.R.P. 3: The Forever Man.

For a full festival programme log on to the WexWorlds Facebook page or email wexworlds@gmail.com.