Book fairs and festivals are great events for writers and readers to meet up and celebrate books of all genres. Here’s a list of book fairs and book festivals that we’ve compiled and will continue to update.
It should come as no surprise that everyone on the Writer’s Digest team loves books. As such, we love all the same things other readers and writers love: well-stocked libraries, over-stuffed bookstores, and vibrant book fairs and festivals.
Readers love book fairs, because, well, books! But writers can gain a lot from book fairs and festivals as well. Of course, there’s the whole promotion and sales angle, but it’s a great venue for connecting with readers, writers, and publishers. Plus, it’s becoming more and more common that book fairs and festivals host speakers.
The following list of book fairs and festivals is broken up by state. The name of the event links to the event’s website to get the most current information about it.
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Alabama
Alabama Book Festival. April, 2020; Montgomery.
Arizona
Tucson Festival of Books. March 14-15, 2020; Tucson.
Arkansas
Six Bridges Book Festival. April, 2020; Little Rock.
California
Literary Festival of Women Authors. March 7, 2020; Long Beach.
Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. April 18-19, 2020; Los Angeles.
Colorado
Fort Collins Book Fest. October 18-19, 2019; Fort Collins.
Florida
Amelia Island Book Festival. February 13-15, 2020; Amelia Island.
Miami Book Fair. November 17-24, 2019; Miami.
OE Book Fair. April 26, 2020; Tampa.
Palm Beach Book Festival. March 20-21; Boca Raton.
Southwest Florida Reading Festival. March 7, 2020; Fort Myers.
Tampa Bay Times Festival of Reading. November 9, 2019; St. Petersburg.
Georgia
AJC Decatur Book Festival. Labor Day weekend, 2020; Decatur.
Dahlonega Literary Festival. March 6-7, 2020; Dahlonega.
Jekyll Island Book Festival. April 11, 2020; Jekyll Island.
Savannah Book Festival. February 13-16, 2020; Savannah.
Kentucky
Kentucky Book Festival. November 10-16, 2019; Lexington.
Southern Kentucky Book Fest. March, 2020; Bowling Green.
Illinois
Evanston Literary Festival. May, 2020; Evanston.
Louisiana
Louisiana Book Festival. November 2, 2019; Baton Rouge.
Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival. March 25-29, 2020; New Orleans.
Maryland
Annapolis Book Festival. April 25, 2020; Annapolis.
Baltimore Book Festival. November 1-10, 2019; Baltimore.
Massachusetts
Boston Book Festival. October 19-20, 2019; Copley Square and Roxbury.
Michigan
Midwest Literary Walk. April 25, 2020; Chelsea.
Missouri
Unbound Book Festival. April 23-25, 2020; Columbia.
New Jersey
Montclair Literary Festival. March 25-29, 2020; Montclair.
New York
Brooklyn Book Festival. September, 2020; Brooklyn.
North Carolina
Greensboro Bound Literary Festival. May 14-17, 2020; Greensboro.
Ohio
Books by the Banks. October 26, 2019; Cincinnati.
Ohioana Book Festival. April, 2020; Columbus.
Oregon
Portland Book Festival. November 9, 2019; Portland.
Pennsylvania
African American Children’s Book Fair. February 1, 2020; Philadelphia.
York Book Expo. November 2, 2019; York.
South Carolina
Bluffton Book Festival. November 21-23, 2019; Bluffton.
Charleston to Charleston Literary Festival. November 7-10, 2019; Charleston.
South Dakota
Great American Book Festival. May, 2020; Rapid City.
Texas
National Black Book Festival. October 24-26, 2019; Houston.
San Antonio Book Festival. April 4, 2020; San Antonio.
Texas Book Festival. October 26-27, 2019; Austin.
Vermont
Brattleboro Literary Festival. October 17-20, 2019; Brattleboro.
Virginia
Virginia Children’s Book Festival. October 16-18, 2019; Farmville.
Virginia Festival of the Book. March 18-22; Charlottesville.
Washington
Orcas Island Lit Fest. April 17-19, 2020; Eastsound.
Wisconsin
Fox Cities Book Festival. April 16-17, 2020; various locations.
Wisconsin Book Festival. October 17-20, 2019; Madison.
You left out the Morristown Festival of Books (https://morristownbooks.org/). The free annual event features more than 50 authors across all genres, with author book signings after every presentation. A Friday night Keynote event kicks off each MFOB. The 2019 Keynote was a fascinating talk with Preet Bharara. The next event will be October 9 & 10, 2020.
You might want to add the Books Along the Teche Literary Festival in New Iberia, La, the hometown of James Lee Burke. https://www.iberiatravel.com/james-lee-burke/books-along-teche-literary-festival
May I recommend you add the West Virginia Book Festival (Oct. 2 & 3, 2020) to your list? The guest speakers in the past few years have included James Patterson, Neil Gaiman, R.L. Stine, Jodi Picoult, Eric Foner and many more. Admission is free.