Skip to main content Skip to search Skip to search

2013 Canadian Literary Festivals: Guide to the Pre-Season

Our coast-to-coast guide of literary festivals to look forward to this spring.

The Galiano Island Literary Festival runs from February 22 to 24 in Galiano Island BC, featuring authors including Robert Bringhurst, Kevin Chong, Bill Gaston, Pauline Holdstock, Billie Livingston, Annabel Lyon, Billeh Nickerson, Nancy Richler and Jan Zwicky. 

From March 12-17, Versefest happens in Ottawa with the line-up still to be confirmed.

The Ottawa International Writers Festival features many great events throughout April, with authors including Alexander McCall Smith, Will Ferguson, Nancy-Jo Cullen and Tamas Dobozy, Amber Dawn, Iain Reid, Cathy Marie Buchanan, Saleema Nawaz, Michael Crummey and many more!

GritLit is the literary festival in Hamilton ON, and takes place from April 3-April 7. Featured authors include Roo Borson, Vincent Lam, Tanis Rideout, Elizabeth Ruth, Tamas Dobozy, Rawi Hage, Cordelia Strube, Maureen Jennings, Robert Rotenberg, Grace O'Connell and Madeleine Thien. The line-up looks fabulous.

The Prince Edward County Authors Festival happens April 12-13, with featured authors including Iain Reid, Susan Swan, Ania Szado, and Sean Dixon.

LIT FEST New West takes place in New Westminster BC on April 13.

The 2012 Blue Metropolis Montreal International Literary Festival happens from April 22-28.

Vancouver's North Shore Writers Festival takes place on April 19 and 20 with Tanis Rideout and Terry Fallis as scheduled authors announced so far.

Looking forward to the Edmonton Poetry Festival, which runs from April 21-28, hosting 14 Poet Laureates from across the country including Fred Wah, George Elliott Clarke, and Tanya Davis.

The Frye Festival happens in Moncton NB from April 22-28. The schedule will be announced on February 22.

Bookfest 2013, the Vancouver Island Children's Book Festival looks fantastic this year, with authors including Roch Carrier, Maryann Kovalski, Barbara Reid and Ashley Spires. It takes place on Saturday May 4.

Sudbury's French book festival Salon du Livre has literary events planned throughout the Spring and Summer.

The Ontario Library Association's Festival of Trees takes place from May 15-16 in Toronto, with other events being held in Parry Sound, North Bay and Thunder Bay.

On May 26, The Elora Writers' Festival takes place in Elora ON. Line-up still TBA.

Ridgeway Reads Promo

We're excited about The Ridgeway Reads 2012 Festival which returns for its second year, running from May 31 to June 2 in Fort Erie ON. Scheduled authors include Sarah Tsiang, Hugh Brewster, Cathy Marie Buchanan, CS Richardson, and Edeet Ravel.

And we're looking forward to more news about the Whitehorse Poetry Festival, rumoured to be happening sometime in June.

Is your event missing? Email us at editorAT49thShelfDOTcom, and we'll add it to the schedule.