Fair Tales Courtesy of Miami Book Fair Miami Book Fair’s Lissette Mendez recounts five memorable moments in the fair’s history by Carolina del Busto L 8 1 issette Mendez sits behind her desk inside her office on the sev- enth floor of the Freedom Tower in downtown Miami. Colorful Post-It notes cover the surface area, while stacks of books take up the re- mainder of the real estate. The annual Miami Book Fair is nearly here, and she’s in full-on preparation mode. This year’s headliners include singer Juanes, actor and comedian Kevin Nealon, and film- maker John Waters. Plus, of course, an insane amount of creative programming. “So much of my work is problem-solving and making sure that everything is where it needs to be when it needs to be there and also that everyone on our team feels supported,” she says. Her open laptop dings to indicate a slew of new emails. As the Miami Book Fair’s programs direc- tor, she’s seen some things. She’s been with Miami Dade College since 2001 and at the helm of the programming unit since 2014. Throughout her many years, the book lover has been instrumental in the fair’s growth and memorable guests. Before 2004, the Miami Book Fair was limited to one week of programming in the fall. In her first year working in the program- ming department, Mendez was part of the team that launched additional year-round programming to give locals access to great lit- erary events throughout the calendar year. While this remains a highlight of her career, Mendez has more than two decades of mem- ories working at the Miami Book Fair. When asked about some standout moments, the creative writer doesn’t hesitate to recall the time the the team forgot Patti Smith’s guitar stand. Mendez takes a deep breath and lets out a nervous laugh as she recounts the tale. Simply put, the guitar stand was mistakenly over- looked in the artist’s rider during her first 2010 appearance at the fair. By the time they realized there was no guitar stand in the room, Smith was already on campus. There was no time for a quick run to Guitar Center, so it was up to Mendez to search nearly every room on the Wolfson Campus for a guitar stand. “I left her in the green room and started running all around campus. I go to the music department; I start opening up every room. Someone probably thought I was going to steal something the way I was going through all the classrooms,” Mendez says, laughing. Her search “One of the goals is to ensure that everyone in this community feels that there’s a space for them.” proved fruitless, and Smith had to place her guitar back in her case. “She made a comment on stage about no guitar stand, and I thought I was going to die.” Mendez is proud to say no guitar stands have been forgotten since. “I always think about [that moment], and specifically this year because she has a much more complicated setup. There’s a pi- ano and the whole nine yards because she’s going to perform as part of her Book Fair event.” (You can catch Smith on Friday, No- vember 18 in conversation with Lenny Kaye.) “I’ve been losing a little sleep over that to make sure we’re ready for it,” Mendez adds jokingly. Another special memory for Mendez was when one of her favorite authors, Dorothy Al- lison, attended the Miami Book Fair. It was a rare moment for the programs director to sit in the audience and listen. “She had the most impact on me as a girl and as a reader. Dorothy Allison is one of the most important voices, I feel, that I’ve had the opportunity to read,” she says. “[When she came to the fair], she spoke so eloquently. She spoke from her heart. I sat in the audience, and I just cried and I cried. I mean, it was so incredible, everything she said. I treasure that moment; I treasure her.” Although Allison is not attending this year, audiences may be inclined to attend a discus- sion among poets Gregg Shapiro, Nicole Tall- man, Julie Marie Wade, and Shelley Wong on Saturday, November 19. In 2014, Mendez’s first year as programs director, her team received a Knight Founda- tion Arts Challenge Grant for a program it later implemented in 2015 called the Swamp. The weeklong pop-up remains one of Men- dez’s proudest moments. “It was a multidisciplinary space that we MONTH XX–MONTH XX, 2008 NOVEMBER 10-16, 2022 NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | NEWS | LETTERS | CONTENTS | MIAMI NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | FILM | ART | STAGE | NIGHT+DAY | METRO | RIPTIDE | LETTERS | CONTENTS |miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com miaminewtimes.com
