Midtown Author to Speak at Decatur Book Festival

Midtown resident Jackson Pearce will be among the young adult authors who will discuss demons, zombies, beauty queens, proms and the boy next door, among other topics, at the teen stage at the sixth annual Decatur Book Festival on Labor Day weekend.

Pearce, author of Sweetly, will join Rachel Hawkins (Demon Glass), and Victoria Schwab (The Near Witch) on Sunday, Sept. 4, at 2 p.m. for a panel discussion titled “A Bunch of Real (Cool) Witches.”

"The panel is a fun way for all three of us to promote our titles," Pearce said. "I live in Midtown, so the Decatur Book Festival is one of my favorite times of the year."

Pearce's third novel, Sweetly, was released last week by Little Brown, which also published her second novel, Sisters Red, a companion book and a retelling of the Hansel and Gretel story. Her first novel, As You Wish, was published by HarperCollins.

Sweetly tells the tale of Gretchen, her twin sister and her brother Ansel who found something when they went looking for a witch in the forest. But they fled their discovery and Gretchen’s twin sister was never seen again.

Years later, after being thrown out of their house, Gretchen and Ansel find themselves in Live Oak, S.C., a place on the verge of becoming a ghost town. But the witch isn’t gone—it’s there, lurking in the forests of Live Oak, preying on Live Oak girls every year. Gretchen digs deeper into the mystery of not only what the witch is, but how it chooses its victims. Yet the further she investigates, the more she finds herself wondering who the real monster is, and if love can be as deadly as it is beautiful.

Pearce lives in Midtown "with a slightly cross-eyed cat and a lot of secondhand furniture." She was graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in English and a minor in philosophy. According to her biography, she auditioned for the circus once but didn't make it. Her other jobs include obituaries writer, biker bar waitress and receptionist. In addition, Jackson coaches both color guard and winter guard at a local high school.

Other teen writers at the festival

The Escape teen stage began in 2008, and Book Fest Program Director Terra Elan McVoy says it keeping growing in quality and popularity. The stage will be at the Decatur Library.

"Every year it just gets more and more thrilling," said McVoy, who is a published young adult author herself. "To have so many talented, award-winning, popular and interesting young adult authors on one stage is a personal delight for me.”

Printz Award-winning and international bestselling author Libba Bray will strut her stuff on Saturday, Sept. 3, at 1 p.m. with her hilarious and irreverant new "Lord of the Flies-meets-Miss America" novel, Beauty Queens. She has written many other popular and New York Times bestselling books, including the Gemma Doyle series and Going Bovine.

Lauren Myracle, “the Judy Blume of the 21st century,” will be promoting her new rooted-in-the-South dark mystery, Shine, Saturday, Sept. 3, at 2 p.m. at the Escape Stage at the Decatur Library. Myracle grew up in Atlanta where she attended the Trinity School and The Westminster Schools. Get a Myracle encore at 4 p.m. at the Children's Stage where she will speak about her book Ten (the Winnie Years).

Two authors will share their work, and maybe some advice on surviving a zombie and/or plague-induced apocalypse on Saturday, Sept. 3, at 4 p.m.  Authors Jonathan Maberry (Rot & Ruin) and Jeff Hirsch (The Eleventh Plague) will put their heads together to offer zombie protection advice. 

Though paranormal, sci-fi, and fantasy books are selling strong,  books with real voices about real girls remain popular. Stephanie Perkins (Lola and the Boy Next Door), Elizabeth Eulberg (Prom and Prejudice), and Jennifer Jabaley (Crush Control) are getting together at 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 4, to talk about how they continue to make reality relevant.

Many authors will be discussing new additions to their acclaimed series. Simone Elekeles will explore her new addition to her Perfect Chemistry series, Chain Reaction on Saturday, Sept. 3, at 3 p.m.

Lisa McMann will be appearing Saturday, Sept. 3, at noon to discuss her popular and critically acclaimed WAKE trilogy as well as her standalone title, Cryer’s Cross. McMann will appear again Saturday, Sept. 3, at 3 p.m. at the Children's Stage to discuss adventures into the unknown.

The sixth annual Decatur Book Festival is expected to draw more than 300 authors and thousands of festival goers to historic downtown Decatur Square Sept. 2 to 4. People will enjoy book signings, author readings, panel discussions, an interactive children’s area, live music, parades, cooking demonstrations, poetry slams, writing workshops and more.

Related Topics: Decatur Book Festival, Elizabeth Eulberg, Jeff Hirsch, Jennifer Jabaley, Jonathan Maberry, Libba Bray, Simone Elekeles, Stephanie Perkins, Teen Authors, and Zombies