SPARKS Literary Festival returns to St. John’s with celebrated authors and free public events
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The SPARKS Literary Festival returns April 25-26 at Memorial University’s R. Gushue Hall, offering a weekend of readings, workshops and conversations with some of today’s most compelling literary voices.
Unique in the St. John’s area, SPARKS brings together emerging and established writers from Newfoundland and Labrador, alongside acclaimed visiting authors from across Canada and beyond.
This year’s visiting authors include Irish writer Lisa McInerney, winner of the Women’s Prize for Fiction; Otoniya J. Okot Bitek, a finalist for the 2025 Atwood Gibson Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize; and Monique Polak, a two-time winner of the Quebec Writers’ Federation Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature.
They will be joined by a strong lineup of local writers, including Angela Antle, winner of the 2026 Winterset Award; Sharon Bala, winner of the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction; and Labrador’s Kayla Williams, whose book Labrador Skies was named one of CBC’s best Canadian children’s books of 2025.
The festival begins Saturday, April 25, with a full day of free public workshops.
On Sunday, April 26, audiences are invited to attend readings and panel discussions exploring topics such as parenthood and social justice.
All events are free and open to the public, with no tickets or registration required.
Books by participating authors will be available for purchase on site. Parking at R. Gushue Hall on the St. John’s campus is free.
SPARKS is organized by Memorial University’s Department of English and Communications and Media Studies, with support from the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Writers NL, the Irish Newfoundland Association and the Landfall Trust.
Full event details are available on the SPARKS Literary Festival website.
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For more information, please contact Joshua Goudie, communications advisor, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Memorial University, at joshuag@mun.ca or 709-864-8292.