FORKS — Vampires, werewolves, actors and a best-selling author have taken over Forks this weekend for the “Forever Twilight in Forks” festival, celebrating the 10th anniversary of the release of the first Twilight book.
Known as Stephenie Meyer Day for eight years, the newly renamed Forever Twilight in Forks celebration of all things Twilight takes place on the weekend closest to the birthday of the fictional Bella Swan, protagonist of the Twilight series.
This year, Meyer, author of the Twilight Saga, will make a rare appearance in Forks on Saturday to sign her books for fans at the Rainforest Arts Center, 35 N. Forks Ave.
Fans can begin lining up at noon. Book signing will begin at 1 p.m. and continue until all those who have registered and who are in line by 4 p.m. have been admitted.
Hundreds have registered to have up to five books signed, according to Lissy Andros, executive director of the Forks Chamber of Commerce, which took over the festival this year.
Meyer attended the 2013 event without advance notice and spent much of the weekend with her fans. This year, she announced she would attend to celebrate 10 years of Twilight.
Will she show up anywhere else during the festival?
That’s up to Meyer, Andros said.
Other special guests will be actor Booboo Stewart, who played Quileute werewolf Seth Clearwater in the film version of “Eclipse” and “Breaking Dawn,” and actor Erik Odom, who filled the role of Southern nomad vampire Peter in the movie “Breaking Dawn.”
The Twilight Saga includes Meyer’s four books and a novella, and five movies based on the books.
The first book of the series, Twilight, was released Oct. 5, 2005 — the story of Bella Swan, a Forks native who returns to Forks to live with her father and chooses between the vampire Edward Cullen and the Quileute werewolf Jacob Black.
The romance-adventure series has developed a massive following and earned more than $6 billion in franchise sales.
More than 1,000 devoted Twilight diehard fans, known as “Twihards,” are expected to be in Forks for the weekend, including some who are coming from South Africa and Australia, Andros said.
The book series makes much of the average 119 inches of rainfall and near-constant overcast conditions of Forks, making the area friendly to sun-shy vampires.
“The fans wouldn’t be disappointed if it rained,” Andros said.
Instead, the festival, which includes an outdoor vendor fair at South Forks Avenue and East Division Street near the Rainforest Arts Center, is likely to be held under sunny skies, according to the National Weather Service.
Saturday’s crowning event will be the Twilight is Forever Prom from 9 p.m. to midnight at the Forks Elks Lodge, 941 Merchants Road.
Dress at the prom, which will enact the dance attended by Swan and Cullen, can be formal, semi-formal or casual. Prom photos will be available.
The cost for prom tickets is $50 per person, and online preregistration is required.
That morning, the annual Forks Fandom Family Photo, featuring all who want to be in the picture, will be taken at 9 a.m. at the Forks Visitor Center, 1411 S. Forks Ave. Participants are asked to arrive by 8:45 a.m.
The cost of the photos will vary by size.
Vendors will offer Twilight items and tribal goods for sale from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Twilight Bazaar around the Rainforest Arts Center.
A flash mob will show up at 11:30 a.m. — somewhere. Its location will be revealed tonight at the Fandom Family Party.
At Vampire Central, from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., guests will be able to have a photograph taken with Odom; take a guided tour of “Cullen House” — better known as the Miller Tree Inn at 654 E. Division St. — arm wrestle with Emmett Cullen, the strongest of the vampire family; or get a vampire makeover.
Admission will be by donation for the Colon Cancer Alliance, Relay For Life and the Forever in Forks fund.
Sunday, Sept. 13, is Bella Swan’s birthday.
Bella’s Birthday Brunch will begin at Fern Acres, 1154 Big Burn Place, at 8:30 a.m. The cost of the brunch is $25. Tickets can be purchased online.
A final farewell group photo will be taken during the brunch.
The weekend’s final event, Bella’s Birthday Encore, will begin at noon — a free birthday party with cake at Forks Outfitters, 950 S. Forks Ave.
For information and to buy tickets, see www.forevertwilightinforks.com.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arice@peninsuladailynews.com.
