Indie Author Book Expo North

Event Details

Details of the 2024 event have not yet been announced. Stay tuned!

Brief History

Indie Author Book Expo North started in 2017 as the Northern Ontario Book Fair. It was a very small event: just two consignment tables of books by about a dozen Northern Ontario authors. It was held in Timmins, ON.

In 2018, the organizers partnered with Fringe North and the Algoma Arts Council to hold the book fair in Sault Ste. Marie. We helped nearly 40 authors sell their books at that fair and featured 9 authors in person.

In 2019, the event was held in Cobalt, ON. This was the first trade show style event where registered authors sold their books directly to the public. We also hosted writing workshops and literary readings throughout the day. Eleven authors attended in-person with even more represented at our consignment table.

The first three iterations of the fair were held under the banner of the Silverleaf Writers Guild. The guild closed in 2020 and the planned 2020 and 2021 events were cancelled due to COVID-19. The same organizers however now run WritingCommunity.ca and continue to organize the book fair under its banner.

The Northern Ontario Book Fair was rebooted in 2022 and brought back to its hometown of Timmins. Ten authors were present to sell their books and six literary readings were held throughout the day. There was a torrential downpour and a tornado warning that greatly impacted audience turnout, but the authors had fun anyway!

We learned in 2022 that the term “book fair” was not conveying the presence of independent authors the way that we’d hope, so we are rebranding the event. Going forward, the event will be known as the Indie Author Book Expo.

In 2023, we partnered with the Timmins Public Library for the first Indie Author Book Expo North. Sixteen authors attended, enjoyed a workshop, met with readers and fellow authors, and sold some books. A good time was had by all!