Ya’ll Fest

2023

EVENT SCHEDULE


• Schedule and author appearances subject to change.
• All panels and signings are free unless otherwise noted and open to the public except for the keynote talks and the YA Smackdown.
• All seating is general admission
• Signings limited to 3 books per trip through signing line. Some lines may only allow 1 trip through the line. If a signing has specific guidelines listed, those overrule these general guidelines.

Friday, November 10

12:00
PM
  • Disney Publishing Donut Social Event
    Hero Doughnuts

    145 Calhoun St, Charleston, SC 29401

    All tickets have been claimed for this event

    DONUT Miss The Disney Publishing Social Event! Join your favorite authors for book talk, signings, and of course, donuts! November 10. 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM Hero Doughnuts. Tickets are free but limited in quantity.

     

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2:00
PM
2:30
PM
  • Fierce Friday
    Charleston Museum — Courtyard

    360 Meeting Street

    Presented by Fierce Reads

     

    Join Fierce Reads for an afternoon of book signings with your favorite authors, giveaways, and more!

     

    2:30 Authors: Caleb Roehrig, Hafsah Faizal, Abigail Hing Wen, Rebecca Ross, Mark Oshiro, and Zoraida Córdova

    3:30 Authors: Melissa de la Cruz, Nidhi Chanani, Adrienne Young, Susan Dennard, Melissa Albert, Maggie Tokuda-Hall

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3:00
PM
4:00
PM
  • Red Carpet Preview
    Charleston County Public Library

    68 Calhoun Street

    All tickets have been claimed for this event

     

    Rebekah Weatherspoon (Her Good Side), Jessica Cunsolo (Best Vacation Ever), Joelle Wellington (Their Vicious Games), Laura Nowlin ( If He Had Been With Me), Laura Taylor Namey (A British Girl’s Guide to Hurricanes and Heartbreak), and Asha Ashanti Bromfield (Songs of Irie) walk the red carpet and take part in an interactive discussion in the library’s teen lounge. Book signing to follow.

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  • YALLCRAWL Signing – Alex Aster
    Candlefish

    270 King St, Charleston, SC 29401

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  • YALLCRAWL Signing – Chloe Gong
    J. Stark

    489 King St STE 100, Charleston, SC 29403

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  • YALLCRAWL Signing – Stuart Gibbs
    Off Track Ice Cream

    6 Beaufain St, Charleston, SC 29401

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  • YALLCRAWL Signing – Rachael Lippincott
    Kudu

    4 Vanderhorst Street

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Saturday, November 11

10:00
AM
  • SOLD OUT Opening Keynote with Leigh Bardugo and Zoraida Córdova
    Charleston Music Hall

    37 John Street

     

    Opening Keynote with Leigh Bardugo and Zoraida Córdova
    Presented by Fierce Reads

    THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT.

    Please note you these authors will also be on another panel and doing their signing which is all separate from the keynote. Not having a keynote ticket does not mean you will not get to see them. 

     

    YALLFest 2023 kicks off with a keynote from bestselling author and everyone’s favorite head of the Grishaverse, Leigh Bardugo! Leigh will be joined by renowned author Zoraida Córdova for this morning keynote.

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    Leigh Bardugo is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Ninth House and the creator of the Grishaverse (now a Netflix original series) which spans the Shadow and Bone trilogy, the Six of Crows duology, the King of Scars duology—and much more.

    Zoraida Córdova is the acclaimed author and editor of more than two dozen novels and short fiction, including The Inheritance of Orquídea DivinaStar Wars: The High Republic: Convergence, and the Brooklyn Brujas series.

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  • SIGNING – Alex Aster
    Blue Bicycle Books — Tent

    422 King Street

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  • SIGNING – Soman Chainani
    Blue Bicycle Books — Tent

    422 King Street

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11:00
AM
  • Sweet Sweet Fantasy Baby: So Many Faves in One Panel
    Charleston Music Hall

    37 John Street

    Moderated by Kendare Blake with Victoria Aveyard, Bethany Baptiste, Tracy Deonn, Shelby Mahurin, and Adrienne Young.

    Sponsored by Simon Teen. Giveaway alert: Limited Simon Teen shoe charms.

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  • No Time Like the Present: 21st Century YA Stories
    Charleston Museum

    360 Meeting Street

    Moderated by Abigail Hing Wen with Jessica Cunsolo, Gina Musa, Page Powars, Arya Shahi, and Rebekah Weatherspoon

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  • Kids Rock, Writers Write, An MG Panel
    American Theater — Cinema

    446 King Street

    Moderated by Brendan Reichs with Nidhi Chanani, Kitty Curran, Stuart Gibbs, and Mark Oshiro

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  • We Have Always Been Here: Queer Historical YA
    American Theater — Ballroom

    446 King Street

    Moderated by Brittany N. Williams, Asha Ashanti Bromfield, Rachael Lippincott, Abdi Nazemian, Caleb Roehrig, and Eliot Schrefer.

    Sponsored by Sourcebooks Fire. Giveaway alert: Limited chapter samplers This Ravenous Fate by Hayley Dennings

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  • Sponsor Event: Trick or Treat at Union Square’s Fall Fair
    American Theater — Stars Bar

    446 King Street

    Trick or Treat at Union Square’s Fall Fair – Halloween never dies at Union Square & Co.! Come trick or treat for candy and giveaway goodies, play fair games, receive a tarot reading, meet authors, and more! First-come, first-served.

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  • SIGNING – Cassandra Clare
    Blue Bicycle Books — Courtyard

    418 King Street

    To enter the line, attendees must have a copy of Sword Catcher. Any hardcover copy counts, including special editions. Attendees may get their copy of Sword Catcher and one additional book signed. 200 wristbands will be available for pickup at Blue Bicycle Books beginning Thursday November 9. You must show your copy of Sword Catcher to claim your wristband. To guarantee your place in the signing line, you can order your copy from Blue Bicycle Books through the link in our website menu.

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  • SIGNING – Vichet Chum
    Blue Bicycle Books — Tent

    422 King Street

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  • SIGNING – Chloe Gong
    Charleston Music Hall

    37 John Street

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  • SIGNING – J. Elle
    Charleston Museum

    360 Meeting Street

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  • SIGNING – Vanessa Montalban
    Charleston Museum

    360 Meeting Street

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  • SIGNING – Matt Mendez
    Blue Bicycle Books — Courtyard

    418 King Street

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  • SIGNING – Ashley Poston
    Blue Bicycle Books — Courtyard

    418 King Street

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  • SIGNING – Trang Tranh Tran
    Blue Bicycle Books — Courtyard

    418 King Street

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  • SIGNING – Namina Forna
    Blue Bicycle Books — Tent

    422 King Street

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  • SIGNING – Jason June
    Blue Bicycle Books — Tent

    422 King Street

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  • Sponsor Event: Spin to Win!
    Charleston Museum — Courtyard

    360 Meeting Street

    Presented by Epic Reads

    Spin the galley wheel and win an anticipated upcoming release!

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12:00
PM
  • Page Turners: Building Tension and Thrilling Readers
    Charleston Music Hall

    37 John Street

    Moderated by Adam Silvera with Alex Aster, Holly Black, Hafsah Faizal, Maureen Johnson, and Trang Thanh Tran.

    Presented by Bloomsbury Children’s Books. Giveaway alert: Limited ARCs of The Dark Fable by Katherine Harbour, Time and Time Again by Chatham Greenfield, and Not Like Other Girls by Meredith Adamo.

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  • MG Storyball: The Laughtravaganza Returns!
    Charleston Museum

    360 Meeting Street

    Moderated by Raphael Simon with Melissa de la Cruz, Nidhi Chanani, Kitty Curran, and Mari Mancusi

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  • Hope is a Thing with Feathers: Writing Lights in a Dark World
    American Theater — Cinema

    446 King Street

    Moderated by Ally Condie with Laura Nowlin, Candice Iloh, Matt Mendez, and Hannah V Sawyerr

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  • The Who (Crafting Characters): Writers on Writing
    American Theater — Ballroom

    446 King Street

    Moderated by David Levithan with Page Powars, Britney Lewis, Jen Ferguson, Joelle Wellington, and Rachael Lippincott

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  • Sponsor Event: Fall in Love with Books
    Charleston Museum — Courtyard

    360 Meeting Street

    Fall in Love with Books; Fall in love with books at our fall festival! Hang out with your favorite authors, eat plenty of fall snacks, play games to win prizes, and more. Hosted by Flatiron Books, Tor Teen, and Wednesday Books. Featuring Asha Ashanti-Bromfield, Adrienne Young, Isabel Ibañez, Rebecca Ross, Zoraida Córdova, Melissa Albert, Kendare Blake, Mark Oshiro, Susan Dennard

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  • SIGNING – Victoria Aveyard
    American Theater

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  • SIGNING – Bethany Baptiste
    Charleston Museum

    360 Meeting Street

    The first 50 people in line will receive an ARC of The Poisons We Drink

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  • SIGNING – Leigh Bardugo
    Blue Bicycle Books — Tent

    422 King Street

    300 wristbands for Leigh Bardugo’s signing will be handed out at 9 am on Saturday morning. The line for these wristbands will be next to the Music Hall. You cannot pick up multiple wristbands as an individual in line. One wristband per person. Your wristband guarantees your place in the signing line. Wristbanded attendees will have the opportunity to get one of their books signed by Leigh. No posed photos.

    The wristband line will also then serve as the line for entry into the keynote. If you do not have a ticket to attend the keynote, you may get in line still to try and get a wristband, and then just pop out of line once all wristbands have been distributed.

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  • SIGNING – Maggie Tokuda-Hall
    American Theater

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  • SIGNING – Gretchen McNeil
    Charleston Museum

    360 Meeting Street

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  • SIGNING – Eliot Schrefer
    Blue Bicycle Books — Courtyard

    418 King Street

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  • SIGNING – Arya Shahi
    Blue Bicycle Books — Courtyard

    418 King Street

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  • SIGNING – Brittany N. Williams
    Blue Bicycle Books — Courtyard

    418 King Street

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  • SIGNING – Alexandra Monir
    Blue Bicycle Books — Tent

    422 King Street

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  • SIGNING – Gina Musa
    Blue Bicycle Books — Tent

    422 King Street

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  • SIGNING – Amélie Wen Zhao
    Blue Bicycle Books — Tent

    422 King Street

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1:00
PM
2:00
PM
3:00
PM
4:00
PM
5:00
PM
  • SOLD OUT Spotlight Panel with Holly Black, Cassandra Clare, Tracy Deonn, Chloe Gong, and Rebecca Ross
    Charleston Music Hall

    37 John Street

    YALLFest is pleased to present a Closing Spotlight panel featuring authors Holly Black, Cassandra Clare, Tracy Deonn, Chloe Gong, and Rebecca Ross

    THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT.

    Please note you these authors will also be on another panel and doing their signing which is all separate from the keynote. Not having a keynote ticket does not mean you will not get to see them. 

     

    ..

    Holly Black is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of fantasy novels, including the Novels of Elfhame, THE COLDEST GIRL IN COLDTOWN, the Spiderwick Chronicles, and her adult debut, BOOK OF NIGHT.

    Cassandra Clare is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS series and the expansive multi-series world of Shadowhunters. Her adult debut, SWORD CATCHER, releases this Fall.

    Tracy Deonn is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Legendborn and Bloodmarked, and has received a Coretta Scott King–John Steptoe Award for New Talent and the 2021 Ignyte Award for Best Young Adult Novel.

    Chloe Gong is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the critically acclaimed Secret Shanghai novels, as well as the Flesh and False Gods trilogy.

    Rebecca Ross is the #1 New York Times and Sunday Times bestselling author of duologies LETTERS OF ENCHANTMENT, ELEMENTS OF CADENCE, and THE QUEEN’S RISING as well as two standalone novels: DREAMS LIE BENEATH and SISTERS OF SWORD & SONG.

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  • Writing in the Age of Social Media: How to Tik the Tok & Watt the Pad
    Charleston Museum

    360 Meeting Street

    Moderated by Ryan La Sala with Vichet Chum, Jessica Cunsolo, Adrienne Young, and Rebekah Weatherspoon

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  • Influences, Origins of Stories And Our Very Worst Ideas
    American Theater — Cinema

    446 King Street

    Moderated by Jen Ferguson with Jason June, Angela Montoya, Amélie Wen Zhao, and Gina Musa. 

    Sponsored by Underlined. Giveaway alert: Limited Underlined water bottle & sticker set.

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  • Spooky Season: Witches, Vampires, Ghosts, & More!
    American Theater — Ballroom

    446 King Street

    Moderated by Danielle Paige with Bethany Baptiste, Ashley Poston, Vanessa Montalban, and Angel Luis Colón

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6:00
PM
  • 2023 YA Smackdown hosted by Soman Chainani
    Charleston Music Hall

    37 John Street

    YALLFest’s most beloved tradition, the Smackdown, is back for year 12!

    Come see your favorite authors on stage with host Soman Chainani (School for Good and Evil) for games, laughs, tears and dancing.

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