YALL FEST 2012: Thank God For The South And Southern Writers And Books!!!!!!

So I've been waiting for this for OVER A YEAR!  Counting down the days, watching the author list grow, trying to decide which authors I wanted to sign my books.... Yes, I must say that I could not wait!

So I packed up my car with snacks and happiness (aka Cheerwine and Almond Joys), and drove the 4 hours from the Upstate of SC down to Charleston on November 10.  

On The Way Down:

For those of don't know, there is a huge football disagreement.  Whether you are a Clemson Tiger (Orange and Purple) or a USC Gamecock (Garnet and Black).  Now there were 2 games going on and so all the Tiger and Gamecock fans were out.  At one of my stops, I went into a Chick-Fil-A and literally it was a restaurant divided.  One side was orange and purple, while another side was garnet and black.   It was amazingly scary.  And fun to tell :P


What Happened There:

I got there a bit early.  It did seem that this year, YALL Fest was a bit more disorganized.  Volunteers didn't seem to know what they were doing, booths weren't ready, and the lines were not labeled well so that people knew what was what.

But besides that, there were some AWESOME sessions.  I just wished that a lot of the ones that I wanted to do were not at the same time.  


Who Did I LOVE:

I discovered that not only do I love reading books by Deborah Harkness and Kiera Cass, but I think I love them as people too.  They are absolutely wonderful and I think that it just inspires me more to read their books!

What Books Was I Inspired To Read:

I decided I was going to read a few new books by some amazing sounding authors.

By Authors I heard Speak:

A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz 
The Book of Blood and Shadow by Robin Wasserman 
White Cat by Holly Black
Every Day by David Levithan
Rampant by Diana Peterfreund

By Authors I met/saw at the booths:

Destiny's Fire by Trisha Wolfe
The Moon Omnibus Series by Jeanette Battista
The Messenger by Leah Rose
Inbetween by Tara Fuller
Perigee Moon by Tara Fuller
Look What I Brought Back:

I brought back a lot of swag: Bookmarks, flyers, and 5 books that were signed by my current 2 favorite American authors, Deborah Harkness and Kiera Cass.  

(And a special THANK YOU! to Kiera Cass!  I stood in line for 45 minutes to see her and get her to sign my books, and 5 people in line before me the moderator stated she was no longer personalizing the books.  I was so disappointed, but I didn't take off my sticky notes (I know, bad Cana!   But I was carrying books for others, so I needed to keep them straight!).  When I got up there, she still personalized them.  That was so sweet and awesome, and I wanted to let her know how much I appreciated it!)


So Overall, What Have I Got To Say About The Whole Thing?

I will so be there next year, better prepared, fangirling all the authors that I want to read and a happy, happy smile on my face as I fulfill my addiction to reading!

Happy Reading!

Cana