There will be more authors, more activities and more fun at this year’s 1st annual Ashland Mystery Festival, celebrating the cozy mystery genre with numerous Rogue Valley organizations and businesses taking part.

Originally started by author Ellie Alexander and Travel Ashland in 2023, the event is returning with plenty to get involved in from kitchen tastings to writing workshops.

“This is definitely a visitors’ draw and a wonderful opportunity for locals, whether in the Rogue Valley or beyond, to experience a cozy mystery weekend,” said Katharine Cato, director of Travel Ashland. “This year, we have over 53 different events happening.”

The festival is scheduled Thursday through Sunday, Oct. 17-Oct. 20.

To learn more about the festival and sign up for events, visit travelashland.com/ashland-mystery-fest.

Cozy mysteries, also known as “cozies,” is a book sub-genre of mystery and crime that avoids the graphic elements of mystery or detective novels and typically takes place in small towns and intimate communities with the protagonist often being a female investigator.

One of the primary events for this year’s festival will be the Mystery Scavenger Hunt.

Participants will be tasked with tracking down all 13 of the “author wanted” posters corresponding to the visiting writers, starting with the first clue sheet at Paddington Station on East Main Street.

After cracking the code with expert sleuthing skills and utilizing their inner Sherlock Holmes to track down each poster, participants will submit their results at the historic Fortmiller Building across from Paddington Station to see if they got it correct.

Those who successfully solve the mystery “will receive a complimentary gift and raffle tickets for grand prizes during the closing reception,” Cato said.

While many festival events are sold out, there’s still plenty to participate in such as Test Kitchen Tastings with Author Emmeline Duncan, Sweater Weather Mysteries Panel, Lovejoy’s Tea Sessions, Murder Mystery Hour Panel, Debut Author Meet-and-Greet at Inspired by Oregon and much more.

“We have seven panels happening and I think folks will be really excited,” Cato said.

Festival-goers will also have plenty of opportunities to hear from and interact with mystery authors visiting from far away.

This year’s list of visiting writers include: Ellie Alexander, Angela M. Sanders, Gigi Pandian, Jennifer Chow, Emmeline Duncan, Kyra Davis, Tara Lush, Tamara Berry, Lee Hollis, Ellen Byron, Frank Anthony Polito, Esme Addison and London Lovett.

“By the numbers, we have 13 participating authors this year, and last year had 10,” Cato said, adding, “We’ve got five new authors and eight returning; that’s exciting for bringing new readership and audiences to us.”

The 2023 Ashland Mystery Festival brought in almost 1,000 attendees, and organizers dedicated time and energy to improve aspects of the event and cater to the audience’s feedback for the second rendition of the festival.

“We felt the first year was a great foundation that we built and learned so much from surveying attendees and the general feedback we received; we learned that we can really dial in that community to attendees and offer them opportunities to engage with these authors,” Cato said.

Alexander, founder of the festival, approached Travel Ashland last year with the idea of establishing a festival around her fictional “Bakeshop Mystery” series, based off of multiple landmarks in Ashland such as Mix Bakeshop.

“It’s not every day that someone approaches you and has good idea that you take on,” Cato said, remembering the initial stages of collaborating with Alexander to turn the festival idea into reality.

Considering Ashland’s connection to Alexander’s novels, picturesque setting and the community’s proclivity for the arts, hosting the festival there was a no-brainer for organizers.

Visitors “want to immerse themselves in this destination, and to be able to play out this fictional element,” Cato said. “The time of year is perfect in October, and there are many events happening this time of year.”

“It checks a lot of boxes and also puts Ashland on the map,” she added.

Travel Ashland is a visitor and convention bureau for the city, also providing visitor information and resources.

For more information, visit travelashland.com.