In our modern world filled with Facebook and iPhones, it’s easy to imagine that texts from their friends are about as much reading as our teens do.

But the truth is we are living in a sort of golden age when it comes to Young Adult fiction. The Harry Potter, Twilight, and Hunger Games series, among others, have proven the wide-ranging popularity of these books written specifically for teens and tweens.

On Saturday, Nov. 12, YALLfest, a new young adult book festival, will bring together 29 of the nation’s best YA authors.
 
Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl have been working with Festival Director and owner of Blue Bicycle Books, Jonathan Sanchez, to put together a star-studded lineup of authors, including ten New York Times bestsellers and a National Book Award finalist. Garcia and Stohl’s own series, Beautiful Creatures, is set in a small, fictional town outside of Charleston,

Visiting authors work in a variety of styles ranging from the gritty realism of Ellen Hopkins’books to the poetry of Kwame Alexander to Katie Crouch’s Southern gothic writing.
 
YALLFest will take place at one of my favorite bookstores, Blue Bicycle Books at 420 King St. in downtown Charleston. The day will include author readings and book signings, live music and games. The visiting authors also will duke it out in a storytelling competition.

If your kids are not yet completely sold on the idea that the pen is mightier than, say, the video game, they might still be interested in attending the festival’s two multimedia panel discussions. The discussions will feature Dave Stohl, the executive vice president of studios at Activision Publishing Inc. that publishes the Call of Duty, Guitar Hero and Tony Hawk video games as well as Mark Morgan, the executive producer of the Twilight saga movies and Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief.

Click here for a complete list of visiting authors, a schedule of events and additional information.