YALC is the Young Adult Literature Convention, held annually in London Olympia for all of us book nerds to get together. There are authors, workshops and stalls, it’s three days of a lot of fun!

What is YALC and where is it?

YALC is an event focused around young adult literature that spans over three days. Authors attend and talk on panels and take part in signings, there are booths with bookish merchandise and publishers, and there are workshops throughout the weekend. It takes place the last weekend of July over Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

The London Olympia is the venue for this amazing event, which is also home to London Film and Comic Con over this long weekend. Which means you’re in for a treat of celebrity spotting and cosplays, which always makes the event all the more fun.

Which authors attend YALC?

Each year we receive the author announcements for YALC and can madly run around and try to read ALL the books before July! You can find the list of authors here for YALC 2019. This year some of the event attendee highlights for me include, V.E. Schwab, Samantha Shannon and Jim Kay.

What is an average day at YALC like?

I tend to arrive at the venue around 10:30 am, with a plan in my head of the talks I’d like to attend and the authors I’d like to meet. That usually then gets thrown out of the window when I find out there’s a release of an ARC I desperately want to get my hands on.

There is usually a lot of free space to move around at YALC, whilst it gets busy I would always say there is room to breathe if you need it. There are lots of stalls that are home to publishers and bookish shops that offer a break from queueing for author signings and book panels.

I will usually find my group of friends and see what they’re going to be up to for the day and what we can do together. I usually find that it’s quite hard to stick to the plans you’ve made in your head when you actually get to the venue and the days go very fast! It’ll be over before you know it and you’ll set in with the YALC hangover.

How do the author signings work?

There is a long line of tables at the back of the venue, these will then have authors names on them ready for the first signings of the day. The signings will usually take place after the authors have spoken on their panels. They are every two hours, but sometimes popular authors do tend to run over.

You may find some queues are ticketed to save you waiting in line for hours. In this situation, you’re given a raffle ticket and told to come back when your number is called, so they’ll work through 1-20 then 20-30 etc. I think this works a lot better as it means you can still go and enjoy other parts of YALC whilst you wait for your signing. This also stops queues getting too long and taking over the free space in the venue.

How can I find the YALC schedule?

You can either find the YALC schedule here, or I have added it below:

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Can I bring my own food and drink?

Yes, you can and yes you should. There are several small shops around the venue and I would highly advise stocking up in them before a full day at YALC. There are places to eat at the venue, but they can be very pricey on top of an already very expensive weekend. I would highly recommend bringing a couple of bottles of water too as YALC takes place in the peak of summer and has a glass rough, meaning it can get very hot!

Is there seating?

As someone with scoliosis, this is one of my first questions and is one I have asked YALC multiple times to no avail. Yes, there is seating, sort of, on their website YALC have said the following:

So basically, if like me, you are need of back support, don’t assume you will get it. There are seats with back support in the panels, but other than that, you will be challenged to find one. There is a Chill Out Zone, which is tucked away, but last year this had bean bags so not exactly back support… I’m hoping this changes this year, but so far I’ve heard no word from YALC.

How many days is YALC?

YALC last for three days, from Friday to Sunday, you don’t have to attend every day though. The busiest day is Saturday, Friday is usually the quietest, whilst Sunday sees all of the books being reduced in price, so that’s always a fun one too!

I would personally advise taking the Monday off work too if you can, this is to prepare for the YALC hangover as you realise you have to wait a year for the next event.

Can I also attend LFCC?

Yes, you can, your YALC tickets also gain you access to London Film & Comic Con which is on the first two floors of the Olympia, of which YALC is on the top floor. This means you can buy tickets to have photos with the guests attending LFCC and still pop back up to YALC whenever you choose.

I hope you enjoy your trip to YALC, say hi if you see me there!