We Love “Love Y’all Fest”!

— Celebrate Romance at Georgia’s Annual Romance Party

By: Leah Thakur 

Lover cardigans, friendship bracelets, smutty character art, oh my! These are just a few of the most iconic things found at the second annual Love Y’all Romance Book Festival. 

Decatur, Georgia served as the backdrop for a truly beautiful weekend spent celebrating romance novels, readers, and writers. This past Valentine’s Day weekend, romance fans filled the darling town with love, inclusivity, fun, and SO MANY books. The location was perfect, with plenty of delicious restaurants within walking distance, multiple local bookstores (including Eagle Eye Book Shop owned by one of the founders of the event!), and an idyllic proximity to downtown Atlanta.

The event kicked off on Friday with multiple author events such as a Ghost Tour, a Sip and Paint Party, Romantasy Camp, a Movie Screening, and a Karaoke Party. Then, the festival itself began Saturday morning. With over 70 authors in attendance, over 30 panels, 16 vendors to shop with, and multiple ARC drops throughout the weekend, the schedule was packed!

I Truly Had A Lovely Time at Love Y’all

This was my first book festival, and walking into the space I was so overwhelmed with joy! In the center of the room there were booksellers set up with massive inventory from four local bookstores: Eagle Eye Book Shop, Brave + Kind Books, Charis Books and More, and Read It Again Bookstore. But, it was at the opening remarks that this festival cemented itself as an experience near and dear to my heart. The founders, Vania Stoyanova, Preet Singh, Hannah Morgan Teachout, and Jo Schulte, welcomed us to the event and made a powerful statement about their commitment to Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Asian folks, queer and trans folks, neurodiverse and disabled folks, women and femmes, anti-fascism, and made an acknowledgement of the Indigenous land the festival took place on. The festival also supported three different charities: Charis Circle, Brave and Kind Books Friends Foundation, and Vow For Girls.

After opening remarks, the festival took off! Throughout the weekend I attended three panels, starting with the “Five Chili Peppers” panel about smut and romance. It was refreshing and so fun to hear authors and readers be so unapologetic about the value of sex in romance. I also attended the “Heartstrings and Headspace” panel, where authors talked about the importance and the craft of writing mental health struggles and grief into their books. It was so validating to hear the authors talk about romance as the perfect space to house these human experiences in their characters’ stories. To finish out my weekend, I was able to attend the “Bi the Way” panel about bisexuality in romance books and let me tell you, it was exactly the chaotic bi energy I needed!

Over the two days, I was able to meet 10 authors, get all my books signed and get a ton of stickers and character art! Maybe I was just lucky, but I only waited twenty minutes or less to get my books signed by incredibly popular authors like Ali Hazelwood, Julie Soto, and Ashley Herring Blake. I was honored to be able to meet so many Black women authors in one space like Etta Easton, Karmen Lee, and Kristina Forest. And, perhaps most excitedly, I was so excited to hear new-to-me authors at some of the panels and fall in love like I did with Katie Duggan, Jillian Meadows, and Tati Richardson! 

I think it’s also very telling that my best friend, who is not primarily a romance reader but tagged along for the adventure (we love female friendships!), also enjoyed herself and left with way more books than she came with!

A Moment For the Community

[I have pictures of everyone labeled by their name and handle in the images folder]

With hundreds of other attendees, I thought it would be important to get some input from the community on their experiences at the festival!

Alex (@alex.da.bibliophile on Instagram)

I spoke with Alex (alex.da.bibliophile) who attended as an influencer, and she had so many wonderful things to share about her experience: “I truly appreciated the diverse representation of authors at the event. It was inspiring to see voices from all genders, races, and backgrounds being celebrated, each bringing unique perspectives and stories to the table. The attendees were truly the heart of the event, bringing an incredible energy and enthusiasm that made the experience even more special. Their passion for books, engaging questions, and thoughtful discussions added so much depth to each panel and conversation. It was inspiring to be surrounded by a community of readers, writers, and book lovers who share a genuine love for romance. The connections made and the shared excitement throughout the event were a testament to how powerful and unifying literature can be.” 

She said it best, but my fellow attendees have my heart forever. I’ve never been in a space that felt more welcoming and kind than I did at this festival full of romance readers. 

Alex also shared details of her experience as an influencer, speaking about the joys she experienced! She says, “I had the absolute pleasure of working alongside some incredible influencers at the event, and it was truly an amazing experience. Collaborating with others who share a passion for books and storytelling made the event even more special. The energy, creativity, and camaraderie among us were inspiring, and it was great to see how each person brought their unique perspective and enthusiasm to the table. Being part of such a dynamic group made the experience even more memorable.” 

Del (@booksbeyondthebinary on Instagram)

Del (booksbeyondthebinary) went to the event as an attendee, and they also shared positive experiences, “My experience with the panels was great! There were a lot of choices for every reader and I appreciated the queer panels specifically. Every author interaction was very wholesome. I had plenty of time with every single author I had the pleasure of meeting and it was so nice to get to ask them questions directly about their books. I loved the actual venue for the event. It was very easy to navigate and very centrally located in Decatur, making grabbing food outside of the venue super easy. There were several local Atlanta bookstores in attendance selling books, all of whom I absolutely adore. It was nice to get to see some of my favorite booksellers at the event.” 

As a queer romance reader myself, I was so glad to hear from other folks that they also felt the inclusion of queerness throughout the event. I also love Del’s shoutout to the booksellers, because they truly kept the event going. Speaking for myself, I left with double the books I came with!

Jasmine (@bookedandfrizzy on Instagram)

Jasmine (bookedandfrizzy) shared, “I went with a friend and we had an exceptional time. I did get the VIP tickets and I would definitely say they were worth the money. 

The Friday night author experience was phenomenal. We did axe throwing and all the influencers and attendees who were there were cool. The authors were so nice and accommodating, everyone was super sweet! It was a really fun night and we even ended up connecting with Kimberly Lemming and going out to dinner with her which was really unexpected and cool. 

I really enjoyed the panels and I liked that they had other authors leading the discussions. I felt like the questions they asked were very insightful and really entertaining overall. 

Also, meeting the authors was super cool and I was able to get pictures with all of them. I didn't stand in any line that I thought was outrageous, I thought the lines were fine and I met some really cool attendees while in line. I was able to connect with some people and make some new friends even so that was fun! Everyone was super kind, and had such a positive attitude. 

I feel like the schedule is what worked the most. I’ve been to quite a few book conventions and this one was done really well with the signings, panels, and setup, I was really impressed.” 

I was also deeply impressed by the schedule for this festival! I couldn’t attend any of the Friday author events, but that was such a wonderful idea and, as someone who also attended both days, the schedule really allowed you to meet all the authors you wanted and still get to see the panels.

Shelby (@shelbybooked on Instagram)

Shelby (shelbybooked) worked the event as a volunteer Saturday, and attended the event on Sunday. She shared, “I had the time of my life volunteering at Love Y’all! I only volunteered on Saturday, having spent the entire day (8-6) in the signing room! The main role I took on was walking up and down the signing lines asking attendees if they were planning on getting their books signed and personalized by the authors. If they chose to get them personalized, I had my trusty Post-its and Sharpie ready to write their names to ‘tab the book’ and help keep things moving and, of course, make sure everyone's names were spelled correctly! By the end of the day, I had memorized some attendee faces, which tickled me! I loved seeing that a lot of attendees had started recycling their post-its and/or came with books already tabbed and ready!

The authors were so kind and so grateful. Since we were working and couldn't necessarily stand in the long lines, they were kind enough to sign any books the volunteers left at their tables before they left. I was able to track down some highly anticipated authors I noticed had shorter lines during my break and that meant everything to me, having that option! 

I spent Sunday as an attendee and mostly sitting in on the panels. I think they did a great job with the diversity of each panel and I enjoyed the ones I sat in on!” 

While the attendees were the heart of the event, the volunteers were its soul! Every single volunteer was so kind and organized and truly the reason the event ran so smoothly. 

How Can Love Y’all Keep the Love Growing?

I think it is a testament to the hard work and intentionality that was put into the event that it was actually quite difficult for me, or any of the people that attended, to find anything to critique. However, we as a community always want to support the continued growth of events such as these, so there were a few suggestions from fellow attendees that may make future festivals even better! 

Personally, I felt that combining the author signing space with the vendor hall was a challenge. While volunteers kept the signing lines organized and managed, when longer lines did happen, it made navigating the hall quite difficult. 

Valentina (@sapphic.library on Instagram)

Valentina (sapphic.library) felt similarly to me and shared, “It was my second year attending and overall, I would say it was a great experience! I love this convention so much and it’s been such a wonderful experience both years, but I would love to see them expand to a bigger space. I think it would solve a lot of their problems because in my experience, the vendor hall gets so crowded with both signings and vendor tables.”

 I think this is such a wonderful problem to have, and I love that there were so many people at the festival, but it did lead to the hall being quite crowded. The small space also led to some accessibility issues, and it was difficult at times to move around the space with folks shopping and waiting in lines for signings.

Shelby (shelbybooked) had this to say: “My greatest qualm with the con itself is that signings and panels all happen at the same time so you're having to pick and choose what to sacrifice. As someone who only had one day as an attendee it got to be pretty frustrating.” 

The festival was definitely created with a two day schedule in mind. For those of us who were able to attend both days, it was quite easy to meet all the authors you wanted while still being able to attend the panels you wanted. However, for anyone who could only attend one day, the schedule definitely made it more challenging to accomplish everything.

Jasmine (bookedandfrizzy) also shared, “While the vendors as well as the authors seemed to be very diverse in terms of representations, attendees I felt could have been a little bit more on the diverse side. I’m on Bookstagram so this was marketed to me very visibly and often but there was a point during the keynote speaker where I looked around and I was like okay, I don’t see too many people who look like me in this room. And that did make me feel a little uncomfortable. I wish there was just a little bit more diversity in this audience as far as attendees.” 

This was something else that I also picked up on while attending. While the authors were diverse, and I was so happy to see so many Black women authors signing books, I did not notice the same diversity in attendees. Now, this may just be indicative of the state of publishing, but there are so many Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Asian readers and it would be so beneficial to reach more audiences with next year’s marketing.

It was clear that everyone I spoke to, myself included, loved the event and can’t wait to attend next year. Everyone who made this event possible should be so proud of themselves. Del said it best, “For it only being the second year, everything was run incredibly smoothly. With many very popular authors in attendance, none of the lines ever felt chaotic or mismanaged, it was a seamless event!”

The Happy Ever After

Whether you came with a group, your person, or by yourself, the whole event felt like a slumber party with your kindest and most fun friends. Love Y’all Fest 2026 will take place February 13-15, so mark your calendars, start working on your friendship bracelets, and lookout for influencer applications, volunteer applications, and ticket announcements!