The 2022 West Virginia Book Festival will be held at the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center on October 21 and 22, featuring bestselling authors Elin Hilderbrand, C.J. Box, V.E. Schwab, and Marc Brown, as well as local authors Charlie Ryan and Mitch Evans. Authors James & Deborah Fallows will be featured at the McCreight Lecture in the Humanities on October 20 at the University of Charleston. All events and programs are free and open to the public.
Scheduled presentation times for American author and illustrator Marc Brown and fantasy author V.E. Schwab have changed. Brown will now appear Saturday morning, October 22 at 11 a.m. Brown is one of the most prominent names in children’s literature and author of the bestselling Arthur books and the creator of the award–winning animated Arthur series on PBS. Schwab’s presentation is now set for Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. Schwab has 20 published novels to her credit, including the acclaimed Shades of Magic series.
The Book Festival’s other featured authors will appear at the following times:
- Thursday, 7:30 p.m. The West Virginia Humanities Council will present award-winning journalists and bestselling authors James and Deborah Fallows at the University of Charleston’s Geary Auditorium for the 2022 McCreight Lecture in the Humanities.
- Friday, 6 p.m. – “An Evening with Elin Hilderbrand”. Hilderbrand is the author of twenty-eight novels, including her latest, The Hotel Nantucket.
- Saturday, 9 a.m. – Charlie Ryan and Mitch Evans will discuss their book, Murder on Staunton Road. The book tells the tale of the unsolved 1953 murder of Juliet Staunton Clark, then owner of Charleston’s Daily Mail newspaper.
- Saturday, 3 p.m. – American mystery novelist C.J. Box will close out the Book Festival presentations on Saturday afternoon. Box is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of 30 novels, including the Joe Pickett series.
In addition to its featured speakers, the West Virginia Book Festival will also present a series of programs and workshops during the two-day event.
Friday, October 21
- 10 a.m. – A celebration of Kevin Locke – Visionary Storyteller and Artist
- 10 a.m. – Author Lo Patrick’s workshop for aspiring writers, Becoming Your Narrator.
- 1 p.m. – A.S. Drayton presents a hands-on writing workshop, Inspiring Introspection Through Extrospection.
- 1 p.m. – Author Ashley Bloom’s offers a presentation on Appalachian Magic.
- 3:30 p.m. – Sarah Loudin Thomas presents the writing workshop, Stitching Stories with History.
- 3:30 p.m. – John Billheimer’s program is devoted to legendary film director Alfred Hitchcock, Hitchcock and the Censors.
Saturday, October 22
- 9 a.m. – Ashley Belote presents her writing workshop, Stories through Words & Pictures: How to Craft a Children’s Book.
- 10 a.m. – Bright Star Theatre will perform a literary performance, A Tell-Tale Tale: The Stories and Poems of Edgar Allen Poe.
- 11 a.m. – Local historian Dr. Phillip Hatfield presents The Other Feud: ‘Devil Anse’ Hatfield in the Civil War.
- 1 p.m. – Author William “Bill” Bitner offers his unique program, Wrestling with Appalachian Horror.
The Marketplace featuring authors, publishers, and literary-related vendors will be open on Friday from 11:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m. and Saturday from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. The Used Book Sale will be held on Saturday only from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Children’s Word Play area will be open on Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Marketplace, Used Book Sale, and Word Play will be located in the Convention Center’s Grand Hall.
The West Virginia Book Festival is made possible by its charter presenters – Kanawha County Public Library, Library Foundation of Kanawha County, Inc., West Virginia Humanities Council, and Charleston Gazette-Mail. Additional sponsors for this year’s festival include West Virginia Public Broadcasting, West Virginia Library Commission, Center for the Book, Nelle Ratrie Chilton Charitable Trust, Marshall University Foundation, TC Energy Corporation, Truist West Virginia Foundation, Encova Foundation of West Virginia, and Friends of the Library Foundation of Kanawha County, Inc.
All activities are free and open to the public. For more information visit www.wvbookfestival.org.