When she and her husband first began visiting Fowey, the festival became a yearly pilgrimage. “We’d come down just for the events; as many as we could get to!” she says. After lockdown, like so many whose lives shifted in new directions, they made the bold decision to leave London and move permanently to the place they’d fallen for. “Honestly,” she smiles, “if it weren’t for the festival, I probably wouldn’t be living here.”

Her professional background is in financial services in account management, but what she’s really brought to the festival is her talent for relationships. This connective tissue binds a community effort like this together. When Paula first joined, it was as a volunteer. Before long, she became a lead, then a trustee, and when the festival’s founding chair, Lynn, decided to step down after nearly 30 years, Paula was invited to take the helm. “I thought, I’ve chaired meetings before, but never a charity! Still, I just said yes, and I’ve never looked back.” Under her leadership, the festival has modernised its governance and sharpened its focus as a charity. “It’s a huge responsibility,” she admits. “The festival isn’t just an event, it’s part of Fowey’s cultural identity.”

She’s candid about the challenges, too. Geography, for one. “If you’re in London, authors can just pop over for a day. But getting to Cornwall takes time, and we have to cover the cost of travel and accommodation. So, when authors come, it’s never a quick visit!” She heaps praise on places like The Fowey Harbour Hotel and The King of Prussia, which generously offer discounted rates to help with accommodation costs, reflecting the festival’s wider ethos of community support. Then there’s the matter of space. “Our biggest venue, St Fimbarrus Church, holds around 250. It’s atmospheric and beautiful, but logistically, it limits what we can do.” Balancing the heritage of Daphne du Maurier with contemporary literary voices is another fine art. The festival director, Paula says, does “a brilliant job of mixing legacy and new energy,” celebrating writers with ties to Fowey like Kenneth Grahame while also bringing in modern authors and musicians. “Daphne was such a forward-thinking woman,” Paula reflects. “She was stylish, independent, and her writing still feels so relevant. I’d love young people to discover her afresh.”

Even Taylor Swift, she notes, has spoken of her admiration for Rebecca as an example of the kind of book she loves, praising its gothic atmosphere and lingering sense of mystery, an unexpected bridge between eras. During festival week, Paula’s days are long and full “There's no such thing as a typical day,” she laughs. From morning briefings with lead volunteers to ensuring each venue is ready - bars stocked, water on tables, chairs in neat rows, she’s everywhere at once. And yet it’s clear she wouldn’t have it any other way.

Between festivals, the work continues: fundraising, governance, insurance, accounting, “all the unglamorous stuff that keeps the lights on,” as she puts it. With council grants now largely a thing of the past, sponsorships, Friends memberships, and ticket sales are vital. “We charge for tickets, but people might not realise they don’t even cover the full cost of putting the festival on,” she says. “Every bit of support makes a difference.”

Next year marks the festival’s 30th anniversary, a milestone Paula wants to celebrate in true Fowey style. She envisions the town awash with du Maurier’s spirit: readings, retrospectives, returning visitors, stories shared by those who attended that first festival decades ago. “It’s about legacy,” she says. “Community, pride, and creativity. That’s what this festival stands for.” Her dream for the future? To expand beyond a one-week event in May, with events throughout the year celebrating Fowey’s literary heritage and creative energy. “There’s something special about this place,” she muses. “It’s inspired writers for generations, and it still does.”

Before we part, I ask her to sum up her role in a single sentence. She smiles. “My job is to keep the festival alive. To keep the show on the road.”

For anyone reading, aspiring writers, businesses, volunteers, her message is simple: “Get involved. Come to the events. Follow us online. Support the festival in whatever way you can.” Because if there’s one thing Paula Pearson proves, it’s that creativity and community thrive best when they’re shared ... one story, one smile, one volunteer at a time.

Frequently Asked Questions About Fowey