• The day begins at 8:30 am.  The doors to The Polessini 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.  
• The opening session is from 9:15 am - 10:15 am.  This grand session features all of our TBF authors.
• From 10:30 am - 2:30 pm there will be four author sessions which run for 40 minutes 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 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 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 the RIT campus 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.

More details coming soon!
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 Dori at roctbf@gmail.com 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. 

More information coming soon!

The address of the campus is 1 Lomb Memorial Dr, Rochester, NY 14623

 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.

Unfortunately, lunch vouchers are not available.

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. 

RIT will have a variety of concession stands open for purchase of food. In addition, TBF has arranged for several food trucks to be on site.  

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.

Saturday, May 16, 2020.

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.