AUTHORS WANTED! We're looking for talented, prolific authors!

The 10^th anniversary of the Leimert Park Village Book Fair (LPVBF) will be held onSaturday, August 20, 2016 in Los Angeles. The book fair will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the grounds of the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza (BHCP), located at 3650 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. The family-oriented event is held in the heart of Leimert Park, which is considered the center of the African American arts/intellectual scene in LA. The book fair will be held outdoors, and luckily, it rarely rains in Southern California!

“Voted One of LA’s Five Best Annual Book Festivals,” the LPVBF has become a much-anticipated cultural tradition in the community. It provides authors an opportunity to promote their newest work as well as meet some of their fans up close and personal. The LPVBF is produced by Exum and Associates in collaboration with Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, District 2; the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs; City of Los Angeles and Capri Capital Partners of the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza mall. We’re excited that philanthropists and community leaders Dr. Bernard W. and Shirley Kinsey have returned as the Book Fair’s chairpersons.

Last year, the Book Fair was a great success with more than 150 authors, writers, storytellers, poets, spoken word performers, vendors and exhibitors. This year, we expect more than 10,000 book fair attendees and literary enthusiasts! We’re very excited about our program’s growth in numbers and popularity, and we look forward to you joining us.

As a participating author, the book fair will provide the following:

• Promotional support of book fair appearance and inclusion in the BHCP’s promotional campaign;
• VIP admission to the authors’ breakfast;
• VIP admission to all LPVBF  “bookend” special events;
• a designated area for book signings and discussions;
• VIP admission to the hospitality lounge; and
• photo opportunities and interviews on the red-carpet area.

Depending on the level of an author’s participation, the organizers of LPVBF may extend additional accommodations and hospitalities. For authors participating on the main stage, the book fair has special programming planned, including Q & A sessions and panel discussions, moderated by prominent LA journalists.

PAST PARTICIPANTS

In the past nine years, LPVBF has had an incredible lineup of authors, poets, celebrity authors, speakers and artists, including Pulitzer Prize winners Isabel Wilkerson and Douglas A. Blackmon; prominent literary figure Ishmael Reed; New York Times best seller Eric Jerome Dickey; author Tananarive Due and novelist/screenwriter Steve Barnes; novelist/screenwriter/producer Attica Locke; author Pamela Samuels Young; poet/activist Nikki Giovanni and poet/playwright Sonia Sanchez; author and Essence magazine Editor-in-Chief Emeritus Susan L. Taylor; economist and political commentator Julianne Malveaux; spoken word tour-de-force-Talaam Acey, award-winning filmmaker Ava DuVernay, world-renowned visual artists Charles Bibbs, Synthia Saint James and Varnette P. Honeywood -- just to name a few.

Names from the entertainment world – that is, actors-turned authors include Oscar winner Louis Gossett Jr.; along with award-winning actors Victoria Rowell (The Young and the Restless”); Hill Harper (“CSI: NY”); Todd Bridges (Diff’rent Stokes); Isaiah Washington (“Grey’s Anatomy”); Emmy-nominated music director Rickey Minor ("American Idol" and band leader of the "Tonight Show"); reality star NeNe Leakes ("Real Housewives of Atlanta”); writer and reality star Demetria Lucas D’Oyley (“Blood, Sweat & Heels”); playwright/author Donald Welch; and actress/children’s author Kim Wayans -- just to name a few.

As you're making the rounds to publicize your books, I hope you will come to LA, and include the 10 anniversary of the Leimert Park Village Book Fair as part of your promotional efforts.  

CONTACT:

PUBLICIST (for literary authors & celebrity authors)

Wyllisa Bennett, publicist du jour

wyllisa@aol.com

310.266.9704

 

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER (for sponsorships & special events)

Cynthia Exum, Exum and Associates  

Exum12@gmail.com

323-730-0628

 

GET SOCIAL WITH THE LEIMERT PARK VILLAGE BOOK FAIR

Visit us at  www.leimertparkbookfair.com. 

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“Voted One of LA’s Five Best Annual Book Festivals”

 http://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/california/articles/la-s-5-best-annual-book-festivals/