Image by Barbara K.

The National Book Festival will be held indoors this year, due to new rules for National Mall use announced by the National Park Service in 2013.

The Library of Congress announced today that the 2014 festival, which is scheduled to take place on August 30, will take place indoors, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, for the first time since it debuted in 2001, inside the Library of Congress. According to a release, “new National Park Service rules for Mall use, announced in 2013, prompted evaluation of the best location for the event in 2014.” As Ron Charles at the Post reported last year, “the change — if there is one — apparently relates to the Mall’s new irrigation system, which could be damaged by the giant spikes used to hold up the tents during the book festival.” A request for comment from the National Park Service was not immediately returned.

Among the other changes coming to the National Book Festival this year are extended programming hours that will include “new evening activities between the hours of 6 p.m. and 10 p.m.,” a “Great Books to Great Movies” pavilion that will explore classic literary adaptations through discussions and screenings, and an International Pavilion that will feature authors from around the world.