ottawa small press book fair, spring 2023

an invitation

If you are in Ottawa n Saturday, June 17, 2023 or if you need a reason to come, I invite you to take in the ottawa small press book fair, which happens from from noon to five pm at the Jack Purcell Community Centre, 320 Jack Purcell Lane, Room 2023. Jack Purcell has a small elevator and accessible washrooms.

It is a free event organized by SPANO, the small press action network, begun by rob mclennan and James Spyker in 1994, which means it will be 30 years old in 2024! rob has continued to run the fair twice yearly, with the exception of the height of the pandemic, since that time.

it’s an extraordinary experience. Charles and I have tabled since 2002, first for Friday Circle, a University of Ottawa chapbook press, then for Bywords.ca, which we continue to have a table for, and since 2007 for AngelHousePress.

This spring, at the AngelHousePress half-table, I am offering a limited edition of 10 surprise hand-painted envelopes. Each envelope contains chapbooks published by AngelHousePress or DevilHouse, our transgressive prose imprint, chapbooks of my own work, and small magazines containing my work. The envelope also contains limited edition one of a kind hand-stitched, hand-written, hand-doodled, hand-painted works by yours truly, in editions of one. I am asking you to pay what you like. All money raised will go to the Cornerstone Housing for Women organization, which provides shelter and support to homeless women in Ottawa and has been a charity near and dear to my heart for many years.

If you can’t attend on Saturday, but would like to help, you can visit Cornerstone Housing for Women and donate directly.

the ottawa small press book fair often has a plethora of small presses and independent publishers who bring all kinds of great stuff: books, zines, letterpress work, graphic comics, posters, buttons, bookmarks, handpainted cards, candy. Some years we’ve even had impromptu performances of music or performance of sound poetry.

A few days earlier, on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, the pre-fair reading will take place at the Ten Toes Cafe and Laundromat, 837 Somerset W. The event will feature readings by Jennifer Baker, David Currie, Vera Hadzic, rob mclennan, Pearl Pirie
with doors opening at 7pm and the event taking place at 7:30pm. To my knowledge this isn’t an accessible venue.