The schedule of events for the East Texas Book Fest is brimming with renowned Texas authors and topics of interest to both readers and writers. Eight Texas authors will make presentations about their work. Six other Texans - writers, marketers, and teachers - will lead round table discussions.

The East Texas Book Fest takes place on Friday, September 25, in the UT Tyler Ornelas Activity Center, at 3402 Old Omen Road in Tyler. The doors open to the public at 10:00 a.m. and the day ends with drawings for door prizes at 4:00 p.m. The Book Fest Steering Committee invites the public to come and spend the day talking to the 54 authors displaying their work, listening to award winning authors talk about their work, and joining in the discussion sessions.

The event is free to the general public, and schools and other organizations can make the Book Fest a field trip. Lunch will be served for a small donation. The schedule includes three “Authors Talk” periods in which authors talk about their work. In addition, there will be three breakout discussion groups led by authors, publishers, or marketers and engaging the audience in dialogue.

The schedule will follow this plan:



10:00-10:30 Registration and exhibit browsing



10:30-11:15 Breakout Discussions 1



· So You Want to Be an Author? - Nancy Bell

· Writing History – Bob Bowman

· Putting Yourself on the Market – Patti Ramey



11:20-12:00 Authors Talk 1



· Welcome to East Texas Book Fest and introduction of honorary chairs- J.B. Smith and Nancy Crawford

· Don Graham

· Jim Ainsworth



12:00-1:15 Lunch and browse



1:15-2:00 Authors Talk 2



· Joe Lansdale

· John Foxjohn

· J. B. Smith



2:15-3:00 Breakout Discussions 2



· Creating Writing – Robert Stevens

· Keeping Score - Sports writing and research - C. Paul Rogers

· How to Sell Yourself and Books – Laura Kranz



3:15-3:45 Authors Talk 3



· Sylvia Dickey Smith

· Jory Sherman

· R. Clay Reynolds



4:00 Door Prize Drawings



Authors displaying their books will be at their tables all day to talk to readers and sell their books.

The Muntz Library at UT Tyler and SALT, the public libraries of Smith County, organized this event. The East Texas Book Fest is funded by generous grants from the Friends of the Arts at UT Tyler and Humanities Texas, an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Other sponsors include Southside Bank, Target Distribution Center, Friends of the Lindale Library, Friends of the Troup Library, Friends of the Tyler Library, and Friends of the Whitehouse Library.