Calendar compliments of www.bywords.ca.
| October 2026 Events | |
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| Submit upcoming events to events@bywords.ca | ||
| Sunday | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday |
| 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
| An Indian Morning 10:00am HallowZine 11:00am Culture géniale 1:00pm |
Art House Cafe Open Mic 7:00pm Namaashoum 7:00pm |
Re-read Used Books Readings and Signings Riverside South Alexis Jacklin book launch 4-7pm Words and Culture 10:00am Ottawa StoryTellers: Story Cafe 7:00pm Live on Elgin Open Mic 8:00pm |
Carleton Poetics Society Open Mic Sofia's Vintage Motor Cafe, 1158 Bank Doors open at 5:00pm, and performances are from 5:30-7pm! This location is wheelchair accessible and accessible from Carleton or by bus! sign up: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScO0Gq0-kT0YNO6Cf4pD-nqAFbhpTFTcfQ6_nzbskthIbSi9g/viewform Jewish Book Festival Douglas Century Crash of the Heavens: The Remarkable Story of Hannah Senesh and the Only Military Mission to Rescue Europe’s Jews During World War II In conversation with Laurence Wall 7pm Perfect Books Readings and Signings Margo MacDonald launches A Curious Presence 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM The Lit Room with Susan Johnston 9:30am WitchLit Writer Wednesdays 12:00pm Writing Intimacy A conversation with Antonya Radu, co-founder of Immersia Lounge , and dark romance author under the penname Ashley Matthews, about writing intimacy (including BDSM), chemistry and desire in fiction. Asian Sounds 6:00pm Capital Crime Writers 7:00pm Ottawa Scrabble Club 7:00pm |
Jewish Book Festival Yair Mintzker I, Wandering Jew: A Five Century History of Our Modern Condition In conversation with Rabbi Steven Garten 7pm Raise It, a spoken word showcase Xavior Kayvon Gough Arts Court Atelier, 2 Daly Ave Sign up and tickets at the door $12 | Free for performers Doors 7pm | Show 7:30pm The Spaniel's Tale Readings and Signings Book Launch - The Range Rules by Darren Greer 7:30 PM - 9:30 PM Lancement d'«ailleurs ma voix», de Madeleine Stratford 5:30pm Third World Players Present 6:00pm 2026 John Newlove Poetry Award 6:30pm An Evening with Rick Mofina: Master of the Thriller Genre 7:00pm Sad Girl Cafe 7:00pm Arc Poetry Magazine 2026 Archibald Lampman Award 7:30pm Nostalgica Pub Open Mic 8:00pm Sanna Wani and Conyer Clayton 8:00pm |
Can-Con , Ottawa’s Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Literature Convention. Jewish Book Festival Jane Ziegleman Once There Was a Town: The Memory Books of a Lost Jewish World On Zoom 11am Love Lyla Books Readings and Signings Open Mic Night with Silk Road Institute feat. Sanna Wani 7-9pm Readings at Library and Archives Canada Learning to Breathe: A Memoir by Clara Hughes 6:30pm Game Changers with Cassie Campbell-Pascall and Jennifer Botterill 8pm. Tickets: www.writersfestival.org Friday Special Blend 7:00am Urban Legends Poetry Collective 7:00pm Urban Legends Poetry Slam featuring JAAWORD - Season Opener |
Can-Con , Ottawa’s Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Literature Convention. Jamaal Amir Akbari events 4:00–7:00 p.m. MAC-CAM Fall Showcase Arts Court Theatre, Ottawa Featured Artist JustJamaal ThePoet will present new work from his forthcoming album, NODEMO. ALL AGES. More information: mac-cam.ca Jewish Book Festival The Seventy Shuls: Synagogue Life and Yiddishkeit from the Pine Barrens to the Boardwalk On Zoom 7:30pm The Spaniel's Tale Readings and Signings Grand Reopening Ottawa Mystery Writers Fair 1:00pm Thugs Need Love Too 2 5:30pm An Evening with Zadie Smith 8:00pm |
| 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| Can-Con , Ottawa’s Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Literature Convention. Jewish Book Festival Jenna Katz - Daniel Loves to Dance Kids Storytime 9:30 am. Leah Eskin -Like Wafers in Honey In conversation with Deborah Saginur 11am. Dr. Samuel Markind Music Between Your Ears: How Musical Engagement Powers the Human Brain Moderated by Marwan Abou Diwan 5pm. Perfect Books Readings and Signings Book Signing with Sonali Menezes 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM An Indian Morning 10:00am Culture géniale 1:00pm |
Jewish Book Festival Samantha Ellis Always Carry Salt: A Memoir of Preserving Language and Culture In conversation with Gefen Bar-On Santor — On Zoom 11am. Michael Shapiro Ketubah Renaissance: The Artful Modern Revival of the Jewish Marriage Contract In conversation with Shawna Dolansky 7pm. Art House Cafe Open Mic 7:00pm Namaashoum 7:00pm |
Jewish Book Festival Judy Batalion The Last Woman of Warsaw In conversation with Hannah Srour-Zackon 7pm. Words and Culture 10:00am Live on Elgin Open Mic 8:00pm |
Octopus Books Readings and Signings Elizabeth Urso and Robin Blackburn McBride 6:30 to 8:30pm Perfect Books Readings and Signings Garth Martens Book Launchm with rob mclennann, Margo LaPierre and Jennifer Baker 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM The Lit Room with Susan Johnston 9:30am WitchLit Writer Wednesdays 12:00pm Once Upon a Witch A conversation with fairy-tale author and scholar Tish Black about the witches of fairy tales and folklore, from their chicken-legged huts to their gingerbread houses. Asian Sounds 6:00pm 2026-2027 Munro Beattie Lecture with Ian Williams 7:00pm Ottawa Scrabble Club 7:00pm Ottawa Storytellers Open Mic In Person 7:00pm |
Ottawa International Writers Festival Fall 2026 Edition Roshan Danesh and Jody Wilson-Raybould 6:30pm; Michel Jean, Norma Dunning and Michelle Porter 8pm The Spaniel's Tale Readings and Signings Book Launch - A Nation of Tinkerers 7:30 PM - 9:30 PM James Brennan, Don't Sleep 6:00pm Third World Players Present 6:00pm Connecting for Caring in Ottawa 6:30pm Altared's Open Mic 7:30pm Nostalgica Pub Open Mic 8:00pm |
Ottawa International Writers Festival Fall 2026 Edition Dr. Kirsten Johnson 6:30pm; Maggie Helwig 8pm Readings, Signings and Book Club Meetings at Evermore Books Reading and Book Signing from 4 to 6pm Please join Joanne Merriam for a reading from her steampunk Pride and Prejudice retelling, Aether and Ego Friday Special Blend 7:00am |
Octopus Books Readings and Signings Book signing The Politics of Lonely Why Is Friendship So Hard? 11am to 1pm Ottawa International Writers Festival Fall 2026 Edition Workshop: Making Words Visual with Amanda West Lewis 10:30am. Cory Doctorow 11am; Neil Griffin 1pm; Youth Workshop: Writing Graphic Novels with Amanda West Lewis Open to youth aged 12-18 1:30pm. Jackie Morris 2:30pm; Emily St. John Mandel 4pm; Margaret Sweatman, Ayad Akhtar and Michelle Good 6pm; Priya Guns, Dania Idriss and Vivek Shraya 8pm Ottawa StoryTellers Signature Series 2026/2027 Witches Walk Billings Estate National Historic Site 7:30 to 9:30pm $20 www.tickettailor.com/events/ottawastorytellers/2407596 Perfect Books Readings and Signings Piers Hemmingsen Book Signing 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM Re-read Used Books Readings and Signings Riverside South A Capital Mystery Volume 2 featuring Ross Wilson and Elizabeth Hosang 12-3pm Readings, Signings and Book Club Meetings at Evermore Books Book Signing with Zoé Duhaime from 1 to 3pm Join us at Evermore Books as we celebrate the release of The Lost Spectacular with author Zoé Duhaime! Stop by to meet Zoé, have your books signed, and celebrate her new book release with fellow readers! The Spaniel's Tale Readings and Signings Book signing - A Capital Mystery Vol 2 Matt Dodge and Art Pittman. 12 - 2pm Antiquarian Book Fair 10:00am 10am to 4pm. Ottawa Poets at Enriched Bread Artists Studio 2:00pm The Politics of Lonely: Why Is Friendship So Hard? Fundraiser for the Ottawa Trans Library 5:00pm |
| 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
| Ottawa International Writers Festival Fall 2026 Edition General Wayne Eyre 11:30am; Jesse Wente and Louise Bernice Halfe 1pm; Chris Hedges 2:30pm; Dina Del Bucchia, Frances Boyle and Isabel Bogdan 4pm. Nyla Matuk, Damian Barr and Marina Nemat 6pm; David Szalay and Patrick deWitt 8pm Re-read Used Books Readings and Signings Riverside South A. Iles book signing 11-2pm An Indian Morning 10:00am Antiquarian Book Fair 10:00am 10am to 3pm Stages and Pages 12:30pm Rogers v. Rogers: The Battle for Control of Canada's Telecom Empire Culture géniale 1:00pm (un)told - Ottawa StoryTellers 7:00pm Art-N-Tell 7:00pm |
The Spaniel's Tale Readings and Signings A Court of Splintered Harmony Midnight Release Party 9:30 PM - 12:00 AM N.G. Avant: Indie Author Group 1:00pm Art House Cafe Open Mic 7:00pm Namaashoum 7:00pm |
Perfect Books Readings and Signings Leigh Kotsilidis Book Launch with Anita Lahey and Kimberly Quiogue Andrews. 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM. Words and Culture 10:00am Live on Elgin Open Mic 8:00pm |
Perfect Books Readings and Signings A Celebration of Barochois by Cynthia French with Frances Boyle, Claudia Coutu Radmore, and Deborah Anne Tunney, and L.M. Rochefort. 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM The Spaniel's Tale Readings and Signings Book club: Eliza Sunshine by Michelle Good. RSVP on site. 7:30 PM - 8:30 PM The Lit Room with Susan Johnston 9:30am WitchLit Writer Wednesdays 12:00pm Women at the Centre A conversation with N.G. Avant about writing complex female characters with agency, ambition, flaws and power. Asian Sounds 6:00pm Night Oat Open Stage 7:00pm Ottawa Scrabble Club 7:00pm |
Indigo Pinecrest Readings and Signings Take Back the Witch: an Evening of Witchy Fiction with N.G. Avant and Tish Tish Black. Doors 5:45pm. 6-8pm $5. ticketscene.ca/events/65429/ Third World Players Present 6:00pm Nostalgica Pub Open Mic 8:00pm |
Friday Special Blend 7:00am | Perfect Books Readings and Signings Halloween Book Signing with Jennifer Chevalier, author of The Winter Witch 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM Stephanie Anne: Readings and Signings Indigo Author Signing & Halloween Event 12:00 pm - 3:00 pm Coles Carlingwood 2121 Carling Ave |