Vendor Application & Guide
For questions about this program, contact program lead Andy Verboom at communications@writers.ns.ca.
There is no cost or WFNS membership requirement to apply or participate as a Booktoberfest vendor.
Vendor eligibility for Booktoberfest 2026:
Applicants are offered table space, in the order in which their applications are received, if they meet the eligibility requirements and table space remains.
- Eligible authors are those who currently reside in Nova Scotia and have published (or will publish) a book or chapbook of creative writing between October 1, 2025, and the date of Booktoberfest 2026 (October 3, 2026). The book or chapbook may be indie-/self-, hybrid-/partner-, or traditionally published.
- Eligible publishers (i.e., presses, publishing houses, & literary magazines) are those partially or entirely based in Nova Scotia that have published (or will publish) one or more books, chapbooks, or issues of creative writing between October 1, 2025, and the date of Booktoberfest 2026 (October 3, 2026). Any authors accompanying a publisher (e.g., to sign books) should also currently reside in Nova Scotia.
Because Booktoberfest’s focus is creative writing, eligibility cannot be satisfied by stationary or by reference materials, such as reference books, calendars, notebooks, or journals.
We cannot provide vendor space to authors who currently reside outside of Nova Scotia, regardless of the strength of their connection to the province. We recommend reaching out to other Nova Scotian literary festivals, most of which welcome visiting authors.
Table space:
- Author-vendor space (limited to 48 vendors) is 3 linear feet + one chair. Co-authors must apply separately and ask for adjacent seating through the “Table assignment requests” field. We cannot provide seating for assistants or others accompanying an author-vendor.
- Publisher-vendor space (limited to between 7 and 14 vendors) is 4 linear feet + one chair. Publisher-vendors accompanied by one or more of their authors will be given 8 linear feet + three chairs. Publisher representatives and any accompanying authors will need to share the assigned table space and chair(s).
Author-vendor opportunities:
Expressions-of-interest (EoIs) for these opportunities are accepted only via the author-vendor application form below. We cannot accept EoIs from applying publishers or from authors uninterested in vending, nor can we accept later EoIs by email or phone call. Please apply once and apply well!
- Creative writing workshops: During Booktoberfest, several attending authors will lead free-to-attend creative writing workshops in another room at the venue. Applying authors may express their interest via the vendor application form. Selected author-vendors will be compensated $125 to prepare and lead a 45-minute workshop, which should focus on lecture-style presentation, light discussion, and takeaway exercises. Selections will be made by WFNS staff.
- Author readings and panels: During Booktoberfest, several attending authors will participate in free-to-attend readings and author panels in another room at the venue. Applying authors may express their interest via the vendor application form. Selected author-vendors will be compensated $150 for a shared reading or panel participation or $300 for a solo reading. Selections will be made by WFNS staff and the WFNS Programs & Special Projects Committee.
Vendor applications are open
For Booktoberfest 2026 (Saturday, October 3, 11am – 3pm)
Applications will remain open until all vendor spaces have been filled and a short waitlist has formed
Vendor Application Form
When the below form is successfully submitted, it will be replaced with a confirmation message.
Where to be
Booktoberfest 2026 will be held at Halifax Central Library (5540 Spring Garden Rd, Halifax).
On weekends, nearby street parking is free. From Queen Street, you can find (1) open-air paid parking directly south of the library and (2) the entrance to underground paid parking within the library, parking for which will be a maximum of $12. An elevator leads from the underground lot to the library’s main floor.
The greenroom adjoining Paul O’Regan Hall will be for vendor use only. You may store food and personal items here (left at your own risk) and use its fridge and lavatories.
When to be there
Booktoberfest 2026 will be held on Saturday, October 3 (11am – 3pm), 2026.
Vendors must arrive to set up between 10am and 10:30am. (Please do not arrive earlier than 10am: WFNS staff need time to arrange tables and orient volunteers before we can properly direct you and attend to any requests for assistance.)
Vendors must complete table teardown by 4pm.
WFNS staff and volunteers will be available to help you find, set up, and tear down your table as well as bring books and other materials from or to a nearby vehicle into Paul O’Regan Hall. (If planning to park farther away, please consider unloading and loading at Halifax Central Library’s Queen Street entrance.)
What’s provided
- Promotional images:
- See the main Booktoberfest page and the Google folder (a link to which will be provided above) for regularly updated, social media-ready images
- Table space:
- For author vendors, 3 linear feet and 1 chair
- For publisher vendors, 4 linear feet and 1 chair
- For publisher vendors accompanied by one or more authors, 8 linear feet and 3 chairs
- Basic tabletop signage, name tag(s), and Booktoberfest programme, including details of upcoming WFNS program deadlines
- Assistance from WFNS staff and volunteers in finding, setting up, and tearing down your assigned table space
- Bottled water and snacks (available in the vendors-only greenroom)
What to bring
- Copies of your title(s) published in the eligibility time frame (Oct 2025 to Oct 2026)
- Copies of any other titles and literary items for sale or giveaway (e.g., anthologies you’ve contributed to, chapbooks, broadsides, bookmarks, press swag, other writerly and readerly goods)
- Non-literary crafts and artworks are also welcome, but literary items should be the focus of your table
- Tablecloth or other decorative covering that fits (or can be folded to fit) your assigned table space
- Tabletop book displays and additional tabletop signage that fits your assigned table space
- A smartphone or other device (if accepting payment by card or e-transfer) and a change float (if accepting payment in cash)
- Two or more pens (for book-signing)
- Lunch (which may be consumed at your table or in the vendors-only greenroom)
Statement of Inclusion
The Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia strives to offer inclusive physical and virtual spaces where all feel welcome. To this end, we require that all participants of WFNS events (1) refrain from speaking or behaving in racist, xenophobic, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, or other discriminatory ways and (2) provide reasonable advanced warning before describing violent or traumatic subject matter, which always has the potential to distress others.
If any event participant violates this statement of inclusion, WFNS staff and volunteers have the right to ask that participant to leave. WFNS’s full Code of Conduct is available from WFNS staff upon request.
Each year, the Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia (WFNS) invites other organizers (authors, presses, etc.) to plan literary events within two days of Booktoberfest and to register their event details with us. Registered events receive priority promotion on the WFNS website, in our member newsletter, and on our social media channels—above and beyond our usual promotion of NS literary events.
To be eligible for promotion alongside Booktoberfest 2026, an event must be
- literary in focus;
- open to the public and free to attend; and
- held anywhere in Nova Scotia on October 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5, 2026.
There is no cost (nor any WFNS membership requirement) to register an event for promotion alongside Booktoberfest. We ask only that you mention Booktoberfest (and writers.ns.ca/booktoberfest) while promoting your event.
WFNS cannot provide logistical or hosting support for such events, but we can provide free event space in Halifax (at the Cultural Federations of Nova Scotia, 1113 Marginal Rd) for any literary event organized by or including a current General Member of WFNS. This event space is subject to availability and should be booked early.
Event registration is open
For promotion alongside Booktoberfest 2026 (Saturday, October 3, 11am – 3pm)
Registration will close September 3, 2026 (11:59pm)
Event Registration Form
When the below form is successfully submitted, it will be replaced with a confirmation message.