The tinkle of laughter through a canvas tent. The simple delight of hearing a story read aloud. The thrill of spotting your favourite author queuing for a foraged elk burger. It could only mean one thing - the literary festival season is upon us.

These days festival organisers are increasingly open to indie authors because they can bring something different to the table. So if you fancy the idea of reading your book aloud to a room/tent/pub-full of literary punters, there are a few things to...