Everything We Learned at YALLFest (Or, Why YA Authors Are Awesome)

I spent the weekend at YALLFest, which is pretty much heaven on earth for YA readers. Held in Charleston every November, YALLFest is loads of new books, armfuls of nerdy swag, and all the fandom geekery your little heart could desire. But the best part? All your favorite authors gather together and share their brilliant wisdom on life, writing, and everything else. And because all of that is too much genius not to pass along, here are some of the best gems I picked up at YALLFest this year:
On Dealing With Haters (Including Yourself)
“There are always going to be people out there who say ‘That’s not right,’ and that’s okay.” –Elizabeth Wein (Code Name Verity)
“If everyone likes your books, you’re not reaching enough people.”–Kiera Cass (Selection series)
“I have this mantra. If people hate my books, they don’t hate me. They just hate my imagination, and everything I think is cool.”–Brandon Mull (Fablehaven series)
“The best remedy in the world is french fries.”–Renée Ahdieh (The Wrath and the Dawn)
On Writing
“I start with my limits; if my character is in the Middle Ages, she’s never going to send a text.”–Rae Carson (Walk on Earth A Stranger) (Also, says Carson, “Make sure you enjoy your limits,” because otherwise trying to stick within them will be a constant chore.)
You can always sneak your toughest lessons in with a laugh, because, “The great secret of comedy is you can get away with a lot. People will forgive you if they’re laughing.” –Gail Carriger (Finishing School series)
“Go ahead, just suck. Suck, suck, suck, and then you’ll be awesome…. You have to hate what you’re working on at least once. If you think it’s awesome the whole way through, you’re living a lie.””–Kiera Cass
“Experience life, and it will absolutely influence your writing.”–Renée Ahdieh
“A novel is a huge project to hold in your head.” –Rae Carson
“Princesses and witches are basically the same character.”–Soman Chainani (The School for Good and Evil)
“If you could say it on a billboard, why would you write a novel?”–E. Lockhart (We Were Liars)
On Why Reading Fantasy Matters
“You can do anything that anyone would want in a book, plus you can have dragons.”
“Every good thing that has happened in this world has been because someone imagined something. That’s what fantasy does.”–Brandon Sanderson, author of Steelheart
“Fiction is all made up. It’s just different kinds of made up. In fantasy, we just tell a bigger, cooler lie.”–Brandon Mull
And beyond all the great writing, reading, and life advice, there are all of the cool, random facts you learn about authors—like that Elizabeth Wein has gone wing-walking, or that Gail Carriger has considered the physics of including ballistics on hot air balloons, or that Marissa Meyer thinks being locked in a Rapunzel-esque tower with nothing but books and writing instruments sounds like a dream come true.
So, it’s time to get started on planning for next November, because you do not want to miss another YALLFest. (Did I mention they give away free books? Because yeah, they do.)