Napa Valley Book Festival

The Napa Valley Writers branch of the California Writers Club presents its second annual Napa Valley Book Festival on Saturday, November 14, 2026, from 10 AM to 4 PM.

This year’s festival moves to a larger venue, Blue Oak School in downtown Napa, allowing us to welcome more authors and readers for a full day devoted to books. Join fellow writers and readers in Napa Valley and Uncork Your Next Great Read.

Rex Pickett, critically acclaimed author of Sideways, will be our keynote speaker. His presentation, “The Fiction Writing Process: From the Blank Page to Publication,” will explore finding an original voice, navigating rejection, and persevering through the publishing process. Pickett draws from his own experiences as the author of Sideways, which was adapted into the Academy Award-winning film, its three sequels, and his other works.

Tom Stienstra, San Francisco Chronicle outdoors writer emeritus and America’s most traveled outdoorsman, will be our morning speaker. His latest book, Heaven Delayed: One Man’s Survival of Sixteen Near-Death Encounters, published in May, chronicles his lifetime of extraordinary adventures, brushes with death, and experiences that led him to wonder if there is a heaven.

The festival will also feature author tables, an open mic, a children’s story hour featuring local authors, independent bookstores, food trucks, and additional programming.