If you're an unpublished author, you do. While plenty of celebrities — some of whom have probably never put pen to paper — will be hawking their wares and blowing smoke out of their you-know-whats about their literary prowess, skilled writers such as T.C. Boyle, Bret Easton Ellis and Susan Salter Reynolds will participate in panel discussions and lectures about what it really takes to write, market and successfully sell a book that's worthy of reading. So when you attend the L.A. Times Festival of Books and everyone else is jamming in any of seven outdoor stages to hear Todd Bridges talk about his new tome about life after Diff'rent Strokes , or gawk at Elizabeth Taylor attempting to moderate a panel about writing, you can have a field day listening to seasoned experts share their insight on the written word. Storytellers, poets, journalists, literary agents, booksellers, publishers, teachers, distributors, marketers and experts on every aspect of writing will be ensconced in any of 300 exhibitor booths to share their knowledge. Don't read all about it. Just go.

Sat., April 24, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Sun., April 25, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., 2010

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