In May 2017, twelve middle grade authors traveled to Columbus, Ohio, for our first-ever OMG BookFest. Our goal was audacious and simple: let’s take over an entire school and give one thousand kids the best day ever. And guess what? Thanks to our wonderful participating authors and sponsors, we did it. Our high-energy author troupe divided into themed breakout rooms that offered games, trivia, and laugh-out-loud fun while also celebrating the joy of books and reading. Every child who walked through the doors of Performance Academies also received a free book, and left—we hope—with wonderful memories and a love of storytelling that would linger long after the day was done.

While we were only in Columbus for a few days, we packed our schedule to make the most of our time there. We enjoyed a private tour of historic Thurber House, now a museum and artist-in-residency space where author and humorist James Thurber once lived. We all attended a walk-through of the architecturally stunning Columbus Metropolitan Library and several of us even got to visit the famed Columbus Zoo, and the Center for Science and Industry. We all met up for a group book signing at Gramercy Books, a brand-new local Indie bookstore.

We were heartened by the immediate outpouring of support we received from within the children’s books community. From authors and educators to publishers and volunteers, everyone was ready to take on a role. Those people are the reason we got this first festival up and running five months from its inception, and our thanks is heartfelt and bottomless.

XO,

Michael Buckley, Julia DeVillers, Adele Griffin, and Sarah Mlynowski

OMG BookFest Cofounders

Thank you to everyone that helped make OMG Ohio a reality. 

Part of OMG BookFest’s mission is to bring books and authors to underprivileged children in the local community, and so we wanted every student who attended OMG Ohio to leave with an autographed book. We could not have reached our goal without the help of our wonderful publishing partners, corporate sponsors, and donors. Thank you for making our first-ever OMG BookFest such a hit! 

Our OMG Ohio Authors:

Our OMG Ohio Publishing Partners: