Below is a list of a few dozen writer festivals and book fairs that authors can attend – as well as resources that list many more places for authors to actively participate in.
There are a few hundred popular book fairs held across the country annually. There are also dozens of international ones as well. These fairs provide awesome opportunities to authors — and should be a key part of any serious book marketing campaign.
Why should authors attend these book fairs?
Authors can show up to:
Speak
By having a discussion about or a reading of
your book — or by participating on author panels — you establish and promote
your author brand.
Network and Discovery
Just by attending you position yourself to
meet and connect with others, from fellow authors and book publishers to
readers, literary agents, and book professionals (editors, illustrators,
printers, distributors, marketers, and TV and film agents).
Display
Set up a table or booth and display your book.
Hand out fliers, swag, or sweets. Sell your book.
Advertise
Use the fair’s website, newsletter, directory,
or social media to advertise your book.
See What Other Authors Do
Use this opportunity to go on a reconnaissance
mission and monitor what competitors do to market effectively.
News Media Coverage
This could be your lucky day of being in the
right place at the right time. Journalists and book reviewers often attend
these events, looking for a good story, great book, or interesting
personality.
Book Giveaways
Giving out free, signed copies of your books
to book nerds could generate some word-of-mouth buzz.
Social Media Opps
Maybe someone with a strong social media
platform comes upon your book at the fair and decides to blog about it, post a
video, interview you, or write a book review.
To attend these book fairs, festivals, expos,
and conventions, you may need to signup or purchase tickets months in advance.
Should you plan on not just attending but to seek out booth space, advertising,
or speaking opportunities, you likely need to contact them four to six months
in advance.
What will you need to
have or bring with you?
·
Your
Books or Galleys
·
Take
Business Cards
·
Carry
Fliers
·
Have
A Press Kit Available
·
Create/Update
Your Web Site
· Establish Social Media Accounts
Authors, when marketing their books, need to
have an effective strategy when it comes to attending or participating in book
fairs, expos, festivals, and trade shows. So, what should they do.
First, search for a list of upcoming local,
regional, national, and international book-focused events. Some may be open to
the public and last a day, while others may be more geared towards members of
the book industry and last several days. Determine which events — where and
when — that you want to explore getting involved with.
Do google searches for
things like:
* Chicago Book Fairs
* Illinois Book Festivals
* US Book Trade Shows
* International Book Fairs
Secondly, look to see what you can do at each
event. For instance, are these available to you:
·
Speak in front or a subset group or the entire
one
·
Rent a booth to peddle
your wares
·
Do an autograph
signing and book giveaway
·
Share free promotional
items and swag
·
A way to sell books
·
Advertise in the
event’s publication or on their site
·
Attend seminars to
learn
·
Networking sessions
·
Talk to those who
exhibit
·
Meet literary
agents/publishers
·
Push a story onto
attending media members
If not attending, will you pay for an ad or to have your book
displayed at the event?
Third, set some goals for each event by knowing what types of
people will attend. Assess your potential ROI. How many days/hours will you
delegate to the prep, travel, attendance, and post-event follow-up?
Fourth, set a budget of money and time for your participation at
an event. Will there be;
·
Entrance fees
·
Costs for specific
activities
·
Travel or lodging
costs
·
Ad costs
·
Shipping costs
·
Creating
banners/fliers/giveaways
Fifth, look at the program of scheduled events. Learn what
activities are available for your participation. Gage how many people might
attend and best understand why they will be there. Who will attend: Customers?
Publishers? Literary Agents? News Media? Social Influencers? Celebrities?
Writers? Librarians? Bookstore Owners?
Sixth, conduct pre-event research. Leverage any
event-centric social media pages or apps
Dress appropriately but stick out. Be assertive. Create
opportunities. Talk to people running the show ahead of time.
If you are just attending an event…
·
Get a print or online
directory of attendees and exhibitors
·
Pickup any event
publications or fliers
·
See what others are
doing at the event
·
Network and talk to
people
·
Listen to speakers
·
Network with others
·
Hand out fliers
If you can be a speaker and/or participate in a book-signing
event, even better.
If actively participating, do the above, and
get a booth, and…
·
offer a book sale deal
there
·
give promotional items
away
·
sponsor happy hour or
give food/drink away
·
blow up poster or have
a stand that displays a giant book cover image
·
display your books
·
dress in costume or a
hot outfit
·
make noise/play music
·
get people’s
cards/email by raffling something off
·
do a photo booth at
your booth
There is a whole world of book-centric events to attend and
participate in. Where are you going next — and what will you do there?
24 Upcoming Events in
2026
Savannah
Book Festival
February 5-8
in Savannah, GA
Appalachian
Wordfest
February 28
in Sevierville, TN
Amelia
Island Book Festival
February 28
in Fernandina Beach, FL
www.ameliaislandbookfestival.org
Williamsburg
Book Festival
March 7 in
Williamsburg, VA
www.williamsburgbookfestival.crg
Literary
Festival of Women Authors
March 7 Long
Beach, CA
www.literarywomen.org/festival
Dahlonega
Literary Festival
March 7 in
Dahlonega
Tucson
Festival of Books
March 14-15
in Tucson, AZ
Virginia
Festival of the Book
March 20-26
in Charlottsville, VA
Tennessee
Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival
March 25-29
in New Orleans
Woodstock
Bookfest
March 26-29
in Woodstock, NY
Venice
Book Fair
March 28 in
Venice, FL
San
Antonio Book Festival
April 11 in
San Antonio, TX
Greensboro
Round Literary Festival
April 11 in
Greensboro, NC
www.greensborobound.com/festival
BAMI
Festival
April 11 in
West Palm Beach, FL
Midwest
Literary Walk
April 18 in
Chelsea, MI
www.chelseadistrictlibrary.org/midwest-literary-walk
Ohioana
Book Festival
April 18 in
Columbus, OH
www.ohioana.org/programs/ohioana-book-festival
LA
Times Festival of Books
April 18-19
in LA, CA
www.events.latimes.com/festivalofbooks
Annapolis Book Festival
May 2 in Annapolis, MD
www.keyschool.org/community/annapolis-book-festival .
Montclair
Literary Festival
May 2-9 in Montclair,
NJ
www.succeed2gether.org/montclair-literary-festival
DSM Book Festival
May 2 in Des Moines, Iowa
Santa
Fe International Literary Festival
May 15-17 in
Santa Fe
Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books
May 30 in
Pittsburgh
www.piuttsburghbookfestival.org
Bay
Area Book Festival
May 30-31 in
Berkeley, CA
Mid-Ohio
Indie Author Book Expo
August 8 in
Grove City, OH
Portland
Book Festival
November 8
in Portland, OR
www.literary-arts.org/about/programs/portland-book-festival
So,
where does one find lists of scheduled book fairs? Look no further than these
resources:
Book Fair Directory
http://www.author.pub/Book-Fair-Directory.html
Writer’s Digest Book Fair List
https://www.writersdigest.com/publishing-insights/list-of-book-fairs-and-book-festivals-by-state
C-SPAN Bookfairs List
https://www.c-span.org/bookTv/?bookfairs
Best Indie Author Events
https://selfpublishingformula.com/the-best-indie-author-events-for-2023/
Writer Conferences
https://thewritelife.com/writers-conferences/
Book Events
https://aalbc.com/events/list.php
List of International Book Fairs
https://blog.kotobee.com/book-fairs-2023/
Calendar of Daily Book Events
Good
luck in reaching out to participate or attend these events.
Do You Need Book Marketing Help?
Brian
Feinblum can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com He is available to help authors like you to promote
your story, sell your book, and grow your brand. He has over 30 years of
experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him
be your advocate, teacher, and motivator!
About Brian Feinblum
This award-winning blog has generated over
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and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” Copyright 2025.
For
the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He
formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the
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director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many
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has spoken at ASJA, BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah
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