On Saturday, December 6, the Lynn Valley Library will host a special book sale for North Shore writers. The event runs from 3 to 5 p.m. in the Community Meeting Room. It is part of the annual North Shore Authors Collection, a program that highlights the work of local writers for a full year across all three public libraries: North Vancouver City Library, North Vancouver District Public Library, and West Vancouver Memorial Library.
The aim is simple. Connect local readers to local voices. Bring emerging and established writers into the spotlight. Celebrate the creative talent that lives right here on our streets.
Each year, selected authors are featured in a dedicated collection displayed across the three libraries. Their books—fiction, nonfiction, poetry, memoir, children’s literature—share a shelf for twelve months. The collection has grown steadily since its launch. It now stands as a symbol of the growing literary culture on the North Shore.
For this December sale, space has been made for twenty authors. Each author will have a table to display, promote, and sell their books. Writers will handle their own sales, while the libraries take care of posters, online promotion, and social media outreach. There will be Wi-Fi for electronic payments. There will be time to meet other writers. There will be conversations with readers who want to support local stories.
The North Shore News once described the call for submissions this way: “Consider yourself a whizz with words? The North Shore libraries have put out a call out for local authors to submit their books for this year’s North Shore Authors Collection, and your thriller, romance, sci-fi or fantasy fiction could be included.” The tone captures what the program has become—open, encouraging, and eager to welcome every kind of storyteller.
Now in its fourth year, the collection continues to show how diverse the writing community has become. Some books are set on the North Shore, shaped by the seawall or the forest. Others travel far from home but carry the spirit of the mountains and water with them. Together, they help readers build a deeper sense of place.
Authors have spoken openly about the impact of being included. Frances Peck, whose debut novel The Broken Places explores the aftermath of a natural disaster, said the collection helped her reach readers she never would have reached on her own. “In a world full of wonderful books, how can readers discover yours?” she said. “Being in the North Shore Authors Collection gave my first novel a noticeable local boost.”
Her novel went on to be named one of The Globe and Mail’s best books of 2022 and was shortlisted for the 2023 Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize. But for her, the most meaningful part was the community. “Participating in the collection allowed me to connect with readers at a book club meeting… Now she is one of my writer friends, so not only did I gain readers, I widened my professional network.”
This is what the North Shore Authors Collection is built on—connection, discovery, and the belief that local stories matter. On December 6, the community gathers again to celebrate that belief. And every book on every table will be a reminder of the talent growing right here at home.
Article by Vansh Malhotra
