For all those of you in the Los Angeles area this weekend, you don’t want to miss THE event for book lovers. It’s time again for the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books on the UCLA campus.

This is a huge event, drawing around 140,000 visitors over two days. All the panels are free (but seating is limited so you need a ticket or take your chances in the standby lines), and there are tons of booths specializing in all sorts of book related things.

And signings…did I mention that yet? Signings all day, all over the place. To plug a little, Rob Browne and I will be signing at the Mystery Bookstore booth on Sunday at 2 p.m. with good guy, and great writer Steven Hockensmith. Murderati alum Naomi Hirahara signs there on Saturday at 10 a.m. (go here for a full listing of authors signing at the Mystery Bookstore booth on Saturday and here for Sunday)

And that’s just one of hundreds of booths, many of which have their own signing schedules.

You can find more about the festival here.

But my favorite part of the festival actually takes place Friday night before even one booth opens. And that’s the Mystery Bookstores’ “Pre-festival of Books Party” right in their store only a few blocks from UCLA. It was packed last year with fans and dozens of authors. Looks to be even better this year. If you’re in the area, I highly suggest you try to make it.Info here.

A couple of years ago Naomi Hirahara wrote three post about the festival that are just as relevant today, so instead of rehashing the same stuff myself (and because I’m barreling toward a June 1st deadline on a book that’s not done), I’ll link them here:

An Angeleno’s Ultimate Literary Workout: LAT Festival of Books Part I

An Angeleno’s Ultimate Literary Workout: LAT Festival of Books Part II

Get Off The Bus

Hope to see some of you there!