The Black Romance Book Fest (BRBF) is a weekend-long celebration of books, storytelling, literacy, wellness, culture, and community.

Founded in 2024, BRBF is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing literacy, supporting mental and emotional wellness, strengthening communities, and expanding opportunities for Black storytelling. Through the power of books, BRBF creates transformative experiences that connect readers, authors, publishers, creators, educators, businesses, and industry leaders while celebrating stories that inspire, educate, and bring people together.

In just three years, BRBF has grown from a bold idea into the largest celebration of Black books in the country. What began as a sold-out inaugural event with approximately 1,600 attendees and 115 authors has experienced unprecedented growth, welcoming more than 3,200 readers and over 3,800 total attendees in 2026. Today, BRBF brings together hundreds of authors, narrators, content creators, booksellers, publishers, literary organizations, educators, and readers from across the United States and around the world.

More than a literary event, BRBF is a cultural movement dedicated to celebrating Black stories and the people who create, champion, and consume them. Through immersive programming, educational workshops, keynote conversations, author signings, networking opportunities, family-friendly activities, and community-centered experiences, BRBF creates joyful, affirming, and inclusive spaces where readers discover new stories, build meaningful relationships, and celebrate the transformative power of literature.

At the heart of BRBF is a simple belief: reading changes lives.

Research consistently demonstrates that reading contributes to healthier, more connected lives by reducing stress, strengthening cognitive function, improving memory and concentration, increasing empathy, encouraging lifelong learning, and supporting emotional well-being. Reading provides a healthy escape from the pressures of everyday life while encouraging reflection, creativity, curiosity, and meaningful human connection. It is one of the few activities that simultaneously supports intellectual growth, emotional resilience, and overall wellness.

For many Black women, romance novels provide something even more powerful. They offer spaces where Black women experience joy, vulnerability, healing, hope, softness, and unconditional love. They create opportunities to see themselves reflected in stories where they are valued, celebrated, and deserving of happy endings. At a time when many women are balancing careers, caregiving responsibilities, entrepreneurship, and the demands of everyday life, reading becomes more than entertainment. It becomes an act of self-care, restoration, and emotional renewal.

BRBF exists to amplify those benefits beyond the pages of a book. Every conversation, workshop, panel, signing, and experience is intentionally designed to promote literacy, inspire lifelong learning, strengthen emotional wellness, foster meaningful relationships, and build communities rooted in belonging and connection. We believe books have the power not only to entertain, but also to improve lives, spark empathy, encourage healing, and create healthier communities.

This commitment extends beyond readers. BRBF serves as a catalyst for economic development by creating opportunities for authors, publishers, narrators, independent bookstores, Black-owned businesses, entrepreneurs, creators, and small businesses to grow their audiences, expand their reach, and generate meaningful economic impact. By bringing together the publishing, entertainment, media, and business communities, BRBF helps strengthen an ecosystem where stories become careers, businesses thrive, and ideas evolve into books, audiobooks, television, film, and other forms of storytelling.

Looking ahead, BRBF is building more than an annual event. We are building a year-round platform where literacy, wellness, storytelling, and community intersect. As the organization continues to grow, our vision is to become the nation’s leading destination for Black literature while serving as a trusted convener for conversations around reading, education, wellness, creativity, entrepreneurship, and cultural impact.

BRBF 2027 will take place June 11-13, 2027, at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis. Building on the momentum of previous years, BRBF 2027 is expected to welcome approximately 4,200 attendees, including 3,500 readers and an all-star lineup of more than 200 authors, 45 narrators, 150 influencers and content creators, publishers, indie booksellers, literary organizations, educators, healthcare and wellness organizations, Black-owned businesses, national brands, media partners, and industry leaders from across the country and around the world.

Together, we are proving that books do more than tell stories. They improve literacy, strengthen mental and emotional well-being, foster connection, inspire lifelong learning, fuel economic opportunity, and remind us of our shared humanity. At BRBF, every page turned has the power to change a life.