It’s been a long three years, in some respects, but the wait is down to a matter of days now: the return of the Southern Festival of Books to Nashville on Oct. 14-16.

Not that it’s been completely absent over that course of time. But COVID concerns forced the festival into an online-only presence in both 2020 and 2021. And while the effort by the sponsor, Humanities Tennessee, to keep things going is commendable, virtual reality is still only…virtual.

There’s nothing quite like the energy you feel in a room full of like-minded readers focusing their attention on an author or authors talking about their work. Followed by the opportunity to ask questions about the alchemy of producing what, to me, amounts to a miracle.

Granted, some of those miracles are more miraculous than others. But anyone who reads – and certainly those of us who also write – appreciates the gift that can lie on the pages between the covers.

The second part of the festival title sums things up nicely: A Celebration of the Written Word. The fact that the celebration involves spoken words from the writers beyond just readings is an additional treat. It should be no surprise that many people who write entertainingly also speak that way.

I’m reminded of a festival session back in 2013 featuring one of my favorite writers, Bill Bryson. His books manage to be both reliably informative and endlessly funny. And so, it turned out, is he.

I read a lot of fiction, but I’ve found that when it comes to seeking out author sessions at the festival I lean toward nonfiction. Essays, in particular, and humorous essays especially in particular. Which is what led me to the Nashville writer Mary Laura Philpott during the last in-person festival. She has another book out, and will be doing another session, joined by another Nashville essayist, Margaret Renkl. I expect to be in the audience again.

To broaden my experience, I also hope to take in a talk by an essayist I’m not yet familiar with, Nora McInerny. Festival publicity for her new book states that “with ‘Bad Vibes Only,’ she turns her eye on our aggressively, oppressively optimistic culture, our obsession with self-improvement, and what it really means to live our lives online.” I’m intrigued.

Another favorite topic of mine is what I’ll call Nashville Stuff, and the festival serves that up in various flavors. In the nonfiction vein, a Sunday session presents the authors of “Mastodons to Mississippians: Adventures in Nashville’s Deep Past”; and “This Used to Be Nashville.”

For Nashville-based fiction, Steven Womack has another in his Harry James Denton series and will be part of sessions on Saturday and Sunday. In the wider, South-as-a-whole context, you can find Cynthia Tucker, the author of “The Southernization of America”; Imani Perry, author of “South to America”; and Jill Anderson, author of “The Tacky South.” Guess which one sounds most up my alley.

Along those lines is a session with Sean Dietrich, aka Sean of the South. I don’t know anything about his book he’s plugging, “You Are My Sunshine: A Story of Love, Promises, and a Really Long Bike Ride,” but his videos are a hoot. I would expect a high degree of hootness from both him and his book.

I’ve only scratched the surface for the possibilities. Readers of different tastes than mine – say, poetry – will map out a different itinerary. And with 200 or so authors, the biggest problem may be choosing which session to attend at any given time.

Did I mention there will be books for sale? Lots and lots and lots of books.

My advice: Don’t be cheap.

One other thing: Though the in-person festival is back, COVID is not gone. I don’t know what the recommendation – if any – will be for wearing masks, but I plan to have one on anytime I’m indoors around a bunch of people. I’d like to think that most book lovers feel the same. But I’m not betting on it.

Joe Rogers is a former writer for The Tennessean and editor for The New York Times. He is retired and living in Nashville.