The Los Angeles Times presents a treat for the community with their 2019 Festival of Books. The literary festival celebrates books as well as writers, poets, and various literary genres. It’s a massive weekend event, free and open to the public on USC’s campus. This year, the festival seemed even bigger, taking up space in nearly all parts of the campus. There were multiple stages and rows of vendors, food trucks, and authors speaking and signing copies of their books. If you are in the LA area, I suggest you make a day of going to the festival while you still can.

This Saturday, I had one major plan for the day and that was to go to the festival with my family. To avoid parking fees, we took an Uber to USC and got straight into the action. I loved seeing so many people with bags filled with books or holding flyers they received. When you go to a festival you expect to spend some money. With this in mind, I walked away with amazing new books! Another advantage of going to the festival is the chance to meet other writers and find publishers and resources.

Inside The Festival of Books

One of the very first booths we went to was Stranger Comics. The creators, Sebastian A. Jones and Sheldon Mitchell, just signed a deal with HBO to produce a TV series based off their fantasy epic. The creators were so down to earth, telling us everything about their stories and what they envision for the future of their main character, Niobe. I knew of the series, especially Niobe She is Life, having read a few comics and knowing that Amandla Stenberg helped to write and develop the main character. It is an inclusive series on and off the page, the creator stated they put into the HBO contract that Niobe should only be played by a Black woman — no whitewashing allowed! If you are looking for a Black female character ruling a fantasy world, the Niobe series is the one for you! I got signed copies of all the graphic novels, plus a cool free poster at the festival. Even if you can’t make it to the festival, I highly encourage you to look into the series so you can be a part of the action when it blows up! 

Another highlight of the day was actually going to the children’s zone of the festival. I saw a new book on the shelves by the famous illustrator, Kadir Nelson. My brother actually picked up the book, admiring all its paintings of famous Black figures in history. It’s called The Undefeated. As we were leaving the event, we went to the book signing area. Low and behold, Kadir Nelson himself was there as well as his partner, author Kwame Alexander, who co-created the book, to sign copies. Even Valerie Jarrett was there for a book signing! 

Be A Part of The Community Event

I had such a wonderful time at the festival because it was a space of true creativity. As I was able to see many different people making a living doing what they love in the literary world, it was easy for me to proclaim that I’m a writer too. I felt like I was standing in the heart of my community on many levels. Not only is USC close to my neighborhood, I felt surrounded by my peers. I could feel the appreciation for literature and see the powerful effect of the written word by the sheer number of people in attendance. I found great organizations for working writers such as the Editorial Freelancers Association for people looking for editors to support their projects. I even signed up for the Greater Los Angeles Writers Society, and many other resources.

This is the pleasure of going to community events such as the Festival of Books. You’ll be pleasantly surprised by the writers and artists you can meet. You can have deep conversations with like-minded people. Additionally, with the benevolence of vendors, you’ll become aware of a plethora of resources, deals on books, and other offerings. One vendor sold 20 comic books for $5. Another vendor, San Fransico Based publishers, Chronicle Books, had 30% off sells on all their products. There is much more to see and experience. Make literature a part of your weekend and visit the Festival of Books, consider supporting the LA Times as I did by buying a subscription, and even mark your calendar for the next event! 

Until next time!

Follow Me: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

Best,

Kai