Cleveland Book Week has been transformed into Cleveland Book Fest, a month-long showcase of literary excellence in Northeast Ohio. This year’s festival is slated to draw in thousands of book lovers, writers, and residents through author talks, poetic-inspired exhibits, dynamic readings, writing workshops, and publishing panels.
Cleveland Book Fest Schedule
Rock & Read: Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo
Tuesday, Sept. 3 | 6 p.m.
Cleveland Public Library Martin Luther King Jr. Branch
Join us for a rockin’ family event celebrating My Grandma and Grandpa Rock! by legendary duo Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo. Enjoy a lively discussion moderated by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s own Dr. Jason Hanley. Presented in partnership with the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Sourcebooks Publishing and Loganberry Books.
Free copies of the book to the first 300 attendees.
Listen Up! A Teen Writers Fest
Thursday, Sept. 11 | 3:30-5:30 p.m.
Cleveland Public Library Martin Luther King Jr. Branch
Hosted by Lake Erie Ink, Writers in Residence, CHARP EDucation and Sparrows Fortune
This FREE event is open to all teens, in grades 7th-12th in the Greater Cleveland community, and will include local guest poets, pizza, giveaways of books and other cool stuff. Teens will write in response to prompts and share work in an open mic. If you’re a teen, stop in and do some writing, sharing and listening. If you’re an adult, stop in and listen to what Cleveland teens have to say. More details and registration to come.
Inkubator Writing Conference
Friday, Sept. 12 – Saturday, Sept. 13 | 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Cleveland Public Library Louis Stokes Wing
Literary Cleveland’s Inkubator Writing Conference is the largest free writing conference in the country. Three days of virtual events Sept. 8-10 with nationally renowned authors lead to a two-day in-person conference Sept. 12-13 featuring 40 events and 80 authors at the Cleveland Public Library. The in-person conference includes writing workshops, craft talks, panel discussions, an open mic, a book fair with regional literary presses and organizations, plus a keynote by bestselling author and Cleveland native Celeste Ng. All free!
AWBA City Club Friday Forum
Friday, Sept. 19 | 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
The City Club of Cleveland
Join The City Club in learning from two Anisfield-Wolf Book Award winners, Jonathan D. S. Schroeder and Vincent Brown, as they discuss the importance of amplifying hidden narratives and what uncovering stories of resistance can teach us about today.
Tickets will be made available via The City Club.
90th Annual Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards Ceremony
Friday, Sept. 19 | 6:30-7:30 p.m.
Maltz Performing Arts Center
The annual Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards ceremony returns to the Maltz Performing Arts Center for a fourth consecutive year to honor the 2025 winners as they join the esteemed canon of America’s only juried book prize focusing on works that address racism and diversity. A reception, book sale and author signing will follow the ceremony. Tickets are free but registration is required. More details on ticketing soon. A livestream option will be available for those who cannot attend in person.
Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards 90th Anniversary Celebration
Saturday, Sept. 20 | 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
AWBA author panels, book signings and in-community events at the Cleveland Public Library – Martin Luther King Jr. Branch in the morning and various venues across Ohio City in the afternoon. Full schedule forthcoming – watch our AWBA social channels and website for updates.
Book Bites with Samin Nosrat
Sunday, Sept. 21 | 2 p.m.
Cuyahoga County Public Library Parma-Snow Branch
Join us for an afternoon with Samin Nosrat.
Samin is a cook, teacher, and author of the James Beard award-winning cookbook, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking. She was named one of Time’s 100 Most Influential People in the World and Chef of the Year by Eater. She is the co-host of the Home Cooking podcast and host of the Netflix original documentary series based on her book Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat.
Jill Lepore at the Cuyahoga County Public Library
Monday, Sept. 22 | 7-8 p.m.
Cuyahoga County Public Library Parma-Snow Branch
Author Jill Lepore will discuss her latest book, We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution.
Each ticket ($35 +fees) includes a seat at the author’s talk, a copy of We the People, and a donation to the Cuyahoga County Public Library Foundation.
Jill Lepore is the David Woods Kemper ’41 Professor of American History at Harvard University and Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. She is also a staff writer at The New Yorker. Her many books include the international bestseller, These Truths: A History of the United States.
Book Launch: Dan Chaon
Tuesday, Sept. 23 | 7-8 p.m.
Cuyahoga County Public Library South Euclid-Lyndhurst Branch
Join us for the book launch event for Dan Chaon’s One of Us.
Dan Chaon is the author of several books, including Ill Will, a national bestseller that was named one of the 10 best books of the year by Publishers Weekly. Other works include the short story collection Stay Awake, a finalist for the Story Prize; the national bestseller Await Your Reply; and Among the Missing, a finalist for the National Book Award. Chaon’s fiction has appeared in the Best American Short Stories, the Pushcart Prize Anthologies, and the O. Henry Collection. He has been a finalist for the National Magazine Award in Fiction and the Shirley Jackson Award, and he was the recipient of an American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Literature. Chaon lives in Cleveland.
John Scalzi at the Cuyahoga County Public Library
Tuesday, Sept. 23 | 7-8 p.m.
Cuyahoga County Public Library Parma-Snow Branch
John Scalzi is one of the most popular science fiction authors of his generation. His debut, Old Man’s War, won him the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. His New York Times bestsellers include The Last Colony, Fuzzy Nation, Redshirts (which won the Hugo Award for Best Novel), The Last Emperox, The Kaiju Preservation Society, and Starter Villain. Material from his blog, Whatever, has earned him two other Hugo Awards. He lives in Ohio with his wife and daughter.
Marie Vibbert at the Cuyahoga County Public Library
Tuesday, Sept. 25 | 7-8 p.m.
Cuyahoga County Public Library South Euclid-Lyndhurst Branch
Local author Marie Vibbert visits to discuss her latest novel, Andrei and the Hellcats.
Hugo- and Nebula-nominated author Marie Vibbert’s short fiction has appeared over 90 times in top magazines like Nature, Analog, and Clarkesworld, and been translated into Czech, Chinese and Vietnamese. Her debut novel, Galactic Hellcats, was long listed by the British Science Fiction Award and her work has been called “everything science fiction should be” by the Oxford Culture Review. She also writes poetry, comics, and computer games. By day she is a computer programmer in Cleveland.
Great Lakes African American Writers Conference
Saturday, Sept. 27 | 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Cleveland Public Library Martin Luther King Jr. Branch
The Eighth Annual Great Lakes African American Writers Conference (GLAAWC, pronounced “glossy”) features a nationally renowned author, Diane McKinney-Whetstone (the Langston Hughes Literary Keynote), and Kim Martin-Sadler (the Alice Dunbar Nelson Professional Keynote), a publishing industry expert, to share insights with authors and aspiring writers throughout the region. Accompanied by in-depth panel discussions, opportunities to network with esteemed literary minds, and be equipped with trending literary tactics, this event is a must-attend for all literary creatives and lovers of African American literature.
Join us for our annual day-long conference where Black literary creatives are celebrated and highlighted for their work in Cleveland and beyond. Learn from influential publishing industry professionals to obtain and enhance your writing objectives.
Save the date for Saturday, Sept. 27 from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. at the Cleveland Public Library-MLK Branch! While this event is free and open to the public, Ms. McKinney-Whetsone’s latest novel, Family Spirit, will be available for purchase as a bundled ticket. Do take advantage of the bundled ticket and secure Ms. McKinney-Whetsone’s autograph during her book signing.
Also, on Friday, Sept. 26., GLAAWC, in partnership with the Case Western Reserve University English Department and the Baker-Nord Center, will host the Alice Dunbar-Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award honoring Cleveland’s own beloved and distinguished poet, Julie Patton. Additional details forthcoming.