In a time when nobody can take their eyes off their cell phone, fearless rebels are trying to save our society from a bookless future. Let’s rub shoulders with avid readers at America’s book fairs!
“Honestly, don’t you two read?” – to quote Hermione Granger, when she can’t believe how little her best friends, Ron Weasley and Harry Potter, know. But there is hope. As long as there are book festivals, not all is lost. After our blog on British Book Fairs 2019, it is time for novum publishing to spark your interest in new bookish events: let’s embark on a literary tour across the United States of America!
Brooklyn Book Festival
What better place to start than NYC: this East Coast metropolis lives and breathes literature. The Brooklyn Book Festival features an array of stars in the writing world as well as emerging authors at the city’s largest free literary festival. Discover the Big Apple, decadent American cuisine and culture, and the full-week Bookend Events from September 16 to 23. The Festival Day on September 22 is nothing short of a great book celebration with an enormous outdoor Literary Marketplace in one of the hippest neighborhoods in New York City.
BookCon/BookExpo
Not done with NYC yet? From May 29 to June 2, the Javits Center welcomes you to four events all in one: BookCon, a literary festival where storytelling and pop culture collide, UnBound with all the bookish accessories you’ve ever wanted, and BookExpo as well as the New York Rights Fair for everyone interested in the world of publishing, licensing, agents and more. Why not get to NYC a bit sooner for the PEN World Voices Festival, attracting readers and writers from all over the globe to revel in extraordinary literature and bring America and the world closer together.
Boston Book Festival
Just a few hours from NYC, not even the remnants of Hurricane Michael could stop last year’s book lovers from attending the festival’s poetry sessions and inspiring workshops. Take part in a live musical performance, join the popular Lit Crawl or sign up for Poems & Pints! The Boston Book Festival celebrates the written word from October 19 to 20. Heading in the opposite direction from NYC, rest assured that the Baltimore Book Festival or the National Book Festival in Washington D.C. are worth another few days in literary heaven.
Chicago Tribune Printer’s Row Lit Fest
What could be more intriguing than a metropolis like Chicago hosting the largest free outdoor literary festival in the Midwest? This is where authors, publishers and booksellers get together with book enthusiasts: the marvelous Chicago Tribune Printer’s Row Lit Fest, June 8 to 9. Take a stroll along Lake Michigan and then head over to your next panel discussion or signing session. And by the way, Books by the Banks in Cincinnati is a charming regional festival on our way south.
AJC Decatur Book Festival
The American South hosts a stunning array of book festivals. The largest in the country is set in a beautiful town square in Atlanta and presents a variety of events from book presentations and author talks to poetry slams and parades. With street fair exhibits and writing classes at the Decatur Writing Studio, there won’t be a dull moment! Decatur Book Festival is held from August 30 to September 1. If you’re in the South at another time of the year, look up the Texas Book Festival, the Miami Book Fair or the Louisiana Book Festival to name but a few.
Los Angeles Times Festival of Books
Flying to the West Coast, beautiful Los Angeles will attract more than 150,000 attendees from April 13 to 14. Aside from Californian lifestyle and endless beaches, the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books offers literary, cultural and educational events for all ages. Why not take a trip across California and stay for a few more days? Attend the awe-inspiring Bay Area Book Festival in Berkeley or explore exciting San Francisco with its one-of-a-kind Litquake Festival.
AWP Conference & Bookfair
Looking for a scholarly literature event in the Pacific Northwest? The Association of Writers and Writing Programs organizes its Conference & Bookfair in a different state every year, bringing together writers, scholars, teachers and book aficionados for four days of panels, discussions and networking. From March 27 to 30, the country’s largest literary conference will take place in Portland, Oregon – home of the popular Portland Book Festival – followed by the Orcas Island Lit Fest on the inspiringly beautiful San Juan Islands just a few days later.
If you feel like you need to start packing now, we have done something right. Let us know which festivals you would add to your bucket list. Perhaps there’s even one we missed? As always you can like this post or hit the reply button below!
Keep writing, keep typing!
Yours truly,
novum publishing
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