The Decatur Book Festival is gearing up for its 21st birthday party, and it is not skimping on star power. Organizers have dropped a first look at the authors coming to downtown Decatur Oct. 2–3, and the early lineup leans on a mix of marquee names, prizewinning nonfiction and homegrown talent. Pulitzer winner Brian Goldstone and Atlanta novelist Tayari Jones are among the first headliners named, with the weekend set to combine author talks and signings with cooking demos and children's programming around the square.
The festival rolled out a “sneak peek” on its site this week, listing 16 of what will ultimately be more than 70 authors, according to Decatur Book Festival. Organizers describe the preview slate as a mix of a Pulitzer Prize winner, bestselling novelists, a U.S. poet laureate and fan-favorite children's authors. For many festival regulars, it is the first real glimpse of what the event's new programming team has lined up.
Goldstone to deliver Friday keynote
Brian Goldstone appears on the preview list and is expected to anchor a Friday night keynote event. His book There Is No Place for Us: Working and Homeless in America won the 2026 Pulitzer Prize in General Nonfiction, per The Pulitzer Prizes. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has reported that Goldstone, a former Decatur resident, will be a featured headliner at the festival this year. His reporting on the rise of the working homeless in American cities gives DBF a serious nonfiction backbone amid all the celebratory hoopla.
Who else is on the bill
The early DBF roll call features Atlanta author Tayari Jones, fantasy powerhouse Tomi Adeyemi, James Beard winner and Chai Pani co-owner Meherwan Irani and internet storytelling phenom Tareasa “Reesa Teesa” Johnson, among others, according to Decatur Book Festival. The lineup stretches across kidlit, genre fiction, memoir and culinary writing, a mix organizers say is meant to give families, casual browsers and die-hard readers something to latch onto. Expect stages and signing tables to pop up across downtown venues as the roster fills out.
When the full schedule drops
The full lineup and schedule are set to be unveiled Aug. 18, and the festival will be free to attend, with author-signing lines requiring a book purchase, as reported by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The paper also notes that this year's event will host a celebration of the 2026 Lillian Smith Book Awards in partnership with regional cultural groups. Panels, cooking demonstrations and children's programming are expected to run throughout the weekend.
New leadership, local focus
This edition of the festival is operating under new literary leadership as DBF rebuilds after recent restructuring. Executive director Bailee Yarbrough and literary director Anna Dobben are steering programming with a community-first approach, according to ArtsATL. Organizers say the goal is to keep the festival's cozy neighborhood feel while making sure the operation can actually sustain itself. For updates on authors, stages and signing times, festival watchers are being pointed back to the official site as the August schedule drop gets closer.
