My first book signing - YA Fest 2012

For as much as I enjoy books and reading, it's hard to believe that I've never attended a book signing before in my life. It's a wrong that has now been righted, as I attended YA Fest in Easton, PA with my good friend Jen from At Random.

All 35 authors

YA Fest featured 35 YA authors, all available to sign their books. As I had never done this before, I wasn't sure what to expect. Would they be nice? Would they want to chat a bit with me or just try and move me along? Would they be pushy and try and get me to buy their books? I have to say that I was very pleasantly surprised. All the authors were extremely nice! Many were very willing to talk with me a bit about their books. And none of them acted like used car salespersons.

In addition to the signings, several authors participated in panel discussions. We got to hear about what inspires them, how to write about dangerous characters and situations, how to co-author, and how to get published. I really learned a lot from them. And, there were other fun things for Jen and I to participate in. There were raffles for books (I won two and Jen won three!), a used book sale ($0.25 for paperbacks and $0.50 for hardbacks - WHAT??!) and a bake sale (sugar!). The proceeds from all went to support the library, which is a cause I can definitely get behind.

(from left) Anne Greenwood Brown, Charles Benoit, Barbara Dee, Michelle Zink and Jonathan Mayberry

On to the books. I left my house with four books and came home with 15! First, are the books I got signed by various authors:

Here are the books I won! Three are ARCs, one of which is signed:

And, finally, the books that I bought at the used book sale for a grand total of $1.25:

Of course, you can't forget the swag. And, BOY. Was there swag! In addition to what's pictured here, I also snagged a t-shirt from Anne Greenwood Brown featuring a quote from her book, Lies Beneath.

I had such a great time at YA Fest that Jen and I are already starting to plan our next book signing trip together. It made such an impression on me that these authors, whose books I read faithfully, are real people! And, so interesting, too! If you haven't attended a signing yet, start checking out your local libraries and community calendars to see what the next one is planned, and GO!