YA Fest 2014 Wrap Up

So this past weekend, I finally got to go to YA Fest! If you remember, I was blabbing about it 2 months ago. It was so freaking fun! Oh my gosh, guys, there were so many Authors there it was almost overwhelming. My friend Heather volunteered with me, so it made it a little less scary.

The whole event was so nicely put together, and we all had a blast. And holy crap did B&N sell a lot of books!

That is where I spent most of my day, working in that area to keep up with the rush. Jennifer L. Armentrout alone bought a book by every author attending so she can do a big giveaway. I can tell you first hand how generous that is because I saw the receipt. So keep an eye out!! :)

The only thing missing was my lovely Co Blogger Jen. I offered to get her books signed though. She might not have been there physically, but she was definitely there in spirit. lol So sit back and prepare yourselves for....

THE ADVENTURES OF CARDBOARD JEN

We got up super early so we could pick up Heather on the way. 

This is where she got a little crazy. We had to park behind the police station so she thought flipping the bird to the Po Po was a good idea. Good thing we didn't get arrested. Jen is a rebel!

No worries though, we made it in just fine and found our work station. 

She started out being really helpful keeping an eye on all the books, but for the most of the day she was just up my ass. 

We met another blogger name Vi who also volunteered in our area. Vi meet Jen... Jen meet Vi! She was so sweet, and we all had a great time working together. 

Here Jen is posing with the Authors who organized this awesome event. Jennifer Murgia and Cyn Balog. They loved Jen and laughed just about every time they saw me with her. Both of them have new books coming out that I'm excited for. Forest of Whispers in September and Drowned in June. 

Early on, the fire alarm went off. So we all had to leave the building while the Fire Fighters double checked everything. I couldn't keep Heather and Jen away from the trucks. They were fascinated. 

Jen was in need of a Fem product so we headed to the bathroom. You will not believe what happened next. 

She was trying to PEEP on me!!! That dirty little cut out! 

Then I thought to myself, if we can share a blog, we can share a toilet too! 

Enough silliness though, it's times to meet the authors! I'm pretty sure most of them thought I was nuts. lol

Tiffany Schmidt was the author I most looked forward to meeting, because I loved her books Send Me a Sign and Bright Before Sunrise. She was so fun and I absolutely adore her. And I'm not gonna lie, when I first met Tiffany I almost did this...

Maybe not quite, but pretty darn close. lol

Ahhhhhhhh!!!! It's Maria V. Snyder people!!!! I was a little scared to go up to her with cardboard Jen, because she's Maria V. FREAKING Snyder!!! But... she was really nice and though I'm not sure she knew what to make of Jen, she was a good sport and posed anyway. lol. 

And here Jen is, posing with Shannon Delaney and Molly Cochran! Shannon was concerned that Jen looked so flat, but I assured her that she really does look like this and her husband is fine with it. They were both so fun. I hadn't heard of Molly's books, but now that I have met her I'll have to check some of them out. As for Shannon Delany, I've been eyeing up her Weather Witch books for a while. 

Ahhhh!!! And here is Jennifer L. Armentrout!! I have wanted to meet her forever. It's funny because I only just read my first book by her with Jen, but she's so nice on twitter and everyone seems to love her. I had to see what the hype was all about. She was great and we even discussed Don't Look Back for a little while. That's just surreal to me talking to authors about their books. In Person!!! *sigh* 

Next we met Cristin Terrill, Author of All Our Yesterdays! Now she definitely thought I was weird, but she was more than happy to pose with Jen. lol. 

I haven't read The Beautiful & The Cursed by Page Morgan but Jen has and she loved it so I brought her books to be signed. Page even recognized cardboard Jen. Surprisingly a lot of people did. That Twitter Avi has been around a lot apparently. lol. She was also a ton of fun, so many of the Authors were. 

I was pretty excited to meet Amalie Howard. I read Waterfell by her a while back and I liked it. Helping out with B&N with sales though, made me realize she has a ton of other books that I need to check out. 

And the last Author we met was Anne Greenwood Brown!! She wrote Lies Beneath and I really liked that one. Scary Ass Mermaids for the win!!! I need to continue that series like pronto.

All that Author Mingling made Jen thirsty, so we hit up the water fountain.


I had a couple books I planned to give away that were on my shelf, so I got them signed. I'm not getting fancy with it, because I just have no patience for rafflecopter tonight, so just mention in a comment below if you would like to be entered and I'll pick someone random org next week sometime :) US only, sorry. 

That pretty much concludes the event. I wish it had been longer because the day just flew by. I'm already signed up to help next year so let the countdown begin!!! I can't Freaking WAIT!!!!!

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Labels: amalie howard, anne greenwood brown, cristin terrill, Cyn Balog, jennifer l. armentrout, Jennifer Murgia, maria v. snyder, page morgan, shannon delany, tiffany schmidt, YA Fest

Countdown to YA Fest 2014

Jen and I were feeling a little lazy this past weekend and didn't get around to working on a discussion post so I figured today would be a great day to talk about an event in my area that I'm super excited for. I don't go to many bookish events and the #1 reason why is because I never hear about them until its happening or has already happened. And that sucks!! I'm a working mom so things like these need plenty of advance planning.

Another reason is most times signings and such are quite a drive from me, and happen during the week. So when I stumbled across the info for Ya Fest 2014, I was so happy! This is the second year, so I could have went last year but I didn't know about it. Since it's so close to me I contacted one of the founders, Jennifer Murgia, about volunteering at the event. She is super nice and I'm pretty stoked to meet her. I should be meeting with them soon to go over what I'll be doing that day.

So a little bit about the event! It's Saturday April 19th, 2014 from 10:30 - 3:00 pm. (Exactly 2 months from today!!!) There is no admission fee, it's completely free. It's in Easton, Pa at the Palmer Branch of the Easton Area Public Library.

There will be 51 Authors at YA Fest 2014. The one and only bookish event I've ever been to had 4 so I might me a little overwhelmed. Hopefully I'll be able to talk to them. I might just stand there and stare with my hands full of books with my eyes glazed over. lol. This is good that I'll be working at the event, I'll be busy with no time for silly Fangirling. Well, there's always time for that right? lol

This will be me! I'm not even kidding.

I'm going to try not to be that lame, but I might not be able to control myself. There are a few authors I can't stinking wait to meet!!

Tiffany Schmidt lives in Pennsylvania with her saintly husband, impish
 twin boys, and a pair of mischievous puggles. She's not at all superstitious... at least that's what she tells herself every Friday the thirteenth.

SEND ME A SIGN is her first novel. BRIGHT BEFORE SUNRISE will follow in Winter, 2014. The ONCE UPON A CRIME FAMILY series begins with HOLD ME LIKE A BREATH in 2015. You can find out more about her and her books at: TiffanySchmidt.com, TiffanySchmidtWrites.Tumblr.com or by following her on Twitter @TiffanySchmidt.

AMALIE HOWARD grew up on a small Caribbean island where
 she spent most of her childhood with her nose buried in a book or being a tomboy running around barefoot, shimmying up mango trees and dreaming of adventure. Traveling the globe, she has worked as a research assistant, marketing representative, teen speaker and global sales executive. In between writing novels and indulging her love of reading, Amalie is also a books review editor for TheLoopNY, and blogs at amaliehoward.com. She is represented by the Liza Royce Agency.

Her debut novel, BLOODSPELL, was selected as a Seventeen Magazine Summer Club Read. She is also the author of The AQUARATHI series from Harlequin TEEN (WATERFELL Nov 2013 and OCEANBORN Aug 2014), THE ALMOST GIRL from Strange Chemistry Jan 2014, and ALPHA GODDESS from Skyhorse/Sky Pony Press Mar 2014.

# 1 New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Jennifer L. Armentrout Lives in West Virginia.

All the rumors you heard about her state aren’t true.

Well, mostly. When she's not hard at work writing, she spends her time, reading, working out, watching zombie movies, and pretending to write.

She is the author of the Covenant Series (Spencer Hill Press), the Lux Series (Entangled Teen), Don't Look Back (Disney/Hyperion) and a yet untitled novel (Disney/Hyperion), and new YA paranormal series with Harlequin Teen.

Jennifer also writes New Adult and Adult romance under the pen name J. Lynn. The Gamble Brothers Series (Tempting the Best Man/Tempting the Player) and Wait for You. Under her pen name, she is published with Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

Meteorologist turned novelist, Maria's been writing fantasy and
 science fiction since she was bored at work and needed something creative to do. A dozen novels and numerous short stories later, Maria's learned a thing or three about writing. She’s been on the New York Times bestseller list, won a half-dozen awards, and has earned her MA degree in Writing from Seton Hill University where she's been happily sharing her knowledge with the current crop of MFA students. She also enjoys creating new worlds where horses and swords rule, 'cause let's face it, they're cool, although she's been known to trap her poor characters in a giant metal cube and let them figure out how to get out. Readers are welcome to check out her website for book excerpts, free short stories, maps, blog, and her schedule at http://www.MariaVSnyder.com.

I am a Minnesota author, writing about mermaid assassins on Lake
 Superior. My debut YA series begins with LIES BENEATH, coming June 12, 2012 from Random House/Delacorte.

The sequel (DEEP BETRAYAL) is anticipated for March 2013.

Besides writing and reading YA literature, I love all things Irish, romantic movies, beef stroganoff, and Nutella.

If I'm listening to music it's Violent Femmes, The Coronas (awesome band out of Dublin), and Great Big Sea (out of Newfoundland).

Honestly though, I'm looking forward to meeting every one of these authors. It will be a busy day, but I hope I get to talk to each of them.

Full List of Authors Attending! (names link to goodreads)

        Jennifer Murgia                      Cyn Balog                            Jennifer Armentrout

        Amalie Howard                      Maria V. Snyder                    Brigid Kemmerer

        Cesya MaRae Couno             KM Walton                           Elisa Ludwig

        Shannon Delany                    Michael Northrop                   Jennifer R. Hubbard

        Crissa Chappell                     Alissa Grosso                       Charlotte Bennardo

        Natalie Zaman                       Melissa Groeling                   Christine Hughes

        Josh Berk                             Jeff Hirsch                            Anne Greenwood Brown

        Molly Cochran                       Barbara Dee                         PG Kain

        Rajdeep Paulus                     Alison Ashley Formento        Charles Benoit

        Carley Moore                        Ellen Jensen Abbott              Tiffany Schmidt

        Aaron Starmer                       Kit Grindstaff                        Laura Toffler-Corrie

        David Lubar                           Tom Tancin                          Lisa Amowitz

        Kimberly Miller                      Cristin Terrill                         Pab Sungenis

        Jackie Morse Kessler            Jennifer McConnell                Dawn Daria

        Margie Gelbwasser                Michelle Madow                   Justina Ireland

        Page Morgan                        Kelly Hashway                      Liz Dejesus

        Amie & Bethanie Borst

And of course there are the Authors who founded this event!!

Jennifer Murgia has been writing ever since she was nine
years old.

After receiving recognition for her poetry, she went on to use her talents to bring characters to life in fiction novels that are authentic, intriguing, and personal. She currently resides in Pennsylvania with her husband and two children.

Cyn Balog is a normal, everyday Jersey Girl who always believed
magical things can happen to us when we least expect them. She is author of young adult paranormals FAIRY TALE (2009), SLEEPLESS(2010), STARSTRUCK (2011), TOUCHED (2012), and her most recent release: DEAD RIVER (2013).e. She lives outside Allentown, Pennsylvania with her husband and daughters.

She also writes under the pen name Nichola Reilly. Nichola Reilly is Cyn Balog's post-apocalyptic fantasy-writing alter-ego. The first book in her series, DROWNED, will be releasing from Harlequin TEEN sometime in 2014, followed by a sequel, BURIED, in 2015.

I can't wait to meet them both, because without them YA Fest wouldn't be a thing at all! So what all goes on at this event? Book signings and fun activities like Raffles and Giveaways of signed books! Good stuff!!

Do you live near me? Will I see you there? If so look for me!! I'll probably be at the B&N counter assisting them or helping with the raffle baskets.

Oh my gosh, have I mentioned how excited I am yet in this post!!!?? lol. This gif explains it all!!

 Hope to see some of you there!!!

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Labels: amalie howard, anne greenwood brown, Book Signings, Bookish Events, Cyn Balog, Easton Area Public Library, jennifer l. armentrout, Jennifer Murgia, maria v. snyder, tiffany schmidt, YA Fest