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YOUR TOWN, YOUR STATE: YALLWEST returns for its sixth year with more than 70 authors presenting on April 25-26, 2020. The annual gathering typically draws over 20,000 readers to Santa Monica High School, but this year’s event will be entirely virtual. The biggest teen and middle grade book festival in the country is going worldwide (web).Â
Rebranded as YALLSTAYHOME, this free event will feature a weekend of online panel discussions, giveaways, games and more. Special events will surround the festival, with promotions across social media platforms. Additionally, the festival is connecting participating authors with twenty underserved Los Angeles schools for virtual visits via Zoom and providing e-books to their students.Â
Festival founders and #1 New York Times bestselling authors Margaret Stohl (Beautiful Creatures) and Melissa de la Cruz (The Queen’s Assassin) open the event at 10:00 AM (PDT) by discussing their decade-long collaboration culminating in their upcoming novel, Jo & Laurie. Starsight and Mistborn series author Brandon Sanderson will lead the afternoon keynote at 4:00 PM (PDT). Saturday closes as Angie Thomas, author of the #1 New York Times bestselling blockbusters On the Come Up and The Hate U Give, host the annual YALLWEST SMACKDOWN variety show with Nic Stone (Dear Martin). Pseudonymous Bosch and Shane Pangburn host a Middle Grade Storyball on Sunday at 10:00 AM (PDT). The entire YALLSTAYHOME experience will end with a star-studded lineup of authors reading their earliest writing on Sunday, April 26th at 5:00 PM (PDT).Â
Additional YALLSTAYHOME attending authors include Cassandra Clare, Rainbow Rowell, Karen McManus, Maureen Johnson, Ransom Riggs, Victoria Aveyard, Marie Lu, Roshani Chokshi, Mariko Tamaki and many others (see next page for full line-up). Multiple bestselling authors will appear on the virtual stage for the festival’s Saturday opening and closing events.Â
Friday, April 24th will be a Fierce Friday Preview event from 4:00 PM-7:00 PM (PDT). This event is also free, but registration is required.Â
Full event schedule and panel registration can be found at yallwest.com/schedule.Â
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AND MORE TO COME! PLEASE VISIT WWW.YALLWEST.COM FOR MORE INFORMATION.Â
