Exhibitors
Meet the Festival Bookseller
All Good Books is bringing their book-loving expertise to Read Freely Fest. As Columbia’s go-to independent bookstore, they’ll be slingin’ books by the 40+ authors speaking at the festival, making it easy to grab a copy for signings and take home a new favorite. Find them on-site and stock up!
Organizations
An education-focused nonprofit provides free reading programs and affordable group workshops to support learners in Central South Carolina. Services are available at a Columbia office and over 24 public partner locations across Richland, Lexington, and Aiken counties.
DAYLO: Diversity Awareness Youth Literacy Organization
Founded as a high school book club focused on diverse literature, this youth-led organization has grown into a statewide network of advocacy and literacy chapters. There are now nine chapters, including a collegiate branch.
Artisans & Retail
Offering a collection of handcrafted items, including purses, wallets, and backpacks, each piece is made with care and attention to detail.
A constantly evolving artist works in this studio, creating expressive abstract paintings, mixed media pieces, neatly bound journals, collages, and beautiful hand-sewn creations.
A teacher-owned business offers custom-made clothing and home goods. Specializing in teacher tees, hedgehog-themed items, nurse tees, and personalized designs, it has grown into a favorite destination for unique creations.
Booksellers
Methodism’s oldest newspaper–South Carolina United Methodist Advocate–is also a book publisher. In late 2017, the Advocate launched Advocate Press, a small publishing arm that produces nonfiction books and devotionals available in paperback and eBook. The mission of the Advocate Press is to produce books of interest to South Carolina United Methodists on matters of faith and to amplify regional voices and those that advocate for the advancement of the kingdom of God.
Celebrating 30 years in 2025, this independent literary press champions exceptional, underrepresented writers from the American South. With a focus on diverse voices and books outside the commercial mainstream, it offers a national platform to reshape the perception of the South in literature and beyond.
A bookstore that aims to spark collective action for liberation and community building among readers and book lovers by promoting stories from intersectional experiences.
Let's Say Gay: A Queer Youth Literary Journal
A group of queer students founded this publication to stand against censorship and create a space for LGBTQ+ youth. As writers, artists, and creators, we were driven to combat the isolation imposed by discriminatory regulations and the increasing number of book bans.
Founded to introduce children to contemporary literature, this publisher creates joyful, meaningful reading experiences. The mission is to bring memorable, funny, and sometimes misunderstood characters into readers’ lives.
Located in South Carolina, the state's only independent queer bookstore provides a safe haven for the queer community. The mission is to offer refuge from the world's worries while defining "queer" broadly to include all genders and sexualities.
University of South Carolina Press
Founded in 1944, this renowned publishing house offers over 1,200 titles in print and digital formats. It publishes around 35 new works annually, focusing on Southern history, literary studies, African American studies, civil rights, Jewish studies, and rhetoric.