Southern Festival of Books Announces Additional Author Appearances

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Humanities Tennessee, in partnership with Vanderbilt University, today announced exciting updates to the author lineup for the 2026 Southern Festival of Books. Joining the packed schedule of authors is Pulitzer Prize recipient Jayne Anne Phillips, New York Times bestselling authors PC Cast and Sarah Beth Durst, actress Danica McKellar, Nashville historian Benjamin Houston and more.

One of the oldest and largest literary events in the country, the Southern Festival of Books returns to Bicentennial Mall State Park from 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. on Saturday, October 17, and from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Sunday, October 18, welcoming crowds of more than 25,000 attendees for panel sessions, discussions, book signings, and readings. The Southern Festival of Books will feature appearances from approximately 200 authors representing a wide variety of genres, including fiction and nonfiction, young adult literature, poetry, science fiction, romance, and mystery.

In addition to authors previously announced earlier this summer, joining this year’s Southern Festival of Books will be:

PC Cast
(Queen of Shadow): PC Cast is a veteran of the United States Air Force and taught high school English for 15 years before retiring to write full time. Her novels have been No. 1 on the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists, and her landmark House of Night series has sold over 30 million copies worldwide.

Tony DiTerlizzi
(The Wump): Tony DiTerlizzi is the co-creator of the No. 1 New York Times bestselling Spiderwick Chronicles series which has sold over 20 million copies worldwide. The series inspired a major motion picture and was recently reimagined as an Emmy Award-winning television series for the Roku Channel. His bestselling science-fiction trilogy, WondLa, was also adapted by Skydance Animation and is now streaming on Apple TV+.

Sarah Beth Durst
(Sea of Charms; A Spellshop Novel): Sarah Beth Durst is the No. 1 New York Times bestselling author of over 30 books for kids, teens, and adults, including cozy fantasy The Spellshop. She's been awarded the American Library Association Alex Award, the Libby Book Award for Best Fantasy, and the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award. Several of her books have been optioned for film/television, including Drink Slay Love, which was made into a TV movie and was a question on Jeopardy!

Penn and Kim Holderness
(Get It Done and Have Fun! ADHD Hacks for Awesome Kids): Penn and Kim Holderness are the New York Times bestselling authors of All You Can Be with ADHD and ADHD Is Awesome, social media creators, award-winning podcasters, game creators, and winners of The Amazing Race. Their viral videos have garnered over 3 billion views and have been featured on Good Morning America, the Today show, Fox News Channel, and CNN.

Patricia Lockwood
(Agate Head / Stone Soup): Patricia Lockwood is the author of the novel No One is Talking About This, a finalist for the Booker Prize; the memoir Priestdaddy, which was named one of the 10 best books of the year by the New York Times Book Review; and the poetry collection Balloon Pop Outlaw Black. Lockwood’s writing has appeared in The New York Times, The New Yorker, The New Republic, and the London Review of Books, where she is a contributing editor.

Danica McKellar
(I Love You to 100: A Counting Book Full of Love): Danica McKellar is the New York Times bestselling author of the groundbreaking McKellar Math books, including middle school hit Math Doesn’t Suck, and she has helped over 2 million kids excel in math with her entertaining books. She graduated summa cum laude from UCLA with a degree in mathematics and has published an original theorem, now known as the Chayes-McKellar-Winn theorem, in the prestigious Journal of Physics. She testified before Congress about encouraging women to excel in mathematics and was even named “Person of the Week” by ABC World News Tonight for her unique and valuable work as a math education author. Danica is also well known for an acting career spanning four decades, including roles on The Wonder Years, The West Wing, her popular holiday movies, and more.

Jayne Anne Phillips
(Small Town Girls: A Memoir): Jayne Anne Phillips is the author of Black Tickets, Machine Dreams, Fast Lanes, Shelter, MotherKind, Lark and Termite, Quiet Dell, and Night Watch, which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 2024. Her work has been a finalist once for the National Book Award and twice for the National Book Critics Circle Award. The recipient of Guggenheim, National Endowment for the Arts, Howard, Bunting, and Rockefeller Foundation fellowships, she is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Tia Williams
(The Missed Connection: A Novel): Tia Williams is the bestselling author of The Accidental Diva, It Chicks, and The Perfect Find, now a Netflix film starring Gabrielle Union. Her novel, Seven Days in June, was an instant New York Times bestseller and a Reese’s Book Club pick. Her NAACP Image Award-nominated bestseller, A Love Song for Ricki Wilde, was named one of the year’s best romances by The New York Times and Amazon. Her YA romcom, Audre & Bash are Just Friends, was an instant New York Times bestseller and GMA Book Club Pick. Her latest novel, The Missed Connection, was released on June 16, 2026.

Previously announced headlining authors included Ayad Akhtar (The Radiance), Belle Burden (Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage), Allegra Goodman (This Is Not About Us), Elizabeth Kostova (Mystery Play), Claudia Rankine (Triage), and Maria Semple (Go Gentle).

Vanderbilt University is the leading partner of the Southern Festival of Books, and the Vanderbilt University Press will highlight a selection of authors and titles throughout the weekend, including:

Historian Benjamin Houston, author of The Nashville Way: Racial Etiquette and the Struggle for Social Justice in a Southern City, will discuss his latest book, Expelled: James Lawson Jr. and Vanderbilt University. The book examines the circumstances surrounding Rev. James Lawson Jr.’s expulsion from Vanderbilt University Divinity School in 1960 and explores the lasting implications of that decision for both the civil rights movement and the university’s history. Houston will be in conversation with Emily Yellin, the editor of Rev. Lawson’s recent publication, Nonviolent: A Memoir of Resistance, Agitation and Love, as well as his son, John Lawson.

Sheri Sellmeyer will discuss Nashville’s New Americans: Tracing the Journeys of Our Immigrant Neighbors, a collection of profiles featuring 39 immigrants from 38 countries who have made Music City their home. Through personal stories, the book celebrates the diverse experiences and contributions of Nashville’s immigrant communities.

Joe Pagetta will present The Apostle of Tennessee: The Indefatigable Life and Ministry of Father Aloysius Orengo, sharing both the story of the pioneering priest and his own adventures retracing Orengo’s footsteps across Tennessee. The book chronicles the life and legacy of the man responsible for building many of the state’s oldest Catholic churches.

T. Minton, resident scholar and historian at the Belcourt Theatre, will discuss The Belcourt Theatre: Nashville’s Oldest Neighborhood Cinema. His presentation will explore the history of the iconic theater and place it within the broader story of film exhibition and moviegoing culture in Nashville.

Melissa Range, author of Printer’s Fist, winner of the 2025 Vanderbilt University Literary Prize, will join acclaimed poet Major Jackson, the Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Chair in the Humanities, for a conversation about their work, the creative process, and the craft of poetry.

Also featured is In Her Place: Nashville Artists in the Twenty-First Century, edited by Kathryn E. Delmez and Laura Hutson Hunter. The volume showcases a vibrant network of women artists working in Nashville and examines their significant contributions to the city’s contemporary cultural landscape. Sai Clayton and Shaun Giles will also join this discussion.

Together, these authors and titles reflect Vanderbilt University Press’s commitment to publishing works that illuminate the history, culture, literature, and voices that shape Nashville, Tennessee, and the broader South.

For a regularly updated list of all authors, please visit sofestofbooks.org/authors.

To learn more about the Southern Festival of Books and to stay updated on festival announcements, please follow us on Twitter (@SoFestofBooks), Facebook (@SoFestofBooks) and on Instagram (@sofestofbooks).

ABOUT THE SOUTHERN FESTIVAL OF BOOKS

The 2026 Southern Festival of Books is made possible by presenting partner Vanderbilt University, along with The Frist Foundation, Sandra Schatten Foundation, Visit Music City, Ingram Content Group, Dollar General Literacy Foundation, Metro Arts: Nashville Office for Arts and Culture, Tennessee Arts Commission, and the Federation of State Humanities Councils with support from the Mellon Foundation. Sponsorship opportunities for the festival and dinner are available by contacting René Dillard at [email protected].

ABOUT HUMANITIES TENNESSEE

Humanities Tennessee is a nonprofit organization that fosters community and civility in Tennessee through engaging programs that examine and reflect upon ideas, stories, history, arts and culture. In addition to our own programming, we partner with a variety of organizations across the state who are similarly encouraging community dialogue and activities that push us to think deeper and develop mutual respect and understanding for each other.

Humanities Tennessee, formerly the Tennessee Humanities Council, is the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Founded in 1973, we continue to develop ways to connect, learn, and grow as a community.

ABOUT VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY

Vanderbilt is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, that is a global hub for learning, innovation and leadership. Its 11 schools and colleges offer students more than 65 undergraduate majors, a full range of graduate and professional degrees, and faculty who are leaders in their fields. The 340-acre campus — an accredited arboretum just 1.5 miles from downtown — is home to groundbreaking interdisciplinary research, SEC athletics, and a community dedicated to free expression and civil discourse that lives by its motto, Crescere aude, dare to grow.

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