The YALLWEST book festival is back this month, as young adult authors and readers meet in sunny Santa Monica to celebrate their love of kid lit.
My own personal favorite day of the year, YALLWEST is a book festival unlike any other, where the authors run the show and the kids truly come first. Taking place at Santa Monica Library on Friday, April 28th, and Santa Monica High School on Saturday, April 29, YALLWEST features everything from food trucks to free cupcakes, author signings to book giveaways. Check out Hypable’s writeup from last year for more info about what you can expect to see at this year’s fun-filled festival!
The full schedule of events for YALLWEST will be posted at www.yallwest.com tomorrow, Tuesday, April 11, but we were lucky enough to get a sneak peak at one of this year’s panels, moderated by Hypable favorite (and former Mugglecast listener!) Veronica Roth. Here she is describing what we can expect to experience at this year’s YALLWEST, in her own words:
“Alternative Facts, Alternative Futures”
Saturday, April 29, 2pm
Barnum Hall, Santa Monica High School
Panelists: Veronica Roth, Marie Lu, Renee Ahdieh, Claudia Gray, Victoria Aveyard, and Neal Shusterman
What inspired you to organize a panel titled ‘Alternative Facts, Alternative Futures’?
We have a few panel names that have cheeky references to the current political climate — Alternative Facts, Alternative Futures is one, but there’s also “Fantasyish: the Role of Fantasy in the New Surreality of 2017,” and the very straightforward “Writing the Resistance.” To be honest, I don’t name the panels myself — my strengths lie with the logic puzzle of the panel spreadsheet more than setting a tone, which is all Margaret Stohl, who co-founded the festival. Our teen ambassadors, in their brainstorming sessions, didn’t want us to ignore what’s been happening in this country. The panels are a part of that.
What can we expect to hear you and the other authors talk about on your ‘Alternative Facts, Alternative Futures’ panel
Alternative Facts, Alternative Futures will feature Marie Lu, Renee Ahdieh, Claudia Gray, Marcus Sedgwick, and Neal Shusterman, with me as the moderator. Most of the authors are writing stories with science fiction-y leanings (except Renee, who will speak to the fantasy side of the sf/f spectrum!), and with elements of secrecy and deception (hence: “alternative facts”). I’m hoping we can talk about characters realizing they’re being deceived, often by people with authority over them, and how they sort through lies as they’re fighting for the truth. I’m also hoping I can find out if all these authors would rather read about aliens or vampires. You know, the important things in life.
To give us an idea of your potential panel chemistry, can you sort your other fellow authors into Hogwarts houses?
This is tough, because I haven’t met everyone on the panel yet! I’ll do my best and hope that I don’t offend anyone. I’m a Hufflepuff, to start. I think Marie Lu might be a Gryffindor — she’s not as brash as some Gryffindors (looking at you, Weasleys), but she’s fearless with her stories. Renee Ahdieh seems Gryffindorish to me too — her writing reads as very confident and generally badass. Claudia Gray, judging by her Tumblr and her excellent depiction of parallel universes, is a deep thinker, so I’d call her a Ravenclaw. Same with Neal Shusterman, who writes dark and intricate stories. And Marcus Sedgwick writes all kinds of things, none of them typical or standard, so I’m going to call him a Slytherin, in that he seems flexible and nonconformist. I’ll have to ask them on the panel now, because I take these things entirely too seriously.
Finally, what’s your favorite thing about YALLWEST?
My favorite thing about YALLWEST is how many actual teenagers come out! I’m happy that people of all ages are reading, don’t get me wrong, but one thing I think we all agree on behind the scenes of YALLWEST is reaching young people and speaking to them honestly and investing in the future in some small way. So when Actual Teenagers (TM) show up, that really makes all the work behind the festival feel worth it. Plus, I love meeting the people I write for, and hearing what they’re reading, what they care about, what they’re going through. It’s one of the best parts of this job for me.
YALLWEST will take place at the Santa Monica Library and Santa Monica High School on Friday, April 28 and April 29. The full schedule of events for YALLWEST will be posted tomorrow, Tuesday, April 11 at www.yallwest.com.
All photo credits belong to Gina Clyne Photography.
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