There’s a revolution underway with regards to authors seizing the means of production and self-publishing their work. But in an era of “peak tv” and “infinite content” how does a self-published author find an audience? How does distribution work? What’s the role of an editor and how do you design a compelling cover?

Two Ottawa authors who have recently published their second novels share a taste of their new books and then talk about what they learned about writing and publishing between their first and second publications. 

Michael Varty, Manager of Perfect Books joins the conversation with a bookseller’s perspective on how best to stand out in a crowded field and what’s involved in getting your book into stores.

In Patricia Filteau’s second novel, Traces , Private investigator Kate Roarty is primed to take on the titans of the mining business, pursuing the fouls of cybercrime. The year is 2032, and the technological innovation she is seeking to restore to its rightful innovators is worth billions on a planet rapidly running out of the rare earth minerals required to fuel its digital growth.

Mark Curfoot-Mollington’s second novel, Alice MacKenzie , is about a former spy, now a cold and unyielding sixty-seven-year-old teacher working in a suburban high school in Canada, loathed by students and teachers alike. When a cartel with roots in Islamic terrorism and white supremacy starts committing unspeakable acts of violence, she is coerced back to duty and must face head-on the horrifying reality of this brutal cartel while coming to grips with her past during the Pol Pot era of the late 1970s. 

Books available for purchase at every event: Proceeds support our free children’s literacy programs.