Since its inception in 1996, the Texas Book Festival has celebrated the wonders of the written word by bringing some of the best and brightest literary minds to Austin. According to the festival’s website, approximately 40,000 people descend on the city annually for chance to see their favorite authors discuss their work and the state of the craft.

This year’s installment, which runs Oct. 22-23, looks to continue that tradition, as there will be enough going on to satisfy even the pickiest of book enthusiasts.

Looking at the festival’s schedule, the sheer number of panels and readings is overwhelming to say the least. From a discussion on banned books to authors sharing their knowledge of memoir writing, many of the panels look at writing from a perspective that should help attendees gain more knowledge of the literary world or help improve their own writing.

Others might want to attend readings from famous chefs like Alton Brown or Paula Deen, get their sensitivity on with David Levithan or learn more about Susan Orlean’s first novel since “The Orchid Theif,” which formed the basis for the film “Adaptation.” No matter how you cut it, there’s something for everyone, and a word to the wise would be to plan ahead and arrive early, as seating at events will be on a first come, first serve basis.

One interesting aspect about the festival is that the vast majority of the panel discussions and readings will be taking place inside the Texas Capitol building itself. For example, you can catch Jim Lehrer of PBS News Hour discussing the history of presidential debates in the House Chamber or pitch your own book ideas to agents and writers in the Capitol Auditorium during something called “Pitchapalooza.”

Additionally, the festival will utilize venues all over downtown, including the Paramount Theatre, First United Methodist Church and the Family Life Center, in addition to setting up tents around the premise of the capitol.

A new feature at this year’s festival is the first edition of LitCrawl Austin. A concept that has already seen success in San Francisco and New York City, LitCrawl aims to bring authors and screenings to the stage at local bars and music venues.

Austin’s LitCrawl will see authors like Chuck Klosterman and Chuck Palahniuk doing readings at Blue Starlite Drive-In and the Scoot Inn, respectively. The idea is to bring writing and spoken word to venues not often associated with them, and several venues in East Austin have risen up to the challenge of hosting what will certainly be packed to capacity events.

Since the festival is a non-profit organization, everything going on during the course of the weekend is free and open to the public. With plenty of interesting panel discussions, readings and the ability to interact with fellow bookworms, there is no reason to miss this year’s installment of the Texas Book Festival.