NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE:BKS), the nation’s largest retail bookseller and a leading retailer of content, digital media and educational products, today introduced B-Fest (BN.com/B-FEST), the Company’s first-ever teen book festival and the largest national teen book festival in the United States. B-Fest will take place at all Barnes & Noble stores nationwide Friday, June 10, through Sunday, June 12, and will feature hundreds of authors of teen books appearing at stores nationwide in what will be the largest-ever weekend of author events in Barnes & Noble history. The list includes some of the most beloved and bestselling names in the teen space such as Jay Asher (Thirteen Reasons Why), Jesse Andrews (The Haters), Nicola Yoon (Everything, Everything), Rick Yancey (The Last Star), Christopher Paolini (The Inheritance Cycle) and hundreds more! Customers should contact their local store for more details on author appearances.
B-Fest will also feature other engaging events and activities for teens, including a story development workshop, cosplay, trivia and interactive games, all designed to provide teens with unique and fun experiences that will fuel their love of reading and writing. During B-Fest, teens will get access to free content including chapter samplers, an exciting cover reveal, and more, while supplies last. Plus, one Trivia Blast winner per store will be added to Penguin Teen’s Advanced Reader Copy mailing list for one year, and receive between 5 and 6 preselected advance reader’s copies of books that have not yet been released.
“Barnes & Noble has always been a destination for teens to explore and expand their love of reading, and now we’re taking our commitment to teens to the next level by rolling out our first-ever national teen book festival,” said Mary Amicucci, Chief Merchandising Officer at Barnes & Noble. “B-Fest is all about delivering an authentic book festival experience to teens that will bring the exciting worlds of writing and publishing to life. Best of all, B-Fest will bring an unprecedented number of authors of teen books to Barnes & Noble stores to engage their fans across the country.”
The three-day B-Fest teen book festival will feature four cornerstone events that will take place at all stores, in addition to a massive schedule of author appearances nationally, and other events that will occur at the local level. Following are the events happening at all stores:
B-In the Know – Friday, June 10 at 7PM
Teens can be a part of an exciting Trivia Blast based on leading teen book properties, hosted by Barnes & Noble and created by Penguin Teen and Random House’s First In Line. One winner in every store will receive advance reader’s copies of the most anticipated new teen books.
Felicia Frazier, Senior Vice President, Director, Young Readers Sales, Penguin Random House, said, “Penguin Random House really looks forward to participating in Barnes & Noble’s first-ever teen-book fest. B-Fest is a great way for us to reach teens across the country, and our authors who are attending B&N in-store events are excited about the opportunity to greet their fans.”
In addition, attendees at the B-In the Know event will receive a free B-Fest Guide from Penguin Random House containing everything they need to know about the hottest trends in teen books. The guide includes sneak peeks into bestselling authors’ habits, hopes, homes and hobbies, as well as never-before-seen content for upcoming books. It’s available while supplies last so B-there early!
B-First – Saturday, June 11 at 11AM
There’s nothing more exciting than being the first to get the inside scoop, and any teens who visit Barnes & Noble during B-Fest will get just that on the fascinating world of teen books. During the “B-First” event at Barnes & Noble, customers can get chapter samplers of upcoming book releases, while supplies last, as well as other exclusive content including a very special cover reveal that attendees will not want to miss. Teens at the B-First event will also receive a free ‘Epic Reads’ festival brochure provided by HarperCollins, while supplies last, that includes specially curated content like sneak peeks of upcoming books and fun quizzes, crosswords and more.
B-Part of the Fun – Saturday, June 11 at 2PM
Barnes & Noble stores have always been places where communities come together in the spirit of learning and fun, and B-Fest will be no different. The “B-Part of the Fun” event will feature interactive games and activities around popular teen book series, with giveaways and prizes based on these leading properties. Games and activities will include a spelling showdown, story ball, and many other activities like scavenger hunts and charades. Fun prizes for the winners include tote bags, notebooks and more. Cosplay is also encouraged, including an Instagram sweeps, for those 13 and older, that runs throughout the weekend where a teen/young adult-inspired cosplay pic posted with the hashtag #BFestBuzz will be chosen at random to win a prize pack of 50 teen hardcover books from HarperCollins Publishers Children's Books. Check Instagram.com/barnesandnoble for complete details and Official Rules after June 9.
B-Creative – Sunday, June 12 at 2PM
Teens have always been big readers, but they also love to write. That’s why B-Fest will feature the “B-Creative” event, where teens can participate in a story development workshop created by Adaptive Studios, a pioneering new company that transforms pending movie scripts into re-imagined novels that ultimately make it to the big screen. Teens will learn how to write “log lines,” “spark pages” and tips for reimagining popular characters. They can also share their writing with peers if they choose to.
B-There (Check with your local Barnes & Noble store)
Barnes & Noble has long been the destination for customers to meet their favorite authors, but B-Fest takes that promise to an unprecedented new level. During B-Fest, hundreds of authors of teen books will appear at stores nationwide in what will be the largest-ever weekend of author events in Barnes & Noble history. Authors will include big names like Sabaa Tahir (An Ember in the Ashes), Brandon Sanderson (Calamity) and Jazz Jennings (Being Jazz: My Life as a (Transgender) Teen) with more being booked every day. Customers can visit the Barnes & Noble Store Locator (www.bn.com/storelocator) for the latest details on who’s appearing at their local store.
Barnes & Noble will be announcing more events, exciting author appearances and signings, giveaways and exclusive content in the coming weeks. For more information on B-Fest, customers should visit BN.com/B-FEST or ask one of the knowledgeable booksellers at their local Barnes & Noble store.
Teens should follow Barnes & Noble on Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr and like Barnes & Noble on Facebook for the very latest information on B-Fest, and join in on the conversation using the hashtag, #BFestBuzz. All throughout B-Fest weekend Barnes & Noble will be running social media sweepstakes* with fantastic prizes. Stay tuned to Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook in the coming weeks for more details and Official Rules.
* Must be 13 years of age or older at time of entry and a resident of the U.S. to participate in Sweepstakes.
About Barnes & Noble, Inc.
Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS) is a Fortune 500 company, the nation’s largest retail bookseller, and a leading retailer of content, digital media and educational products. The Company operates 640 Barnes & Noble bookstores in 50 states, and one of the Web’s premier e-commerce sites, BN.com (www.bn.com). The Nook Digital business offers a lineup of popular NOOK® tablets and eReaders and an expansive collection of digital reading and entertainment content through the NOOK Store®. The NOOK Store features more than 4 million digital books in the US (www.nook.com), plus periodicals and comics, and offers the ability to enjoy content across a wide array of popular devices through Free NOOK Reading Apps™ available for Android™, iOS® and Windows®.
General information on Barnes & Noble, Inc. can be obtained by visiting the Company's corporate website at www.barnesandnobleinc.com.
Barnes & Noble®, Barnes & Noble Booksellers®, Barnes & Noble.com® and Discover Great New Writers® are trademarks of Barnes & Noble, Inc. or its affiliates. NOOK® and the NOOK logos are trademarks of Nook Digital, LLC or its affiliates.
For more information on Barnes & Noble, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr, and like us on Facebook. For more information on NOOK, follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
