FLAT ROCK — There is something to be said about the distinctive smell that is a book. It’s a mixture of the pages with the ink, the binding glue and the cover. Books have sounds and feels, too.

It’s reassuring to riffle through the pages and feel the delicate paper of a novel or the glossy coating of a children’s book. All shapes, sizes, genres and styles of books — from hard cover to soft — were being discussed, handled, traded and sold at the first Blue Ridge Book and Author Showcase held Saturday at the Blue Ridge Community College.

“We’d like to make Hendersonville the site of a major literary extravaganza,” said Bob Greenwald, a sponsor and the founder of the showcase.

Parking lots filled. Hundreds of people came. More than 60 volunteers gave of their time and talent to help get the showcase off the ground.

“My biggest satisfaction and reward I’ve had from this process is the opportunity to work with (the volunteers),” said Greenwald.

The event featured authors. As visitors meandered through the halls of the Technical Education & Development Center, they could chat with Kathryn Stripling Byer, North Carolina’s first poet laureate, or Shelia Kay Adams, whose books center on the heart of mountain culture in Western North Carolina like Come Go Home With Me. Robert Morgan, author of Boone and Gap Creek, was the showcase’s honorary chairman.

Sharyn McCrumb, author of She Walks These Hills, The Redwood Casket and St. Dale, was the keynote speaker. McCrumb’s keynote address touched on finding the truth in fiction. Louise Bailey, author of eight books with a 42-year career with the Times-News, was honored on Friday night at a reception at the Cedars.

“They have an opportunity to meet authors they’ve been reading, to have personalization,” said Greenwald.

The event was the brainchild of Greenwald. In researching for his book Conflict Without Chaos, about his career as a mediator, he came across many book and author showcases. He called together 13 people in the community to discuss the potential of an event such as a book and author festival in Henderson County. Fifteen months later, the event premiered at the college.

The next showcase is already in the works. It will be held Saturday, June 5, 2010, at the college.

“I think there will always be a need for people to have a book in their hand,” said Greenwald.