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An initial list of authors taking part in this year’s YALC - the UK’s Young Adult Literature Con-vention at the London Film and Comic Con - has been announced today, including US YA stars David Levithan and Maggie Stiefvater and founder Malorie Blackman. YALC first took place in July 2014, launched by Blackman as Waterstones Children’s Laureate 2013-2015. The event was the first large-scale public literature convention dedicated entirely to teen and Young Adult books ever to be hosted in the UK, and in its first year saw thousands of young people attending a weekend celebrating reading. The event continued successfully in 2015 as a legacy for Blackman’s laureateship, featuring 70 Young Adult authors including Judy Blume, Cassandra Clare and Patrick Ness. Following the huge success of the first two years of the event, described as ‘a hit’ by The Telegraph, ‘a +1 for publishing’ by FutureBook, and ‘a little corner of utopia’ by The New Statesman, YALC is now a permanent fixture of London Film and Comic Con. YALC 2016 will take place in a dedicated Book Zone at the London Film and Comic Con, which this year runs from Friday 28 - Sunday 31 July. A host of top YA authors will be joining Blackman for the four-day convention, which incorpo-rates a programme of author events, workshop sessions, drop-in activities and book-signings - as well as the chance for young people to learn more about writing and publishing. YALC continues to showcase the best of UKYA, as well as hosting special appearances for US stars. For 2016, these will include superstar YA author and editor David Levithan, and award-winning author Nina LaCour, who will be celebrating their new co-written novel You Know Me Well, at the event. Also taking part will be New York Times bestseller Maggie Stiefvater, author of the Shiver trilogy and the Raven Boys series. Other authors who will be taking part include Costa Book of the Year winner Frances Hardinge; radio-personality turned author Simon Mayo; and award winner Melvin Burgess, who will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of his ground-breaking YA novel Junk at the event. They will be joined by two authors whose acclaimed debuts have been shortlisted for both the YA Book Prize 2016 and the Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize 2016 - Melinda Salisbury and Lisa Williamson; as well as TV’s Dr Christian Jessen; and new talent Alwyn Hamilton whose first book Rebel of the Sands has sold at auction around the world. More author names, and full details of the programme, will be announced in due course. Managed by Showmasters, with the support of the UK’s YA publishers, Waterstones and charity partner Book Trust, YALC continues to position YA books at the heart of today’s popular enter-tainment culture, placing reading alongside TV, films, comics and gaming in the vibrant environ-ment of London Film and Comic Con. First Authors Announced: Malorie Blackman Melvin Burgess Alwyn Hamilton Frances Hardinge Nina LaCour David Levithan Simon Mayo Melinda Salisbury Maggie Stiefvater Lisa Williamson More to be added very soon! Don't forget we still have YALC dedicated entry tickets for LFCC (that also include entry to LFCC)