• The day begins at 8:30 am.  The doors to Shults Center open at this time. Teens are welcome to come browse the TBF merchandise table, the bookstore (provided by Barnes & Noble), and our other sponsor and vendor tables.  Bus leaders can use this time to buy lunch vouchers to purchase a value meal in the Cabaret for large groups of attendees.
• The opening session is from 9:15 am - 10:15 am.  This grand session features our teen artist contest winners and all of our TBF authors.
• From 10:30 am - 2:30 pm there will be four author sessions which run for 40minutes each.  Every author will present three times throughout the day. Teens are given priority seating in all sessions.  There will also be many teen-focused art and writing workshops running once or twice during the day. You choose which sessions to attend. 
• The autograph session begins at 2:30pm.  The program will identify where the author will be giving autographs. To ensure the authors can leave on time the TBF (committee) volunteers will make a determination at 4:30 regarding the length of the line.  At that time, they may need to stop newcomers from joining an autographing line if there are already too many people in the queue.  They may also limit the number of items being autographed by any author.  
• All authors and guests must depart Nazareth College at 5pm.

You don’t register for specific author sessions ahead of time. Each author presents three times, so you have three chances to get to hear him or her speak. Seating preference will be given to teens at all sessions, so if teens are waiting to get into a session and there are adults in seats, the adults will be asked to give up their seats for teens.  We encourage you to plan session options for the day.  This way if you don’t get a seat in your first choice, you will have a second choice mapped out.  The final schedule with a map of the campus will be posted by May 1st on the Schedule page and also under the "For Attendees" tab.

This year we have teamed up with The Hilton Garden Inn, Rochester/Pittsford in Bushnell’s Basin, just a short drive from the Nazareth College Campus. More details are on the TBF website under Travel & Lodging. There is a link to the Nazareth College website with more specific information on additional hotel options including distance from hotel to the campus. Traditionally, TBF takes place on a busy weekend in Rochester, with several college graduations and the Lilac Festival, so reserve early!

YES! And if you buy your books AT TBF, a portion of the sales goes back to TBF. It would be great if you wait to buy your books until then. You can also bring books you already own to be autographed. If you are a teacher or librarian and have a lot of books, depending on the length of the autographing lines, you may be asked to limit the number or go back to the end of the line for additional books.

No, unfortunately not.

If you have questions concerning access or disability-related accommodations please contact Dr. Laura C.S. Jones at (585) 389-2634 or ljones1@naz.edu. Please note: All requests for specific accommodations must be made no later than March 30th. There are also designated parking areas for those who need accessible parking. 

If you plan to bring a bus of students to TBF, you must complete a TBF bus form online.  Once you submit your bus form, we will send specific directions regarding where the bus must enter campus, drop off students, and park.

It is imperative that you follow the directions we send you rather than directions from Google Maps.

Chaperoning your students is up to you, but it is recommended. We suggest making sure your students have the mobile number of an adult in your group in case they need to reach you during TBF. All visitors must conduct themselves in a way that will not cause a situation which endangers the mental or physical health of any person, or interferes with the Festival events.

Here are some other ideas for chaperoning.  

If you still have questions about bringing a bus, please email buses@teenbookfest.org. 

The address of the campus is 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, NY 14618. TBF’s main entrance is the Otto A. Shults Community Center. There is a map of the Nazareth Campus on the TBF website (under Travel & Lodging and also under "For Attendees>Parking and Campus Maps" ) that shows all the surrounding parking areas for individual cars. The campus is very “pedestrian friendly” and there are many parking lots to select from which are close to the Shults Center. At all times, visitors must conduct themselves in a way that will not cause a situation which endangers the mental or physical health of any person, or interferes with the Festival events.

While we try to have a variety of food options available, if you have specific food allergies or requirements, you may want to consider bringing your own bagged lunch/snacks. 

There will be one main cafeteria, The Cabaret, open on campus in the Otto A. Shults Community Center.  To make this as easy as possible, Nazareth food service recommends purchasing a pre-paid lunch voucher.  The certificates only cover the value of a meal package sold in the Cabaret.  Lunch certificates can be purchased the morning of TBF.  These certificates can be paid for using cash, check, or credit card. School or library purchase orders are not possible.   Visit the “For Attendees” tab for more info about the menu options.  

In addition, TBF has arranged for several food trucks to be on site.  The food trucks also donate a portion of their sales back to TBF.  Lunch certificates are not valid at the food trucks or other vendors not associated with Nazareth College.

There is no cost to attend TBF thanks to our generous sponsors.  We are always looking for sponsors that would be a good fit for TBF (and TBF a good fit for them).  If you know of any businesses or organizations that would be interested in learning more about sponsorship opportunities, please contact us at sponsorships@teenbookfest.org.  

Group fundraisers are another way to contribute to TBF.  Read-a-Thons, bottle & can drives, staff “Denim Days at your workplace, and car washes are just a few ways that you could help raise money for TBF.  These ideas might also help a school district or library fund a bus to bring teens to TBF.

TBF relies on both monetary and in-kind support.  If you are an individual who would like to contribute to TBF, every amount helps and all donations are tax deductible. Click here to donate online, or here to download a mail in form.

May 18, 2019.

We try very hard to balance teen interest, genre, and age appeal.  Each year we gather feedback and suggestions from attendees as to who they would like to meet at TBF.  We welcome queries at authors@teenbookfest.org   or publishers@teenbookfest.org .

Please contact us.